Former Rare Staff
President Trump spoke at the Boy Scouts of America’s annual National Jamboree in West Virginia. His speech attracted negative reviews after he used profanity, spoke excessively about his perceived political enemies and encouraged the crowd to boo former President Obama, despite the nonpartisan nature of the organization.
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Chief Scout Executive Michael Surbaugh had much to say about the incident in a Thursday statement.
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There, Surbaugh apologized for the partisan nature of the president’s speech:
I want to extend my sincere apologies to those in our Scouting family who were offended by the political rhetoric that was inserted into the jamboree. That was never our intent. The invitation for the sitting U.S. President to visit the National Jamboree is a long-standing tradition that has been extended to the leader of our nation that has had a Jamboree during his term since 1937. It is in no way an endorsement of any person, party or policies. For years, people have called upon us to take a position on political issues, and we have steadfastly remained non-partisan and refused to comment on political matters. We sincerely regret that politics were inserted into the Scouting program.
He finished by calling for togetherness in the midst of divisive political times.
