Senator Blumenthal Attacks Dr. Malone; Stolen vs. Earned Valor?

Introduction: Stolen Valor in Politics
Once again, Senator Richard Blumenthal sits in Washington, safe and secure. In 2008, he told veterans, “We have learned something important since the days that I served in Vietnam,” The truth is different:
In 1970, with his last deferment in jeopardy, he landed a coveted spot in the Marine Reserve, which virtually guaranteed that he would not be sent to Vietnam. He joined a unit in Washington that conducted drills and other exercises and focused on local projects, like fixing a campground and organizing a Toys for Tots drive.
In 2003, Blumenthal told Iraq- / Afghanistan-vets , “When we returned, we saw nothing like this”. These lies represent stolen valor. Early on, Blumenthal must have taken George Burns’ snarky “The key to success is sincerity. If you can fake that you've got it made” to heart – at least enough to convince voters, and his staff. In 2004, his aide insisted:
“A lot of politicians like to tell you the war stories. He’s not that way. He doesn’t sit around and rehash his old accomplishments. He almost doesn’t care what he did yesterday.”
Blumenthal's Attack on Malone – A Modern Drive-By
Now, from that same, safe DC perch, again he steals valor: this time that validly earned by Dr. Robert W. Malone – in a DC swamp -version of a “drive-by shooting”, effectively the Pelosi wrapup smear: propagation-by-press of mischaracterization, misrepresentation, misinformation – to effect defamation; ultimately character assassination and political goal(s).
In August 2025, Blumenthal weaponized this tragedy:
“A disturbed gunman opened fire at the CDC. A Georgia man who had blamed the COVID-19 vaccine for making him depressed and suicidal opened fire late Friday, killing a police officer. No one at CDC was injured.”
with this press release:

“Random”, “senseless”, “deranged” describe the perpetrator’s actions, but also possibly Sen. Blumenthal’s-- as he suddenly seized upon the event: casting it as Dr. Robert W Malone’s lighting the fuse (a neat Svengalian feat, if accomplished telepathically, between Malone’s blogging; researching; advising; -- and tilling Virginia soil). Blumenthal anachronistically and (oxy)moronically pointed to a meme -- a joke (unrelatedly) Malone had posted hours earlier -- as if satire triggered the triggerman.

Malone recounts, “(Blumenthal) basically accused me of thought pre-crime (because I had posted that particular meme at ten-thirty in the morning when the shooting occurred at five PM).”
Blumenthal (at best) is picking up the worst aspects of the “heckler’s veto”; willfully and disingenuously twisting free speech and satire: both because so often he is the brunt of it– and perhaps intends to ‘jujitsu’ his pain into onto others.
Blumenthal (at worst) is committing a federal crime. Blumenthal’s Harvard magna cum laude translates merely as real-world dunce cap if he is either unable (or unwilling) to distinguish satire from threat. “Apparently, based on Senator Blumenthal’s attacks on me, I would say he’s also an opponent of the First Amendment,” Malone said. “Because this is just free speech and moreover, it’s humor -- the last bastion in a tyranny of freedom of speech for free people.”
Blumenthal's attack isn't isolated—it's part of a pattern of silencing skeptics who question vaccine research and public health orthodoxy. By targeting Malone, a volunteer ACIP member appointed by HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Blumenthal may be defending the status quo that benefits pharmaceutical giants and bureaucratic insiders. Malone,an advocate for rigorous, transparent science, represents a threat to this system. Malone’s ACIP critiques of selective data practices in vaccine recommendations expose systemic biases -- deflections with which Blumenthal’s attack aligns, potentially shielding entrenched interests wary of vaccine skepticism.