Joe Biden has always made a point of praising the United States military. He’s singled out the bravery that the men and women who have served displayed, and is quick to honor veterans with lavish ceremonies.
The question of whether or not President Biden served, however, has been a point of contention. Donald Trump once claimed that Biden lied about his military service, which is something that has been propagated and used against the President by his detractors. The truth, however, is far less complicated. It is, however, slightly more tragic.
Why didn’t Joe Biden serve in the military?
Joe Biden came of age during the Vietnam War, but he never officially served in the military. The future President received five student draft deferments as an undergraduate at the University of Delaware and later on as a law student at Syracuse University. These deferments were released to the public courtesy of the Selective Service System in 2008. Biden was running for Vice President at the time (in a race he’d eventually win), and wanted to clarify the circumstances that led to him not serving.
In 1968, Biden was designated “1-Y,” which meant he’d only be drafted in the event of a national emergency. The primary reason why he received this designation was because he suffered from asthma as a teenager. Joe Biden’s lack of military experience was actually a talking point in the lead up to the 2020 election. Journalists pointed out that Biden’s victory made him one of only nineteen men who were elected President without having served in the military in some form.
Despite his lack of experience, Biden has maintained that the Vietnam War had a profound impact on his worldview. During a 2024 interview with Univision, the President claimed that Vietnam has informed his desire to avoid global conflicts:
I hope the legacy is that I kept my word, that – I said that the reason I was running was to help the life of ordinary people and reduce the prospect of war and… Because of Vietnam.
Did Joe Biden’s family serve in the military?
Joe Biden did not serve in the military, but his oldest son, Beau, did. Beau joined the Delaware Army National Guard in 2003, according to the Los Angeles Times. He eventually achieved the rank of major in Judge Advocate General’s Corps, and was sent to Texas for deployment training on October 3, 2008. The day before, Joe Biden participated in a Vice Presidential debate against Sarah Palin. The elder Biden did not want to see Beau head into combat, but he did not attempt pulling strings to protect his son. He respected Beau’s wishes, and was praised by many for his decision.
Beau Biden was deployed to Iraq in January 2009, where he would serve a 7 month stint in the combat zone. He returned in September, and was awarded the Bronze Star Medal for his service. Beau planned to follow in his dad’s footsteps, and run as the Democratic nomination for governor of Delaware, but his plans were cut short by a Glioblastoma diagnosis in 2015. Glioblastoma is the most aggressive form of cancer found in the brain, according to the National Library of Medicine. Beau died on May 30, 2015 at the age of 46.
Biden made reference to his late son during a 2024 presidential rally. He criticized his opponent, Donald Trump, for making disparaging comments about those who served in the military. “They asked [Trump] to go visit American gravesites,” Biden told the crowd. “He said, ‘No.’ He wouldn’t do it… That man doesn’t deserve to have been the commander in chief for my son.”