I think this brother right here walked right past McConnell and did NOT shake his hand!!! Wow! @DrJasonJohnson @Bakari_Sellers @angela_rye @CNN @rolandsmartin pic.twitter.com/dkSyeLjPtp
— Moni jay (@akajd31) October 24, 2019
Rankin’s brother, Jerry, died last October from cancer after being exposed to contaminated water while serving in the Marines at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina. Jerry did not receive the veterans’ benefits he was owed before he died, Rankin said — and he blamed McConnell in part for that family tragedy.
“Elijah Cummings reached across party lines trying to help my brother get his military benefits, and Mitch McConnell was one of the persons he reached out to,†Rankin said.
(snip)
Rankin said his brother was diagnosed with multiple myeloma, a cancer that causes malignant cells to accumulate in a person’s bone marrow, more than a decade ago, after leaving the Marines. Multiple myeloma is one of 15 health conditions linked to Camp Lejeune’s tainted drinking water, which contained industrial solvents, benzene and other chemicals for roughly 30 years beginning in the 1950s, according to the Department of Veterans Affairs. Veterans who were exposed to the water and later developed any of the conditions can qualify for benefits, including free health care and disability compensation, VA said.
“I could not put my hands in the man’s hand who refused to help somebody who served his country,†Rankin said, later adding, “I couldn’t do it, because I was thinking about my brother.â€