Anti-Trump GOP Elector From Texas Stands by Claims He Was a 9/11 First Responder

The Texas elector who has made headlines for saying he won't vote for Donald Trump is standing by his claims that he served as a first responder on Sept. 11, 2001.Christopher Suprun has said for years that he worked as a firefighter at the Pentagon after it was targeted on 9/11, but WFAA-TV (Channel 8) has reported it cannot confirm he was a first responder.In a written statement Friday, Suprun defended himself, saying he "was part of the response to the Pentagon attacks, as a member of the Dale City fire department in northern Virginia."WFAA quoted an anonymous source who said he is a first responder who knows Suprun and believes his assertions are false. "He claimed to be a first responder with the Manassas Park [Virginia] Fire Department on September 11, 2001 and personally told us stories 'I was fighting fire that day at the Pentagon.' No, I was on a medic unit that day at the Pentagon and you make a phone call to Manassas Park and you find out that he wasn't even employed there until October 2001," the anonymous source said.In its report, WFAA said the city of Manassas Park confirmed that it hired Suprun a month after 9/11 and that the department never responded to any of the 9/11 attack sites. Suprun spoke to Dallas Morning News reporter Robert Wilonsky about the criticism he has received since announcing in a New York Times column that he wouldn't vote for Trump Monday. In the Op-Ed, Suprun referred to his resume and his work as a firefighter after the terrorist attacks 15 years ago.The WFAA report also called into question other parts of Suprun's resume. He has said he is a paramedic with Freedom EMS in Dallas, but records from the Texas Department of State Health Services show there is no such company, according to WFAA.Federal court records show he has been in bankruptcy recently and collected unemployment while his resume indicates he has been working. Just this month Suprun was released from bankruptcy supervision, court records show.Questions about Suprun's credibility have raised concerns about the relatively informal selection process for presidential electors.   Continue reading...