University of South Carolina President Bob Caslen linked criticism of his significant military resume to a misunderstanding and applauded the young veterans running for president with helping to reshape civilians’ idea of the military.
Caslen was voted in as president in July despite student protests and calls from local lawmakers to restart the process with a new group of candidates. Students largely opposed him because of comments he made about sexual assault during an April forum, because he was not a diverse candidate and because he does not hold doctorate.
Some students, although not the majority, objected to his past involvement in the military, including serving in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, a critique the lieutenant general said he would not defend himself against.
