You can see in this 2011 video, when Cotton was a Congressional candidate, he plainly states at 2:26, “the desire to serve never left so I did join the Army, and became an infantry officer and an Army Ranger.”
Um, no he didn’t.
Salon’s Roger Sollenberger, who found several other instances of Cotton making the false claim, has the scoop:
Cotton attended the Ranger School, a two-month-long, small-unit tactical infantry course that literally anyone in the military is eligible attend. Soldiers who complete the course earn the right to wear the Ranger tab — a small arch that reads "Ranger" — but in the eyes of the military, that does not make them an actual Army Ranger.
When caught, Cotton’s spokeswoman went full Kayleigh McEnany:
Reached for comment, Cotton spokesperson Caroline Tabler told Salon in an email, "Senator Cotton graduated from Ranger school and is more of a Ranger than a Salon reporter like you will ever be." (It is not immediately clear whether Tabler herself is a Ranger, or whether she graduated from Ranger school. Further, Tabler, a spokesperson for Cotton's Senate office, copied the office's chief of staff, Doug Coutts, on the email, but to a Cotton campaign address; senate offices may not coordinate with campaigns. Tabler asked to arrange an off-the-record call in that email; Salon declined, citing the unfavorable terms.)
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