North Carolina GOP Can’t Differentiate Between Honduras Flag and Blue Star Service Pin

U.S. Vice President nominee Tim Kaine wearing the pin as he delivers remarks on the third day of the Democratic National Convention at the Wells Fargo Center on July 27, 2016 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

By NAN Contributor

News Americas, RALEIGH, NC, Fri. July 29, 2016: The North Carolina GOP arm has egg on its face after being forced to apologize for ignorantly claiming Democratic Vice-Presidential candidate Tim Kaine was wearing a flag pin of Honduras during his national address Wednesday night.

The state party arm was quick to slam Senator Kaine for being “shameful.”

“[Tim Kaine] wears a Honduras flag pin on his jacket but no American flag,” the state party tweeted as the VP nominee was speaking. “Shameful.”

But it turns out the pin Kaine was wearing was not of the Honduras flag but the symbol for Blue Star Service flag pin. The Honduras flag features three horizontal bands of blue, white, and blue. Centered on the white stripe in the middle are five, five-pointed stars forming an H while the Blue Star Service flag pin, an official flag or banner that family members wear or display to represent enlisted military personnel in harm’s way, has a single blue star on a white background with red stripes.

The Honduras flag.

Senator Kaine’s son is serving in the marine’s and recently shipped out to serve in Europe.

After being informed of their error by reporter Ben Amey, the head of the North Carolina GOP, Dallas Woodhouse, tweeted late Thursday morning with a general apology and said “corrective action” had been taken.

He later released a fuller statement Thursday afternoon offering “our sincere and unqualified apology” to Kaine, his family and his son abroad.

“The tweet was wrong on the facts, wrong in tone and should not have happened,” Woodhouse wrote. “The members of the staff that were invoked are facing severe internal sanctions and mandatory retraining.”