WHEN Tesla bomber Matthew Livelsberger began the New Year by blowing himself up in front of one of Donald Trump’s hotels, the watching world was shocked. 

The suicide with possible political links – coming just hours after the horrific terrorist attack in New Orleans that killed 14 innocent people – fueled fears of violence just one day into 2025. 

MILITARY HELL

But for Michael L. Taylor, a former Green Beret like Livelsberger, the overriding feeling was pure and utter sympathy. 

Taylor was in the same regiment as the bomber, so he knows what hell elite fighters endure on treacherous overseas missions in some of the most dangerous countries on earth.

“In the military and special forces specifically, you’re exposed to the worst of mankind in wars and battles,” Taylor told The U.S Sun in a revealing interview. 

“Your body pays a very high price for that — both physically and mentally.”

Taylor saw the nightmare unfold and could only come to one conclusion: his fellow elite soldier, like so many of his fellow elite soldiers, was suffering from severe PTSD.

He knows if the 37-year-old was in his right mind, there was “no way” he would have driven a Tesla truck packed full of explosives and shot himself in the head after triggering the detonation in what was perceived by some as a twisted political statement.

“I feel for the guy,” he continued. “It’s too bad someone didn’t recognize what was happening and help him sooner.”

PRESIDENTIAL PUSH

Former Marine Jonathan Phillips told The U.S. Sun before Donald Trump’s return to the White House earlier this week about the deplorable lack of help available for him and many of his colleagues once they return from the battlefield. 

Phillips welcomed Trump’s return after the incoming president helped push through the VA Choice bill in 2017 to assist veterans with appropriate private medical assistance once their service days ended during his first term in the White House.

Taylor, who served on multiple tours to the Middle East, has also seen firsthand how soldiers suffer.

He says 22 veterans die by suicide every single day. A Department of Veteran Affairs report places it at 17 a day – a smaller figure but one remaining way too high.

Taylor, whose arrest after aiding a high-powered businessman’s escape from Japan in a crate is being turned into a film, believes the situation highlights that “something is wrong.”

“That’s over 8,000 a year, and the number is increasing. This isn’t new—it happens every day,” he stressed about the harrowing situation suffered by too many of his brave, courageous colleagues.

“Unfortunately, with everything else going on in the world, it gets overshadowed by politics and other issues. Nobody is helping them, and that’s a real problem.”

HORRIFIC ATTACK IN LAS VEGAS

Cops confirmed the shocking blast outside the Trump Hotel just off the Las Vegas strip was a tragic suicide.

The incident involved a deadly mix of fireworks, gas tanks, and camping fuel, leaving the area rattled and investigators piecing together the tragic scene.

The 37-year-old Green Beret, who was reportedly battling depression but never flagged as a risk, left behind two chilling letters.

In them, he exposed deep political frustrations and personal demons, including crippling guilt over the lives he took during his military service.

“He’s a guy with a mental illness — PTSD,” Taylor said.

“He wasn’t himself. He’d never have done what he did if he were himself.”

“The fact that he didn’t destroy a big structure or kill anyone shows he was truly trying to send a message.

“This guy is a demolition expert—he knows how to take down a building like the Trump building and kill lots of people if he wants to.

“But he didn’t. His objective wasn’t to harm people. Even through his mental illness, he was still trying to protect people.”

COMPASSION FOR A COMRADE

Livelsberger spent 19 years in the Army and joined the elite Green Beret unit in 2006.

He was a decorated war veteran who was hailed for his courage during multiple tours in Afghanistan.

But bombshell final letters revealed his fury at America’s “spectacle-obsessed” culture and a dire warning of looming collapse.

He praised Trump and billionaire Elon Musk as the country’s saving grace in between a sinister call for violent political action to kick Democrats out of power.

The rented Cybertruck was ram-packed with fireworks. Authorities, meanwhile, remain baffled, calling it a “wake-up call” from a tortured soul battling destructive inner demons.

Taylor felt his pain. 

He recalls seeing fellow heroes suffer inexorably from many issues sparked by their bodies and minds being put on the line in the name of freedom.

He says some would display signs of a “scrambled mind,” from forgetting words mid-sentence to completely losing track of what they were discussing.

Others would become lost too quickly and forget where they were going. 

“When I was younger in special forces, I worked with older guys who had fought in Vietnam. Sometimes, when we were sleeping in the field, they’d jump up in the middle of the night with a ‘frightmare,’ ready to kill everyone around them.

“Those are the ones you notice. But there are others you don’t recognize until it’s too late. We’re not necessarily trained to identify mental health issues. Most of us probably have PTSD to some level, but we just push through.”

While it’s too late to help someone like Livelsberger – his remains were so severely burned, he was only identifiable via a tattoo on his arm – Taylor wants a greater emphasis on helping soldiers who return from war zones and attempt to reintegrate themselves into society. 

He wants more qualified professionals who understand PTSD and mental health issues, as well as more support from the authorities involved. 

“The VA often denies disability claims for PTSD, which is infuriating. They’ll claim someone wasn’t in a combat zone when they were — it’s absurd.

“There’s too much incompetence and not enough real, qualified help for veterans with PTSD or those who don’t even realize they have it. Things have to change.”

If you or someone you know is affected by any of the issues raised in this story, call or text the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988, chat on 988lifeline.org, or text Crisis Text Line at 741741.