Related Link President Duterte: historian-in-chief

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte is never one to hold back, especially with words.

When criticized, he often fires back with his own verbal ammunition. And his frequent target has been the United States, which, as he has repeatedly said, is in no place to criticize him for violating human rights because of its own history of atrocities against Filipinos. For Duterte, that history stretches all the way back to the 1900s, when Filipinos fought for independence from U.S. control.

Duterte dredged up one such piece of history during his second State of the Nation address on Monday.

It was about three church bells that American troops took as spoils of war after burning down Balangiga, a small seaside village on the island of Samar in the Visayas region of the Philippines, in retaliation against Filipino guerrillas. One of the bronze bells was taken to a military museum in South Korea. The other two have been on display at Francis E. Warren Air Force Base near Cheyenne, Wyo.