NEW -- Trump wants Eddie Gallagher to campaign alongside him in 2020 (Not the Onion)

[MelissaB]

NEW -- Trump wants Eddie Gallagher to campaign alongside him in 2020

Link to tweet

Trump Tells Allies He Wants Absolved War Criminals to Campaign for Him

Fallout from the clemency cost the Navy secretary Richard Spencer his job, but a former Pentagon deputy chief backs the ousted official.

If Donald Trump gets his wish, he’ll soon take the three convicted or accused war criminals he spared from consequence on the road as special guests in his reelection campaign, according to two sources who have heard Trump discuss their potential roles for the 2020 effort.

Despite military and international backlash to Trump’s Nov. 15 clemency – fallout from which cost Navy Secretary Richard Spencer his job on Sunday – Trump believes he has rectified major injustices. Two people tell The Daily Beast they’ve heard Trump talk about how he’d like to have the now-cleared Clint Lorance, Matthew Golsteyn, or Edward Gallagher show up at his 2020 rallies, or even have a moment on stage at his renomination convention in Charlotte next year. Right-wing media has portrayed all three as martyrs brought down by “political correctness” within the military.

“He briefly discussed making it a big deal at the convention,” said one of these sources, who requested anonymity to talk about private conversations. “The president made a reference to the 2016 [convention] and where they brought on-stage heroes” like former Navy SEAL Marcus Luttrell, who refused to execute detained civilians ahead of a devastating Taliban attack.

Former Army Lt. Lorance was sentenced to 19 years in prison in 2013 for murder after ordering his soldiers in 2010 to fire on three unarmed Afghan men riding a motorcycle, killing two of them. He walked out of military prison at Fort Leavenworth on Nov. 15. Next month, former Green Beret Maj. Golsteyn was supposed to stand trial for the murder of an unarmed Afghan man whom he told the CIA he killed in the belief the man was a Taliban bombmaker. Golsteyn, who burned the man’s corpse, pleaded not guilty to the murder; the Green Berets stripped Golsteyn of his Special-Forces tab. Lorance and Golsteyn were both causes celebre in certain military circles and among their right-wing supporters, as was Navy SEAL Chief Gallagher.

More: https://www.thedailybeast.com/trump-tells-allies-he-wants-absolved-war-criminals-to-campaign-for-him

[blogslut]

1. I'm so sick of this heel

[UniteFightBack]

2. He probably likes 'his look'...therefore he has 'cast' him in this role. Plus the guy I'm sure will

lap his ass up as well.

[Iliyah]

3. Backfire city . . .

shithole always spew total hatred.

[enough]

4. Why not? His lawyer already works for Trump Inc.

And the magats will love it.

[hedda_foil]

5. God help us if the creature wins another term. He'll put this monster in charge of the gestapo.

[LiberalFighter]

6. So the media can have something like this for their headlines.

War Criminals Endorse Trump

War Criminals Campaign for Trump

Trump Okay with War Criminals in the Military.

[LeftInTX]

7. Of course!! Enlisted officers are rejoicing over this.

They don't care about war crimes.

[dalton99a]

8. Pissing on war heroes and glorifying bloodthirsty sadistic war criminals

Another witness, Joshua Vriens, said on another day that he saw Gallagher shoot at a group of adolescent girls in floral hijabs, hitting one in the stomach and sending two scattering.

Vriens said he watched through his scope as a fourth girl dragged the wounded girl over a berm and under a bridge to escape.

https://www.navytimes.com/news/your-navy/2019/06/22/witnesses-eddie-gallagher-shot-civilians-in-iraq/

[msongs]

9. the new messiah and his first 3 disciples. keep your women away from this quartet nt

[badhair77]

10. I'm surprised trump didn't name Gallagher to be Sec of the Navy.

[dalton99a]

11. Trump will give him a Presidential Medal of Freedom with Distinction.

[badhair77]

12. You're probably right.

This idea sickens me but the reality is he would think it is fine. Fox and Friends would have to weigh in on it first.