In firing Richard Spencer, Trump recklessly crosses another line
Trumps attempt to manipulate military justice had a sorry outcome Sunday with the firing of Navy Secretary Richard V. Spencer. For the past nine months, Spencer had tried to dissuade Trump from dictating special treatment for Navy SEAL Edward Gallagher but in the end Spencer was sacked for his efforts to protect his service.
With Spencers firing, Trump has recklessly crossed a line he had generally observed before, which had exempted the military from his belligerent, government-by-tweet interference. But the Gallagher case illustrates how an irascible, vengeful commander in chief is ready to override traditional limits to aid political allies in foreign policy, law enforcement and now military matters.
Spencer was fired by Defense Secretary Mark T. Esper late Sunday, supposedly because Esper was deeply troubled that Spencer had tried to work out a private deal with the White House that would avoid a direct presidential order scuttling a scheduled SEAL peer-review process. That panel was set to determine whether Gallagher would keep his coveted Trident pin, marking him as a SEAL, after he was convicted in July for posing in a trophy photo with the corpse of a Islamic State captive.
Spencer had tried to find a compromise, sources tell me, after Trump tweeted Thursday, The Navy will NOT be taking away Warfighter and Navy Seal Eddie Gallaghers Trident Pin. Spencer feared that a direct order from Trump to protect Gallagher, who is represented by two former partners of Trumps personal attorney Rudolph W. Giuliani, would be seen as subverting military justice.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2019/11/24/firing-richard-spencer-trump-recklessly-crosses-another-line/?utm_campaign=opinions_saturday&utm_medium=Email&utm_source=Newsletter&wpisrc=nl_opinions&wpmm=1#comments-wrapper
Farmer-Rick
(10,170 posts)Trump is subverting our democracy and constitution. Why should the Navy or any of the military branches be spared the same attacks?
Trump is subverting the UCMJ and military chain of command. If the commanding officer, or the Commander in Chief, has to be there to give commands, what happens when they are not available to make the decision?
So the next time an Admiral gives an order to a Chief, does the Chief then check with Fox or the White House to find out if he really has to follow that order? Why Not? It worked for the murdering Seal.
Iliyah
(25,111 posts)The Kurds, and what else has been done in the name of the USA. Shithole is making us less safe and I believe it is intentional.
At this point, he is losing the military, suburbs, and many of rural America.
Shithole again will be relying on Russia and other countries with the help of Republicans to steal the election.
We must come out a huge numbers and vote.
woodsprite
(11,914 posts)kimbutgar
(21,148 posts)And has a more powerful defense against Russia. Of course Putin told him to weaken the navy.
SCantiGOP
(13,869 posts)for all of the military voters and their families:
Does Trump actually know more than the Generals? Yes or No?
duforsure
(11,885 posts)And has done this over and over again to install his corrupt loyalists for him and Putin to use as a weapon against us from within.