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2019-11-28 Home Front: Politix

Ex-Navy secretary slams Trump's 'shocking and unprecedented intervention' in new op-ed

[The Hill] Former Navy Secretary Richard Spencer on Wednesday admonished President Trump for repeatedly involving himself in an internal review of a Navy SEAL whose case led to controversy and Spencer's ouster over the weekend.

Spencer penned an op-ed in The Washington Post in which he laid out multiple instances in which Trump attempted to intervene in a military review of Chief Petty Officer Edward Gallagher, who was accused and later acquitted of several war crimes.

"This was a shocking and unprecedented intervention in a low-level review," Spencer wrote. "It was also a reminder that the president has very little understanding of what it means to be in the military, to fight ethically or to be governed by a uniform set of rules and practices."

Spencer called it "highly irregular" for senior military officials to be involved in personnel matters. But he described how Trump "involved himself in the case almost from the start."

The former secretary wrote that the president called him twice to request Gallagher be released from confinement in the Navy brig while he awaited trial. Trump later asked Spencer to have Gallagher transferred.

The ex-secretary attributed Trump's intense interest in the case to its prominence in the media.

Gallagher was convicted earlier this year of one charge of posing with an ISIS captive’s body. He was acquitted on more serious charges related to an incident in which he allegedly shot at several civilians during a 2017 deployment and killed the ISIS captive, who was already injured, with a hunting knife.

Earlier this month, Spencer wrote to Trump asking him not to get involved in the review of whether Gallagher would retain his rank and status as a member of the SEAL force, according to the op-ed. But he said White House counsel Pat Cipollone later called to say Trump would order him to restore Gallagher's rank.

A week later, Trump tweeted that Gallagher would keep his Trident pin and subsequently retain his status as a SEAL.

"I recognized that the tweet revealed the president’s intent," Spencer wrote Wednesday. "But I did not believe it to be an official order, chiefly because every action taken by the president in the case so far had either been a verbal or written command."

Spencer acknowledged that he sought to find a workaround with the White House without consulting Defense Secretary Mark Esper, a decision that ultimately contributed to his ouster from the administration.

"That was, I see in retrospect, a mistake for which I am solely responsible," Spencer wrote.
But, but, but.... nobody fires MEEEEEE !!!
Trump invoked the controversy during a rally Tuesday in Florida, portraying those opposed to his pardon of Gallagher and grant of clemency for two others involved in war crimes cases as members of the "deep state."

"I will always stick up for our great fighters," he said. "People can sit there in air-conditioned offices and complain, but you know what? Doesn’t matter to me whatsoever."

Posted by Besoeker 2019-11-28 09:35|| || Front Page|| [11 views ] Top

#1 The President of the United States (POTUS) is of course The Commander In Chief. He can pardon whomever he wants. Like any other lawful order, his pardon is an order which must be followed. Orders should not be a matter of debate, they must be followed. Liking or disliking the order is optional. Subverting the order, or failing to carry it out are not.

The onerous Soetoro pardoned dozens of murderous Taliban varmints and released them from GITMO. Thanks to Soetoro, they immediately returned to their old jobs in the Stans, murdering and pillaging. The fact that they returned to their old jobs is indisputable.

As expected, the liberal media didn't make much of the Soetoro pardons.

By the way, I have no use for men taking fotos of dead enemy combatants, or for alleged UBL... 'face shooter' and sometimes FOX teevee guest, former USN SEAL Rob O'Neill. Nor do I have much use for any of the other book writers and story tellers. Men who talk about such exploits and take pictures are crude, vulgar, and lack professionalism.

Remember the old fellas from 'the greatest generation?' Many refused to talk about the war until much later in life. Some never spoke of it at all. Those are the "quiet professionals" the real warriors. Perhaps you have known or have served with some of those fellows. Perhaps you are one.

Just my two cents worth. Please excuse the lengthy rant.

Posted by Besoeker 2019-11-28 09:41|| 2019-11-28 09:41|| Front Page Top

#2 An Op-ed. Well, I guess THAT will put Trump in his place!

Posted by Tom 2019-11-28 10:09|| 2019-11-28 10:09|| Front Page Top

#3 That was, I see in retrospect, a mistake

Your mistake was voicing your opinion in the first goddamn place. Once the Chief merely indicates he wants a thing a certain way, you embrace the suck and don't have a second thought. No army worth its MREs can function with a 'democratic' ethos; where everybody can question orders, rat on brothers, and seek redress for imagined outrages on the enemy.

Posted by Dron66046 2019-11-28 10:21|| 2019-11-28 10:21|| Front Page Top

#4 Let me see if I grasp the story correctly.
They wanted to convict this chap Gallagher of murder (probably as PR stunt) failed and used a trivial technicality - betcha lots of GI took pix with dead Talibs and brass looked the other way - as an excuse to get revenge for making fools of them.
Am I correct?

Posted by g(r)omgoru 2019-11-28 10:28|| 2019-11-28 10:28|| Front Page Top

#5 I think his fellows had the smaller dick syndrome with this one. He was 'a difficult guy' even before this whole thing and they just wanted him gone from the team. His infantile slip just gave them the chance.

The way they went about it was still better than some other people have in the past. I'm afraid we have just witnessed an attempted 21st century 'career fragging' attempt.

Posted by Dron66046 2019-11-28 10:39|| 2019-11-28 10:39|| Front Page Top

#6 Well, that didn't take long.

"I recognized that the tweet revealed the president’s intent," Spencer wrote Wednesday. "But I did not believe it to be an official order,

tl;dr: Spencer's claim that he didn't get an 'order order' is BS.

One of the interesting aspects of the US military is that even though it is a hierarchical organization, it pushes a lot of decision-making capability down to lower levels, which gives it flexibility when unexpected events occur in war - which is pretty much all the time. This allows it to run rings around a top-down organization like Saddam's army, for example.

A consequence of pushing decision-making down is that everyone is supposed to know their commander's intent two levels up the food chain. Spencer's claim that he knew the CinC's intent but didn't have a written order is simply ass-covering. If you are unsure, pick up the damn phone.

/disclaimer: not a mil guy, just on the outside looking in.

Posted by SteveS 2019-11-28 10:57|| 2019-11-28 10:57|| Front Page Top

#7 What Besoeker said. In our age of nonstop noise and self-advertising, where No Thought However Foolish Can Go Unexpressed, the quiet professionals might as well not exist.

Whatever presence they have in the physical world is completely overshadowed by our virtual world's braying donkeys and smirk-snarling hyenas.

Posted by Lex 2019-11-28 11:09|| 2019-11-28 11:09|| Front Page Top

#8 Yeah blah blah blah, but deep down you and everybody you care about knows you were fired for insubordination

Posted by Regular joe 2019-11-28 13:43|| 2019-11-28 13:43|| Front Page Top

#9 We exchanged prisoners for the deserter Bowe Bergdahl under Obama.

Spencer's beef is that we should only go easy on traitors.

Posted by charger 2019-11-28 13:56|| 2019-11-28 13:56|| Front Page Top

#10 And isn't it interesting how these swamp creatures always have an editorial ready to go under these circumstances?

Posted by charger 2019-11-28 13:57|| 2019-11-28 13:57|| Front Page Top

#11 Nancy going to invite him to address the House?

Posted by Procopius2k 2019-11-28 15:38|| 2019-11-28 15:38|| Front Page Top

#12 "People can sit there in air-conditioned offices and complain, but you know what? Doesn’t matter to me whatsoever."

Is it me or is he not aware of the irony in that statement.
Also, as a veteran who has been on the receiving end of a Captain's Mast for not following a senior officer's "suggestion". I can assure you that Mr. Used-To-Be SecNav is wrong! I second what everybody else has said, hear it then do it.

Posted by AlmostAnonymous5839 2019-11-28 17:13|| 2019-11-28 17:13|| Front Page Top

#13 I'm in no position to judge military affairs, but people claiming "The silent professionals" just irritate me. Yes, plenty of soldiers serving before the centuries turn were like that. God Bless their souls.

But there were many I'm sure who simply never saw an opportunity. The internet, media, television, and flat out benefit just wasn't there. I admire the hell out of The Greatest Generation, but blindly saying a generation wouldn't when they never received that chance seems... distasteful.

And the politics of this time also don't make such a thing on these "Big" missions impossible. Didn't Biden out the group having done the Bin Laden raid?

Posted by Charles 2019-11-28 19:06|| 2019-11-28 19:06|| Front Page Top

#14 Shakespeare's ironically named character "Francis Feeble" in Henry IV, Part II has the last word:

Francis Feeble. By my troth, I care not; a man can die but once; we owe God a death.

I'll ne'er bear a base mind. An't be my destiny, so;
an't be not, so.

No man's too good to serve 's Prince; and,
it go which way it will, he that dies this year is quit for next.

Posted by Lex 2019-11-28 19:21|| 2019-11-28 19:21|| Front Page Top

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