[Huffpoo] Mike Mullen, former chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, wrote in The Atlantic on Tuesday that he "cannot remain silent" about President Donald Trump any longer. "It sickened me yesterday to see security personnel — including members of the National Guard — forcibly and violently clear a path through Lafayette Square to accommodate the president’s visit outside St. John’s Church," he wrote.
| They slammed President Trump for being silent and unseen during this crisis, though mostly it was that they did not show him or report his words, then slammed him when he went out in a way they could not ignore. How dare he pollute with his evil presence the church that had been firebombed near the White House, or touch a bible, God’s holy word! |
Mullen, who served as chairman under Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama, called the photo op a "stunt" that did little good:
"Whatever Trump’s goal in conducting his visit, he laid bare his disdain for the rights of peaceful protest in this country, gave succor to the leaders of other countries who take comfort in our domestic strife and risked further politicizing the men and women of our armed forces."
The retired four-star Navy admiral said armed forces would obey lawful orders.
"But I am less confident in the soundness of the orders they will be given by this commander in chief," Mullen wrote. "And I am not convinced that the conditions on our streets, as bad as they are, have risen to the level that justifies a heavy reliance on military troops."
So basically he's saying POTUS' orders may not be lawful and in his opinion, should not be obeyed. Nicely done admiral, very nicely done.
Mullen noted that American neighborhoods are our homes ― not "battle spaces," as Defense Secretary Mark Esper described them over the weekend.
"Our fellow citizens are not the enemy and must never become so," Mullen wrote.
Read his full essay here.