Jut saying..is the guy really nuts? He expect to govern without the military? Never mind that every living Ex-President is condemning his actions.
The Joint chiefs sent a reminder to all troops today...telling them to remember that they took an oath to the constitution..and to support free speech and the right to assemble--interpret that!
While rare -- and perhaps unprecedented -- for former military leaders to so publicly and forcefully criticize the commander in chief, Trump's flaunting of the Insurrection Act "was sufficiently disturbing that General Mattis chose to break his silence," Christine Wormuth, who served as a deputy under secretary of defense from 2012 to 2014, told ABC News.
The essay was the "inevitable conclusion" of the increasingly politicization of the military under the Trump administration and was meant to give a clear reminder to the military that they swore an oath to the Constitution, she said.
"It sends a strong message to members of the military to be reminded of what's important and to do what they think is right," Wormuth said.
Gen. Mark Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, similarly sent an unusual message to the leaders of the different branches of the military that said members of the armed forces swore an oath to the Constitution and its protections for freedom of speech and assembly. The letter served as "cover" for the service leaders to "communicate their feelings" as well, Wormuth said.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said Mattis's words sent a "shot across the bow" to the country's military leaders and could prove problematic for Trump.
"Mattis put a big symbolic barrier in his way and bolstered, I think, the instincts of some of the good people in the military who say we can’t be used like this," Schumer said in an interview with MSNBC.
Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, broke with most of her GOP colleagues on Capitol Hill by embracing Mattis' statement as "true, and honest, and necessary and overdue."
"I have been struggling for the right words, and I was encouraged a couple of nights ago when I was able to read what President Bush had written," she told reporters Thursday. "And I found that to be empowering for me as one leader.
"But then when I saw General Mattis’ comments yesterday, I felt like perhaps we are getting to a point where we can be more honest with the concerns that we might hold internally," she added. "And have the courage of our own convictions to speak up."
(MORE: Following Obama, Clinton and Bush, former president Jimmy Carter issues a statement on George Floyd protests)
Another Republican senator who has been more willing to criticize Trump than his colleagues, Mitt Romney of Utah, called Mattis's words "stunning and powerful."
"General Mattis is a man of extraordinary sacrifice," Romney said. "He's an American patriot. He's an individual whose judgment I respect, and I think the world of him. If I ever had to choose somebody to be in a foxhole with -- it would be with a General Mattis. What a wonderful, wonderful man.”
Amid the onslaught, stalwart Trump ally Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., told Fox News that Mattis did not "understand" that people are trying to hurt Trump.
"The one thing I would tell General Mattis is that you don't quite understand that from the time President Trump wakes up till he goes to bed there's an effort to destroy his presidency," Graham said.
Like Trump, he pointed his finger at the press.
"To General Mattis, I think you're missing something here, my friend," Graham said. "You're missing the fact that the liberal media has taken every event in the last three and half years and laid it at the president's feet. I'm not saying he's blameless, but I am saying that you're buying into a narrative that I think is quite frankly unfair."
The Joint chiefs sent a reminder to all troops today...telling them to remember that they took an oath to the constitution..and to support free speech and the right to assemble--interpret that!
While rare -- and perhaps unprecedented -- for former military leaders to so publicly and forcefully criticize the commander in chief, Trump's flaunting of the Insurrection Act "was sufficiently disturbing that General Mattis chose to break his silence," Christine Wormuth, who served as a deputy under secretary of defense from 2012 to 2014, told ABC News.
The essay was the "inevitable conclusion" of the increasingly politicization of the military under the Trump administration and was meant to give a clear reminder to the military that they swore an oath to the Constitution, she said.
"It sends a strong message to members of the military to be reminded of what's important and to do what they think is right," Wormuth said.
Gen. Mark Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, similarly sent an unusual message to the leaders of the different branches of the military that said members of the armed forces swore an oath to the Constitution and its protections for freedom of speech and assembly. The letter served as "cover" for the service leaders to "communicate their feelings" as well, Wormuth said.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said Mattis's words sent a "shot across the bow" to the country's military leaders and could prove problematic for Trump.
"Mattis put a big symbolic barrier in his way and bolstered, I think, the instincts of some of the good people in the military who say we can’t be used like this," Schumer said in an interview with MSNBC.
Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, broke with most of her GOP colleagues on Capitol Hill by embracing Mattis' statement as "true, and honest, and necessary and overdue."
"I have been struggling for the right words, and I was encouraged a couple of nights ago when I was able to read what President Bush had written," she told reporters Thursday. "And I found that to be empowering for me as one leader.
"But then when I saw General Mattis’ comments yesterday, I felt like perhaps we are getting to a point where we can be more honest with the concerns that we might hold internally," she added. "And have the courage of our own convictions to speak up."
(MORE: Following Obama, Clinton and Bush, former president Jimmy Carter issues a statement on George Floyd protests)
Another Republican senator who has been more willing to criticize Trump than his colleagues, Mitt Romney of Utah, called Mattis's words "stunning and powerful."
"General Mattis is a man of extraordinary sacrifice," Romney said. "He's an American patriot. He's an individual whose judgment I respect, and I think the world of him. If I ever had to choose somebody to be in a foxhole with -- it would be with a General Mattis. What a wonderful, wonderful man.”
Amid the onslaught, stalwart Trump ally Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., told Fox News that Mattis did not "understand" that people are trying to hurt Trump.
"The one thing I would tell General Mattis is that you don't quite understand that from the time President Trump wakes up till he goes to bed there's an effort to destroy his presidency," Graham said.
Like Trump, he pointed his finger at the press.
"To General Mattis, I think you're missing something here, my friend," Graham said. "You're missing the fact that the liberal media has taken every event in the last three and half years and laid it at the president's feet. I'm not saying he's blameless, but I am saying that you're buying into a narrative that I think is quite frankly unfair."
