WashingtonA warning to navigators in the military and yet another sign of Donald Trump’s insatiable thirst for revenge. The Pentagon has launched an investigation into war hero and Democratic senator Mark Kelly that could lead to a war council. All to record a video with other congressmen from his party in which he reminded soldiers in the army that they are not bound to follow illegal orders. Last week, the publication already provoked the anger of the American president, who described it as “seditious behavior, which is punishable by the death penalty”.
Without further delay, the Department of Defense announced this Monday the investigation against Kelly, and warned that despite being a veteran he could be called into service again to face a council of war. The action, beyond being a completely unusual gesture, is another advance in the president’s campaign to consolidate his total power over the military. To hijack a democracy you need to control three pillars: the intelligence agencies, the Department of Justice and the military. Trump has already turned the Justice Department into his personal accountability ministry: He forced the impeachment of some of his biggest political foes, including former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James. Charges that were dismissed yesterday by the judge due to the Republican’s legal maneuver.
Trump has long been working to achieve the same on the military. One of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s first tasks upon taking office was to purge the Pentagon to fill vacancies with loyalists who would only follow orders. He has also fired senior legal officials after they expressed doubts about the legality of some of the new government’s policies.
The mysterious meeting in Quantico in October, which brought together hundreds of senior commanders from around the world, was a clear warning in this direction: both Hegseth and Trump wanted to get the military on their side, although the reception they had for their interventions was rather cold. When Trump encouraged soldiers to use cities as “training grounds” no one applauded. Even the American president was uncomfortable with the seriousness of his audience, accustomed to the ovations of his supporters.
Oath of loyalty to the Constitution
As the President of the United States, Trump is also the Commander-in-Chief of the military. However, ultimately, to whom the soldiers swear allegiance is to the Constitution and, therefore, the military has the right to refuse to obey orders from the president that go against it. By normalizing the use of soldiers inside domestic territory to resolve public policy issues and use them as a tool of punishment against Democratic strongholds, Trump is pushing the military ever closer to this scenario: the possibility that military commanders will one day have to decide whether to follow the Republican’s orders or what the Constitution says.
No wonder Trump dropped the idea of using cities as a training ground at Quantico. It was a thermometer about the readiness of the military present there to follow him. In fact, last week a judge ruled that the deployment of the National Guard to Washington must be ended because it is illegal, but reservists still continue to patrol the streets.
Now, the announcement of the Pentagon’s investigation into Senator Kelly for pointing out a reality – the military is not bound to follow unconstitutional orders – is a disciplinary action for other soldiers and veterans, as well as threatening veterans’ right to free speech.
As a veteran Navy captain, Kelly is required by law to remain available in case he is called up. Based on that, the Pentagon has said it could summon Kelly to court-martial. Now, it is not clear to what extent the investigation could prosper, since the Democrat did nothing more than point out a fact that is included in the Uniform Code of Military Justice.
