Democratic lawmakers said #Defense Secy #PeteHegseth, in a classified briefing, declined to commit to showing #Congress unedited video of the #US military’s attack on a boat in the #Caribbean on Sept 2.
The attack, which included a follow-up strike that killed 2 survivors, has been the subject of intense scrutiny on Capitol Hill & among #military experts, who have raised questions about its legality.
#DonaldTrump has full presidential immunity due to #TrumpVUnitedStates, so he can't be tried INSIDE the U.S., but since killing the survivors of the Venezuelan boat strike is a #WarCrime, he CAN be tried by international law. Then let's do that. He can't pardon himself internationally.
The #Defense Dept’s #InspectorGeneral released a long-awaited report Thursday morning about Secy #PeteHegseth’s disclosure of plans for airstrikes in #Yemen on a #Signal chat group. The office simultaneously released a second report on “the use of unclassified networks & non–#DoD-controlled electronic messaging systems to discuss sensitive & classified information.”
The #Pentagon’s #InspectorGeneral’s report into #PeteHegseth’s use of the #Signal app to share details of upcoming #airstrikes into #Yemen on March 15 found the #defense secy “sent a message containing operational information” to a group chat which included 19 people, including #JeffreyGoldberg, editor in chief of #TheAtlantic. It said that #Hegseth did so FROM HIS HOME on an Army base in Washington while accompanied by “his junior military assistant, & his personal communicator.”
In a rare split with the #Trump admin, #GOP-led panels in the #House & #Senate say they want a full accounting in the Sept military attack.
#Republican-led cmtes in the Senate & the House say they will amplify their scrutiny of the #Pentagon after a WaPo report revealing that #Defense Secy #PeteHegseth gave a spoken order to kill all crew members aboard a vessel suspected of smuggling drugs in the #Caribbean Sea several weeks ago.
Senator #MarkKelly, in an interview with #RachelMaddow, emphasized his view that "it's almost comical" that #Trump & #PeteHegseth are calling it a violation of the Uniform Code of Military Justice that he cited part of the Uniform Code of Military Justice in a recent video. Kelly explained his participation in the video in the context of protecting members of the military from a president who "doesn't seem to care about the Constitution, the rule of law."
#DonaldTrump and his minion #PeteHegseth are threatening to bring Senator Kelly back into the military and court martial him because he told service men and women that by law they can not obey Illegal Orders.
Just a reminder Donald Trump encouraged and led an #insurrection against the United States. At one that would have been punishable by the Death Penalty.