Thanks, I had missed that story. If a General was relieved of duty like was purported in the story I posted, could it be kept quiet long enough to wait until the first of the year to officially replace him? Could they be threatening Ham in some way to keep quiet or make him the “fall guy”? Just trying to get more of an understanding on how these things work, or could work if the military/administration wanted to keep this quiet as well.
How does somebody below you in position/authority “relieve” you of your duties on the spot?
I’ve read that the one chosen to replace Ham has to receive Senate confirmation. So somebody has had to temporarily fill in for the interim. If that interim started when this subordinate in effect fired Ham, I would presume the only person in place to take over would be that subordinate who did the “firing”. Whether any of that could legally be done in 30 seconds to a minute is another question.
They might want to be careful how they answer the question of legality though, because if an emergency, critical issue is grounds for sudden removal from office without regard to normal due process, then Obama better be prepared to be carted away...