Posted on 04/29/2019 10:41:26 PM PDT by bitt
Former Defense Secretary James Mattis declined to carry out orders from President Trump or otherwise limited his options in various attempts to prevent tensions with North Korea, Iran and Syria from escalating, The New Yorker reported Monday, the latest account of Trump’s own officials trying to check his worst instincts.
"The president thinks out loud. Do you treat it like an order? Or do you treat it as part of a longer conversation? We treated it as part of a longer conversation," a former senior national security official told The New Yorker.
"We prevented a lot of bad things from happening."
In 2017, following a series of North Korean ballistic missile tests, Trump ordered the Pentagon to begin removing the spouses and children of military personnel from South Korea, where the U.S. military has a base. An administration official told the magazine that "Mattis just ignored" the order.
In another instance in the fall of 2017, as White House officials were planning a private meeting at Camp David to develop military options for a possible conflict with North Korea, Mattis allegedly stopped the gathering from happening. He ignored a request from then-national security adviser H.R. McMaster to send officers and planners, according to a former senior administration official.
(Excerpt) Read more at thehill.com ...
Smedley Butler was also a kook.
Good point...don't believe everything a Dem operative tells you about the Trump/Mattis relationship.
“Hard to believe Trump had no trouble with treason.”
Is everything treason now?
I dunno.
“..I’m sure Trump and his people toss around all sorts of ideas, scenarios, etc... every leader does that. ..”
absolutely right - put the conference or meeting into a “think tank” mode where every thought, no matter how dumb is introduced without consequence. Anything goes and the right solution usually results at the end of the time. Good point.
>>> according to a former senior administration official <<<
Fake News from a never-Trump putz.
Well, were the “orders” provided in writing?
I’m not taking sides but asking a pertinent question
I never did. Glad he is gone.
Mattis ignored the Haditha Marines too...
Well I guess he was canned for a reason.
If your subordinate looks for loopholes to avoid a request to do something simple like set up a discussion to explore options in the event a crisis develops you have the wrong person in that position.
A top executive needs subordinates on the same page - to assist him, not to undermine him.
Subordinates looking for loopholes and weasel-ways to evade or counter their boss should be axed.
A former top-level subordinate who goes public with tales of how he ignored or screwed over the president is an ass.
He was a civilian
“Trump ordered the Pentagon to begin removing the spouses and children of military personnel from South Korea, where the U.S. military has a base.”
Has “a” base???? The U.S. has a number of bases in South Korea!!! Not “a” base. Are they really that stupid at the Hill??
“He has the right to disobey, what he considers to be an ‘unlawful order’”
NO!
He has the right to disobey an ‘unlawful order’.
This, on it’s face, IS a lawful order. The subordinate does not get to decide which orders he is going to follow.
Gen McArthur thought he could ignore the President also.
That is actually a reasonable position. If at any time Trump says,"Say aye,aye, Mr. President and execute it," it is unmistakably an order and any effective executive knows how to do that.
Lawful Orders
Military members failing to obey lawful orders issued by their superiors risk serious consequences. Article 90 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) outlines the crime of willful disobedience by a military member a superior commissioned officer. Article 91 covers willful disobedience of a superior Noncommissioned or Warrant Officer. Article 92 conveys what constitutes the crime of disobedience of any lawful order (the disobedience does not have to be “willful” under this article).
These articles require the obedience of LAWFUL orders. Not only should an unlawful order not be obeyed, obeying such an order can result in criminal prosecution. Military courts have long held that military members are accountable for their actions even while following orders.
So, what is an “unlawful order”? If you give me an order and I think it’s, unlawful, I can disobey it. Doesn’t mean I’m right, by any stretch of the imagination. I do so at my own risk, peril and freedom. Because at some point, I’m going to have to explain my actions, to my superiors or a military court. And I better be right. Otherwise, I’m f*cked.
he worked for trump so if her thought the order was illegal or he couldn’t follow it, he should have resigned. As it is trump died him, so the proper thing was done.
If you ever managed people you would understand.
That’s why I don’t think this article is accurate.
He wouldn’t put up with it.
This wasn’t in thee public eye like the mueller nonsense.
IF his order were directly disobeyed, that’s bad.
Is it treason? I dunno either :)
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