Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth at his confirmation hearing refused to rule out opening fire on protesters if Trump ordered it.
As Donald Trump ramps up his use of the military to quell domestic dissent, he has on his side a Pentagon chief apparently ready to carry out any order Trump gives him, possibly including a potentially illegal one to shoot American citizens.
Pete Hegseth, specifically asked during his January confirmation hearing whether he would have obeyed a 2020 Trump demand to shoot protesters — as Trump had wanted then-Secretary Mark Esper to do in his first term — would not answer and instead dodged the question.
On Monday, even as California Gov. Gavin Newsom sued Trump and Hegseth to rescind the deployment because he had not requested it, as he said the law requires, Trump escalated the situation by adding 700 Marines, a full battalion, to the mix.
It is unclear what, precisely, they can accomplish. Federal law prohibits them from arresting people unless Trump were to invoke the 1807 Insurrection Act. While he has referred to the protesters as “insurrectionists” multiple times, he has not used his authority to declare the riot an “insurrection” against the United States, which would suggest that the participants are trying to overthrow the national government.
This is exactly why I was saying Hegseth wouldn’t be fired for the Signalgate controversy - because HitlerPig knows he’ll give the order to fire on American protesters.
Tin soldiers and Trump is comin’
We’re finally on our own…
More like the Pentagon wants to shoot Americans, and Trump is their “yes man”
You won’t convince me Trump is actually in charge. Not unless DOGE investigates the Pentagon, and the reason Musk cut ties is so that he wouldn’t be assassinated for that investigation.
The Pentagon has failed every annual audit since they started auditing it 7 years ago.
The day before 9/11, Donald Rumsfeld gave a speech about how the Pentagon lost over 2 trillion dollars that it couldn’t account for. 9/11 was the distraction the Pentagon needed to prevent an audit, and they got 20 years if increased military spending thanks to the “war on terror”
The Pentagon will kill anyone who tries to hold it accountable. They will steal any amount of money, including trillions and trillions of dollars. They answer to no one.
Right there. That’s the real enemy to our Republic.
And any military who follow that order are a fucking disgrace…
The Nazis had a choice now Americans do. Let’s see how this pans out cotton.
I expect it to go much the same way.
I really hope they’re still teaching opportunity, capability, and intent as the deadly force “triangle” (i.e., all 3 must be present in order to use deadly force) in addition to the justifications for the use of force, none of which are “somebody told me to.”
“Look here. I know I was in the M1 Abrams tank, but that blue haired lesbian with a climate change flag made me fear for my life.”
“Besides, what if she were to claim that America wasn’t the land of the free, how would THAT look?”
They will argue that a toddler has all three.
You’ll find that’s a pretty large portion of the Marines.
They’ve wanted to shoot Americans they don’t like for years. Trump wanted to do it in 2020, but Esper said no. Pete will swig from a handle of Jack, scream Deus Vult, and grab a gun himself. He won’t fire it, but he’ll post a selfie on Twitter like he’s going to. Regardless of how peaceful things may be expect them to do it anyway. They need their photo op. It’s all they have.
Willing? These freaks are absolutely salivating for the opportunity to kill civilians.
America wanted to be Israel so bad
Be Israel? Lol… how old are you? If we’re keeping the convo to our neighbors in our economic stranglehold, Google Central America in the 20th century. We export this culture.
No mate there not alot of troops will change sides they don’t hate the public they are the fucking public, pigs are difrent but soilders are not robots there people who will not go along with those shit some will but when shot hits the fan and they have the choice to shoot civvys or traitors they will make the right call some will do evil most won’t and you will see units fall apart.
Where were these supposed moral soldiers when bombing school busses in the Middle East?
The Libertarians, NRA, etc. would be up in arms (in the original, literal meaning) over something like that, right?
They are already there in uniform
“Some of those that work forces, are the same that burn crosses”
Lol
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth at his confirmation hearing refused to rule out opening fire on protesters if Trump ordered it.
Would have rightfully tanked his chances of being confirmed under literally any other President in the history of the Union.
I fucking hate what they let him get away with.
Hi all, I hope people hear this and the post is not hidden. This is an insecure system, and talking on here about things you want to or will do will be used by the regime.
Please take this as it is meant. I fully appreciate the anger and the pain you are all feeling, and you are totally right to fight, but you must fight smart.
DO NOT LET YOUR ANGER GET THE BEST OF YOU. If this goes the way it’s looking like it might, direct fights with whatfever is left of the States’ forces is suicide, and the good guys need all the boots on the ground you can muster.
There are many veterans of the war on terror who are literal experts on the tactics needed to win this; seek them out.
Assume all coms are monitored because they are. Look after each other, people.
A friend who knows the score.
taps signs Don’t feed the piggies by fedposting, my little lemmings. They are fat enough.
As a guy who spent the majority of his life in a dictatorship, you’re correct: be very careful of what you say online.
There’s a point that they eventually get to where they just send law enforcement after you for things like tweets - they do it to make examples of folk, so they end up casting a very wide net. It’s definitely not worth getting caught in it.
Having said that, I still like the US! Just need to apply the usual fascist state warnings from now on: watch what you say, mind who you spend time with, and watch where you go. Avoid large crowds etc. etc.
I’m chuckling as I imagine there’s got to be a thinly veiled lemmy.gov instance out there in some way shape or form lol
looks at the poligonal ursae
Of course he has a willing yes man. That was the entire point in installing woefully unqualified sociopathic sycophants to every department at every level possible.
And yet again, our news media has failed us.
The mother of a gradeschool friend was at Kent State in May 1970 when the national guard shot and killed 4 students and wounded 9 others. She said it was appalling and horrifying.
Are we really going back to this shit? I guess this country learned nothing.
Kent State is going to look like a pillow fight.
Yeah, that’s exactly what we should be concerned about. These problems aren’t going to get better by killing people.
It’s going to get worse before it gets better.
My mom transferred to Kent right after the shooting (the transfer was already approved prior to the shooting). She said people were still in shock long after.
Trump won’t have to look far to find people willing to shoot at protesters.
For years, our government and law enforcement has been crammed with low-IQ people (they intentionally avoid recruiting people who are too smart) who love to over-armor and over-weapon themselves for even the simplest of duties and gleefully fire their weapon at any non-white object that happens to flinch in their presence. People, dogs, heck they threw a grenade into the crib of a baby once.
Anyone who thinks that the military will suddenly have a change of conscience and not fire on civilians is fooling themselves. There are plenty of people out there chomping at the bit to get their hands on a semi-automatic rifle and fire on the first brown person they see with so much as a can of spray paint in their hands (And they may not even have to have spray paint). Heck, one of them raised their gun and openly fired on an Australian reporter as she was broadcasting live just so he could show how big his pee-pee is and scare her off.
Do not think that the military will be the ones who will finally hold the line against Trump’s tyranny. These people have been waiting their whole lives for the opportunity to be able to armor up and start indiscriminately shooting people with impunity. Evidence of that has been all over the news for decades. They won’t stand up to Trump. They’ll thank him for the opportunity and make MAGA hats part of the official uniform.
Hi all, I hope people hear this and the post is not hidden. This is an insecure system, and talking on here about things you want to or will do will be used by the regime.
Please take this as it is meant. I fully appreciate the anger and the pain you are all feeling, and you are totally right to fight, but you must fight smart.
DO NOT LET YOUR ANGER GET THE BEST OF YOU. If this goes the way it’s looking like it might, direct fights with whatfever is left of the States’ forces is suicide, and the good guys need all the boots on the ground you can muster.
There are many veterans of the war on terror who are literal experts on the tactics needed to win this; seek them out.
Assume all coms are monitored because they are. Look after each other, people.
A friend who knows the score.
Yeah that is part of the reason non-Americans are not visiting the US. We assume that what we have said has been recorded and flagged at some point.
I’m a British veteran and from the first day if basic training your are told over and over and over not to follow an illegal order, honestly sending in the marines would prob be better for the public than the pigs troops are from shit holes and just needed the money most of the yanks I worked with would never fire on protesters.
But you know I might be wrong.
I’d like to hope you’re not wrong. When I was in, honor, integrity, and empathy were tenants put above duty to any one person. I’ve seen a lot of this anti-soldier sentiment coming in the wake of the CNG being deployed to LA. As far as I have seen, there have been no instances of the California National Guard acting out of line according to the UCMJ. I don’t expect all of the men and women, currently serving, to honor their oath as this country has been fed a steady stream of hateful and vitriolic propaganda from all forms of available media, mainstream and social. However, I have to believe those who commit atrocities will be the minority, not the majority.
Let’s hope there are vets in the crowd to remind them that their oath is to a principal and not a “man.”
Bombing schools and weddings in the Middle East and Africa is also illegal but that never stopped the US military.
It’s easy to sit in a computer chair and cast a wide net of indignation across an entire band of people from all manners of background and culture. If you’ve never served, then you’re just a puppet for whatever the media has fed you. If you’re in the US, the same people you’re shitting all over may be the only thing that stands between you and LEOs that would love nothing more than to get another gun to aim your way.
Everyone. Is. Capable. Of. Evil. You are not immune to propaganda.
Facts mate I know people fairly senior who I belive will do the right thing when the time comes I worked with them in iraq and stay In touch there just like you but with a weird job there’s idiots every where but there’s enough good to fight them
I will admit, sadly, the current propaganda machines have poisoned the minds of so many servicemen. The popularity of tRump within their ranks is higher than I would like to see, given the blatant demegogory displayed by him at every turn. Still, I hold out hope we see good triumph over evil when this all inevitably goes tits up.
What I wouldn’t give to be anywhere else than the states nowadays! I feel like just the headlines take a day off my life, anymore.
