Tag: Navy Seal

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Pentagon Chief Fires Navy Secretary Over Discredited Navy SEAL

Fifty-four percent of Americans believe Donald Trump should be impeached

Commander in chief Donald Trump
Update: Well, that didn’t take long. Clearly, Donald Trump didn’t want to get his fingerprints on this, so he told his Defense Sec to handle it. From the Washington Post:

Esper asked for Spencer’s resignation after learning that he had privately proposed to White House officials that if they did not interfere with proceedings against Gallagher, then Spencer would ensure that Gallagher was able to retire as a Navy SEAL, with his Trident insignia.

Spencer’s private proposal to the White House — which he did not share with Esper over the course of several conversations about the matter — contradicted his public position on the Gallagher case, chief Pentagon spokesman Jonathan Hoffman said in a statement.

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After a Navy SEAL was accused of several war crimes and acquited of most but not all of them, the Navy demoted him. The commando was accused of shooting civilians, murdering a captive Islamic State fighter with a hunting knife in Iraq, and threatening to kill SEALs who reported him. He was ultimately found guilty of bringing discredit to the armed forces by posing for photos with the teenage captive’s dead body. But Donald Trump, after intense lobbying by the man’s family, reversed that decision as Commander in Chief. The Navy then announced plans to remove the man from his unit. Trump pushed back again. From the New York Times:

The secretary of the Navy and the admiral who leads the SEALs have threatened to resign or be fired if plans to expel a commando from the elite unit in a war crimes case are halted by President Trump, administration officials said Saturday.

The high-level pushback to Mr. Trump’s unambiguous assertion on Twitter this past week that the commando, Chief Petty Officer Edward Gallagher, should remain in the unit was an extraordinary development in what was already an extraordinary case, one with few precedents in the history of presidential relations with the American military.

The Navy secretary, Richard V. Spencer, later denied that he had threatened to resign but said disciplinary plans against Chief Gallagher would proceed because he did not consider Mr. Trump’s statement on Twitter to be a formal order. Mr. Spencer added that the president, as commander in chief, had the authority to intervene and that it would stop “the process.”

Chief Gallagher, who counts Mr. Trump as one of his most vocal supporters, was accused of shooting civilians, murdering a captive Islamic State fighter with a hunting knife in Iraq, and threatening to kill SEALs who reported him, among other misconduct. His court-martial ended in acquittal on those charges.

Last Friday, Mr. Trump reversed that demotion, angering Navy officials, including the commander of the SEALs, Rear Adm. Collin Green, who had little choice but to accept the reversal. Nonetheless, they continued with their plans to eject Chief Gallagher from the unit.

The AP reports that the Navy has received word from the White House that Trump’s tweet “is not a formal order.”

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Trump Criticizes Osama Bin Laden Mission: “We Should Have Captured Osama Bin Laden Long Before We Did”

Donald Trump on Fox News

Donald Trump raised eyebrows over the weekend when, during an interview with Fox News‘ Chris Wallace, he not only wouldn’t give credit to the capture and killing of Osama bin Laden during the Obama administration, but he criticized the mission saying it took too long.

From The Hill:

“Fox News Sunday” host Chris Wallace noted during a discussion with the president that retired Navy Adm. William McRaven has said Trump’s attacks on the media are the “greatest threat to democracy in his lifetime.”

Trump in response called McRaven a “Hillary Clinton fan” and “Obama-backer.”

“Wouldn’t it have been nice if we got Osama bin Laden a lot sooner than that, wouldn’t it have been nice?” Trump asked. “You know, living — think of this — living in Pakistan, beautifully in Pakistan in what I guess they considered a nice mansion, I don’t know, I’ve seen nicer. But living in Pakistan right next to the military academy, everybody in Pakistan knew he was there.”

“You’re not even going to give them credit for taking down bin Laden?” Wallace asked.

“They took him down but — look, look, there’s news right there, he lived in Pakistan, we’re supporting Pakistan, we’re giving them $1.3 billion a year, which we don’t give them anymore, by the way, I ended it because they don’t do anything for us, they don’t do a damn thing for us,” Trump responded.

Regarding being a “Hillary” fan or “Obama” fan, McRaven told CNN later that evening:

“I did not back Hillary Clinton or anyone else. I am a fan of President Obama and President George W. Bush, both of whom I worked for. I admire all presidents, regardless of their political party, who uphold the dignity of the office and who use that office to bring the nation together in challenging times.”

The McRaven/Bin Laden chat begins around 4:37 mark below:

It’s worth noting that back in 2011, Trump was more than pleased with the results of the Navy Seals and CIA.

On May 2, 2011, Trump gave this statement to Politico:

“I want to personally congratulate President Obama and the men and women of the Armed Forces for a job well done.”

“I am so proud to see Americans standing shoulder to shoulder, waving the American flag in celebration of this great victory.”

“We should spend the next several days not debating party politics, but in remembrance of those who lost their lives on 9/11 and those currently fighting for our freedom. God Bless America!”

I guess that good will goes away when you become a politician?

McRaven responded to the criticism in a statement doubling down on his assertion that Trump’s attacks on the media are “the greatest threat to our democracy” in his lifetime.

And it appears Trump has a short memory, because one reporter says McRaven was on the Trumpster’s short list for national security adviser.

Navy Seal Robert J. O’Neill, who actually shot bin Laden, chimed in saying the mission was ‘bipartisan’ and “We all wanted to get him as soon as we could.”

And when a MAGA troll questioned whether bin Laden was killed as soon as possible, O’Neill responded, “We could only fly so fast, bro.”

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Former Navy Seal Files Allegations Of Anti-Gay Harassment In CIA

Brett Jones

Brett Jones, a former Navy SEAL who received national attention after writing a memoir about his time in the elite military unit, has filed a complaint against a CIA contractor after receiving anti-gay harassment during a recent deployment in June as a CIA contractor.

After leaving the military in 2003, Jones became a military contractor. This recent assignment was his second deployment to Afghanistan since his book, “Pride: The Story of the First Openly Gay Navy SEAL,” which chronicled his 6 years as a SEAL.

But this mission, Jones sensed something was awry upon arrival.

From the San Diego Union-Tribune:

Things seemed wrong as soon as his helicopter landed near his post in Afghanistan last month. Typically there was someone to pick up new arrivals and drive them and their gear to their headquarters. Not this time; he said he walked the quarter-mile to the compound.

He retreated to his room and found his floor dirty and a sheet smelling of feces. Jet-lagged and tired, he slept on the mattress, he recalled.

He overheard people calling him a “faggot,” and he said they were defensive when he confronted them about it.

And during a test ride of some of the team’s vehicles, he got out to walk a stretch through hairy terrain. The team ditched him in 120-degree temperatures, without water, forcing him to walk part way back to their compound before they stopped to let him back inside.

“I heard a faint laughing followed by a distant, ‘He can walk back!’ The door closed and they drove out of sight,” Jones said in a statement.

Ultimately, Jones said he feared for his life concerned that if he were to raise his voice, he could possibly suffer even worse harassment or worse. “Oh my God, what if they did something to try and hurt me and make it seem like an accident,” he said.

In the end, he arranged to leave the assignment early.

Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Burbank, the ranking member of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, the congressional committee that oversees intelligence communities, issued this statement:

“We must embrace and foster diversity, which is why the Committee prioritized recruiting a diverse workforce in its annual authorization bill. There is no place for discrimination in our Intelligence Community workforce, and I will continue to monitor this case.”

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Transgender former Navy Seal tells her story in new memoir

Christopher Beck served as a U.S. Navy SEAL in some of the most dangerous battlegrounds in the world, including Iraq and Afghanistan and earned medals and commendations including the Bronze Star and a Purple Heart

But for 20 years while Beck was fighting for his country, he was also fighting an inner battle over his identity. He wanted to live his life as a woman.

After retiring in 2011, Beck did just that. Chris Beck is now Kristin Beck.

Kristin has written a book, Warrior Princess, about her journey as a US Navy Seal and the process of living life in the light today.

Last night, Kristin spoke with Anderson Cooper about the transition from being a masculine Navy SEAL to a feminine woman.

More of the interview below:

Interview – Part One

Interview – Part Two

(via Anderson Cooper 360°)

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Former Navy Seal discusses her transition to a woman in new biography

A former U.S. Navy Seal is speaking out about her transition to a woman in a new biography published over the weekend called Warrior Princess. 

Beck was a member of the elite SEAL Team 6, earned a Purple Heart and a Bronze Star, and served in the unit that killed Osama bin Laden, though retired shortly before that raid.

In Warrior Princess, Kristin Beck discusses her two decades of military service in the elite, all-male unit, and her subsequent transition with frank honesty, describing how, over the course of 13 international deployments, she gradually came to terms with her gender identity, though she couldn’t express it during wartime. 
Beck identified as a man named Chris while in the Navy, and after retiring in 2011, underwent medically necessary hormone therapy to facilitate her transition process, according to the Atlantic Wire. 
Beck, who now lives in St. Petersburg, Fla., says her former colleagues were, by and large, supportive, according to an excerpt published in the Atlantic: 
Soon, the responses from SEALs stationed all around the world suddenly started pouring in: “Brother, I am with you … being a SEAL is hard, this looks harder. Peace” * “I can’t say I understand the decision but I respect the courage. Peace and happiness be upon you…Jim” * ” … I just wanted to drop you a note and tell you that Kris has all the support and respect from me that Chris had … and quite possibly more. While I’m definitely surprised, I’m also in amazement at the strength you possess and the courage necessary to combat the strangers and ‘friends’ that I’m guessing have reared their ugly heads prior to and since your announcement. …”

(from Advocate.com)