Milley says he was wrong to accompany Trump on church walk
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
WASHINGTON — Army Gen. Mark Milley, the nation's top military officer, said Thursday he was wrong to have accompanied President Donald Trump on a walk to a church through Lafayette Square, where he was photographed in his combat uniform with the presidential entourage.
© Provided by Associated Press FILE - In this June 1, 2020 file photo, President Donald Trump departs the White House to visit outside St. John's Church, in Washington. Part of the church was set on fire during protests on Sunday night. Walking behind Trump from left are, Attorney General William Barr, Secretary of Defense Mark Esper and Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Milley says his presence "created a perception of the military involved in domestic politics." He called it "a mistake" that he has learned from. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)
The statement by the Joint Chiefs chairman risked the wrath of a president sensitive to anything hinting of criticism of events he has staged. Trump's June 1 walk through the park to pose with a Bible at a church came after authorities used pepper spray and flash bangs to clear the park and streets of largely peaceful protesters.
Milley said his presence and the photographs compromised his commitment to a military divorced from politics.
"I should not have been there," Milley said in remarks to a National Defense University commencement ceremony.
Milley's public expression of regret comes as Pentagon leaders' relations with the White House are still tense after a disagreement last week over Trump's threat to use federal troops to quell civil unrest triggered by the death of George Floyd.
After protesters were cleared from the Lafayette Square area, Trump led an entourage that included Milley and Defense Secretary Mark Esper to St. John's Episcopal Church, where he held up a Bible for photographers and then returned to the White House.
"My presence in that moment and in that environment created a perception of the military involved in domestic politics," Milley said. "As a commissioned uniformed officer, it was a mistake that I have learned from, and I sincerely hope we all can learn from it."
Esper has not said publicly that he erred by being with Trump at that moment. He told a news conference last week that when they left the White House he thought they were going to inspect damage in the Square and at the church and to mingle with National Guard troops in the area.
Milley's comments at the National Defense University were his first public statements about the Lafayette Square event on June 1, which the White House has hailed as a "leadership moment" for Trump akin to Winston Churchill inspecting damage from German bombs in London during World War II.
The public uproar following Floyd's death at the hands of Minneapolis police has created multiple layers of extraordinary tension between Trump and senior Pentagon officials. When Esper told reporters on June 3 that he had opposed Trump bringing active-duty troops on the streets of the nation's capital to confront protesters and potential looters, Trump castigated him in a face-to-face meeting.
Just this week, Esper and Milley let it be known through their spokesmen that they were open to a "bipartisan discussion" of whether the 10 Army bases named for Confederate Army officers should be renamed as a gesture aiming to disassociate the military from the racist legacy of the Civil War. On Wednesday, Trump tweeted that he would never allow the names to be changed, catching some in the Pentagon by surprise.
Milley used his commencement address, which was pre-recorded and presented as a video message in line with social distancing due to the coronavirus pandemic, to raise the matter of his presence with Trump in Lafayette Square. He introduced the subject to his audience of military officers and civilian officials in the context of advice from an Army officer and combat veteran who has spent 40 years in uniform.
He said all senior military leaders must be aware that their words and actions will be closely watched.
"And I am not immune," he said, noting the photograph of him at Lafayette Square. "That sparked a national debate about the role of the military in civil society." He expressed regret at having been there and said the lesson to be taken from that moment is that all in uniform are not just soldiers but also citizens.
"We must hold dear the principle of an apolitical military that is so deeply rooted in the very essence of our republic," he said. "It takes time and work and effort, but it may be the most important thing each and every of us does every single day."
Milley also expressed his outrage at the Floyd killing and urged military officers to recognize as a reflection of centuries of injustice toward African Americans.
"What we are seeing is the long shadow of our original sin in Jamestown 401 years ago," he said, referring to the year in which the first enslaved Africans arrived on the shores of colonial Virginia.
Milley said the military has made important progress on race issues but has much yet to do, including creating the conditions for a larger proportion of African American officers to rise to the military's senior ranks. He noted that his service, the Army, has just one African American four-star general, and mentioned that the Air Force is about to swear in the first-ever African American service chief.
Tags
Who is online
60 visitors
Talk about balls worthy of admiration... Army Gen. Mark Milley, the nation's top military officer, has 'em.
Que Trump twitter tantrum.
A righteous shitstorm is headed for Trump. And he has earned every miserable minute of it.
Trump continues to make it worse for himself. He still thinks he can trick, lie, and bamboozle his way into another term.
our military leadership is the only thing standing between America and a wannabe banana republic dick-tater
I see a lot of active generals whose careers will come to an end when Trump is reelected.
They're not paid to make political statements, but to follow orders......or retire.
I see a lot of trumpsters retiring or getting fired in 5-8 months.
Grrrr, baby! And may the time between now and then pass swiftly for us all.
"Army Gen. Mark Milley, the nation's top military officer, said he was wrong to have accompanied President Donald Trump on a walk to a church through Lafayette Square."
"Apoligists"...…. are such "Weak" people !
I hope he isn't called up to actually lead folks into harms way. He might apologize for every shot taken by those folks he's supposed to "Lead".
BANG...… I'm Sorry..... BANG......I'm Sorry...….BANG...….I'm Sorry !
What do you think Cadet BoneSpurs has been doing for the last 3 1/2 years?
Until the W.H.O./CDC Hibernation Requirement , Making it possible for ALL (Black, White, Yellow, Blue, Green, etc...) folks to be able to make a buck or two more than they did in the "Before Time".
Are you still waiting for WWIII to start because of Trump ?
Haven't you been paying attention? We are way past WWIII. It just doesn't look like you expected it to look like.
Really ?
Where ?
Oy.
What country is that ?
It's WhatTheFrick, USA. And to be more specific, it's on the corner of Verklempt Avenue and Kvetch Boulevard.
"Apologists" are without a doubt far stronger than a sniveling piece of shit that is too weak to admit when they're wrong. It takes far more strength to stand up and be responsible for your actions than to twist and squirm like a low IQ coward trying to avoid taking any responsibility for anything.
"Actions" speak louder than words !
Yeah and Drew Brees apologized for what he said/did. More than likely, the same scenario. He got flack and had to back up.
Time to fire this "Weak kneed General" !
Placating isn't "Leading" !
Who does the nation's top military officer get flack from, exactly?
Liberals in general.
Why would he care? Liberals do not effect his job or his duties. He answers only to Trump.
That's true, so he should just shut up and do as he is ordered.
What he did borders on insubordination
He did. But now, he is calling out his own behavior. That's the difference between the men who do the right thing, and the boys who go along to get along.
Funny, last time I checked we lived in a free country. How about you?
Both you and John would be wrong.......ALL military personnel answer to the US Constitution above everything else. Even prior to the office of the president.
There are also rules that govern that the military NOT participate in political activities while in uniform supported by the UCMJ. The goal here is that the US Military be seen as neutral as relates to civilian politics at all times.
What active and reserve military members do when not in uniform is also regulated to the point to where the military is never seen as having any weight in civilian political activities at any level.
DoD instruction 1334.01 can also be called upon for guidance.
Bottom line... The general knows that Trump's little political stroll was not something he should have been seen participating in. Especially one where the first amendment rights of the protestors were violated.
Ah yes, that is the way Trump and his authoritarian pals like to run things.
Thank you.
Saved me some time...
Forgive me, but Gen. Milley has just a tad more to lose.
Yeah.
Off topic but Hey hopefully the NFL will fire up this summer and all the players get back to work..............well except Colin Kaepernick.
Why not? Your supposed to put your best athletes out there and this league has had some real doozies,
wife beaters, kid beaters, druggies, felons, murderers, tax cheats all who played many, many years.
Why should CK be blacklisted over his stance about policing issues?
It wasn't his stance on brutality. It was because he had a couple good years and then went to hell in a hand basket prior to his release. And that is why he was released. His kneeling branded him at the time also and no one wanted the baggage that came with him along with his failing performances.
His bad days were far superior to some of the draft flops since then.
So this man says that the military is supposed to be apolitical and people jump him for it.
Scary that some people think he should just shut up (even though he is right) and do whatever he is told. No matter what. Never say a word, do everything that is told no questions asked, no matter the consequences.
Ah yes, those dictator tendencies.