What is legal? What is moral? And why doing the right and honorable thing often means acting against self-interest.
President Trump, in his first term, threatened to use our active duty military to “dominate” demonstrators nationwide, who were exercising their wholly legitimate right to assemble and be heard. His second term appears to be on the same track. He placed the National Guard in charge of public safety in the nation’s capital, and for no obvious reason. DC crime is actually in decline. He deployed the National Guard to LA, and elsewhere, for no reason I can imagine beyond placating the biases of his MAGA base.
The distinguished former Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis nailed it in his broadside published in The Atlantic during Trump’s first term. He stated, “When I joined the military, some 50 years ago … I swore an oath to support and defend the Constitution. Never did I dream that troops taking the same oath would be ordered under any circumstances to violate the constitutional rights of their fellow citizens—much less to provide a bizarre photo op for the elected commander-in-chief, with military leadership standing alongside.” His words still resonate today.
The U.S. Armed Forces, including the National Guard, should not be used on U.S. soil against American citizens while exercising their right to protest. The same was true in Washington, DC,
where National Guard troops were tasked with police-like duties when they were fully aware that there was no crisis of crime in the city.
At this juncture, it may not be the law in which we can place our trust, but in morality. A right-wing-dominated Supreme Court and cowardly Republican majority in Congress have all but abandoned the US Constitution in favor of serving the emotional needs of the outrageously flawed man currently occupying the White House. He is nothing if not vengeful as well, directing the US Attorney General to prosecute former political adversaries. What about the US Armed Forces?
The Uniform Code of Military Justice and Manual for Courts Martial provides guidance for officers in determining what constitutes a legal order from this president. Thoughtful flag officers on the Joint Staff would have already checked with their Staff Judge Advocates, except many of them were fired by the incoming regime.
But again legality may not be the key issue. There is sometimes a chasm that exists between what is legal and what is moral. That is why U.S. military officers swear an oath to “support and defend the Constitution of the United States…” and not to any one individual.
Mattis has shown us how it is done. He honorably resigned in protest over U.S. policy in Syria when he no longer felt that he could stand behind this White House occupant in his first term.
Almost everyone knows that morality is all about doing the right thing, which can be generally found in good judgment based in ethics. Essentially, when an armed forces officer finds that s/he is at a moral crossroads – when conscience will not permit that officer to follow an immoral order – there are in my memory four ethical actions possible:
1. Confront the superior who has given the order and respectfully dispute it. Those who may have already taken this path were fired by the Secretary of Defense (War).
2. If the above fails, to go over the head of the superior giving the order to see it reversed. This is an option not available when dealing with this U.S. president.
Already have an account? Sign In
Two ways to continue to read this article.
Subscribe
$1.99
every 4 weeks
- Unlimited access to all articles
- Support independent journalism
- Ad-free reading experience
Subscribe Now
Recurring Monthly. Cancel Anytime.
3. Refuse to carry out the order and perhaps face court-martial.
4. Resign in protest over the order and then thereafter go public or mute.
Complying with an immoral order may have prosecutable individual legal ramifications. Note that all four options possess possible downsides. To act against self-interest on a sense of morality when many around you are not takes considerable back bone. In other words, acting honorably can never be accomplished on the cheap.
This kind of courage is rare and therefore precious. Yet, there has seldom been a time when the nation needed it more. Our current president seems to have few, if any, ethical boundaries. I want to believe that moral courage still lives in America and that it wears a uniform.
** This revised and updated commentary appeared previously in the Tampa Bay Times.
—
*** Editor’s Note: If you liked this article, you’d definitely want to check out Bob’s latest book: Surviving the United Nations – A True Story of Violence, Corruption, Betrayal, and Redemption.
It’s an eye-opening account of a Green Beret’s second career at the United Nations.
And don’t just take my word for it, here is what Publishers Weekly had to say:
“In his humanitarian and peacekeeping missions for the United Nations he dealt with child soldiers, blood diamonds, a double hostage-taking, an invasion by brutal guerrillas, an emergency aerial evacuation, a desperate hostage recovery mission, tribal gunfights, refugee camp violence, suicide bombings, and institutional corruption. His UN career brought him face to face with the best and worst of human nature, and he shares it all here.”
Click the link above to pick up your copy from Amazon today. You’ll find it every bit as riveting as the author himself. – GDM
