Trump says General Mark Milley should be ‘court-martialed’ if he thought former president was potentially seeking coup



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Esper Milley Trump

Flanked by Secretary of Defense Mark Esper (left) and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Mark Milley, U.S. President Donald Trump meets with senior military leaders at the White House on October 7, 2019. Kevin Lamarque / REUTERS

  • Trump has said General Mark Milley should be “court-martialed” if the reports that he fears a coup are true.

  • “We did not talk about a coup, there was no coup, everything never happened,” said the former president.

  • Milley has been Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff since September 2019.

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Former President Donald Trump said on Friday that General Mark Milley should be “court-martialed and tried” if he believed the former president was seeking a coup, referring to an excerpt from a forthcoming book by Washington Post reporters Carol D. Leonnig and Philippe Rucker.

Trump rejected the excerpt from “I Alone Can Fix It: Donald J. Trump’s Catastrophic Final Year,” which said Milley, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, had discussed the possibility of a coup with friends, lawmakers and colleagues.

“The writings contained in these third-rate books are fake news and ‘General’ Milley (who [former Defense Secretary James] Mattis wanted to send him to Europe to get rid of him), if he said what was reported, maybe he should be impeached, or court martialed and tried, ” the former president said in a statement. “He tries to be a badass, which he isn’t, but he choked beyond belief as soon as a microphone was thrown in his face or, at the sight of the fake media. “

He added: “There was no speech about a coup, there was no coup, everything never happened, and it is a waste. words from false writers and a general who had no idea. “

Read more: Where are Trump’s staff now in the White House? We’ve created a searchable database of over 327 top employees to show where they all ended up

After the 2020 election, Trump refused to meet with his successor, current President Joe Biden, and spent weeks seeking to overturn the results through litigation and tough tactics.

Excerpts from the book reveal that Milley felt as though he had to be “on guard” during the final days of the administration after the election.

“They can try, but they’re not going to be successful,” Milley reportedly told his assistants. “You can’t do this without the military. You can’t do this without the CIA and the FBI. We’re the guys with the guns.”

CNN reported the details of the bomb from the book on Wednesday.

That same day, Trump also hit back at comments allegedly made by Milley.

“I have never threatened or spoken to anyone about a coup by our government. So ridiculous! Sorry to inform you, but elections are my form of ‘coup’, and if I had to do a coup, one of the last I would like to do it with is Mark General Milley, ” Trump said in a statement.

Trump attacked Milley again on Friday, expressing that he had “completely lost confidence” in the general during his tenure while also referring to the now infamous photo op held at St. John’s Church in Washington, DC. , Last year.

“I never had a single discussion with him about the arrival of the army or about a ‘bang’, which makes sense, as I have lost total confidence in him and the way he is. behaved on our little walk to church, ”Trump said.

The photoshoot took place after protesters were violently evacuated from Lafayette Park, which immediately drew criticism. However, the Home Office inspector general determined in June 2021 that the US Parks Police and Secret Service had not cleared the park for Trump’s photoshoot, but had installed anti-lime fencing.

Milley apologized for participating in the march alongside Trump last year.

Read the original article on Business Insider



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