Mark Esper

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Trump's Comment Sparks Steps by Milley

Outgoing chairman of Joint Chiefs responds to 'death' post by former president

(Newser) - Retiring Gen. Mark Milley said he has personal security measures in place, and will take other steps, in response to Donald Trump's suggestion that the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff deserves to be executed. In a 60 Minutes interview scheduled to air Sunday, Axios reports, CBS' Norah...

Barr on 'Fundamentally Flawed' Trump: Prison Is a Bad Idea

Chris Christie and ex-DOD chief Mark Esper also laid into former president on Sunday news shows

(Newser) - A trio of past allies and members of former President Trump's Cabinet showed up on the Sunday news programs, and it wasn't to sing his praises. First up: erstwhile Attorney General Bill Barr, who the New York Times notes used "extraordinary language" to describe his ex-boss during...

Trump Responds to Claims by Former Def. Sec. 'Yesper'

Trump called Esper 'ineffective' but also said 'he would do anything I wanted'

(Newser) - Former Defense Secretary Mark Esper dropped a tell-all memoir last week, and he shared some of its content on 60 Minutes . In response, former President Donald Trump sent a written statement to CBS News. Had he really suggested attacking Mexican drug cartels with missiles? "No comment," Trump wrote,...

Report: DOD 'Vehemently' Objected to Passage in Esper Book

Pentagon didn't want ex-defense secretary to write about Trump wanting to fire missiles into Mexico

(Newser) - Update: The Defense Department vetted all relevant claims Mark Esper made in his upcoming memoir, but it apparently wasn't thrilled with some of them. In fact, sources tell CNN Business that Pentagon officials were "vehemently" against the former defense secretary writing about then-President Trump suggesting in 2020 that...

Ex-DOD Chief Esper Writes of 'Surreal' Incident With Trump

Former defense secretary writes in memoir that Trump wanted to shoot George Floyd protesters

(Newser) - Mark Esper was fired as defense secretary by then-President Trump shortly after the 2020 election. But while Esper's stint heading up the Pentagon was short—he'd been sworn in during the summer of 2019—he was still witness to some notable events in his time under No. 45,...

Trump's Ex-DOD Chief Sues Pentagon Over Memoir

Mark Esper says Defense Department is blocking parts of his manuscript it thought were 'too candid'

(Newser) - Mark Esper's memoir, A Sacred Oath, is due out in May from William Morrow, but readers may not see everything he originally included in its pages, thanks to the Pentagon. The former defense secretary in the Trump administration is now suing the agency he once led, claiming that sections...

Order Invoking Insurrection Act Was Prepared for Trump

Former president denies wanting to use active-duty troops against protesters

(Newser) - As protesters near the White House demonstrated against the killing of George Floyd last summer, aides were preparing a proclamation allowing President Trump to put active-duty US troops on the streets of the capital. The document was drafted after an angry Trump told the attorney general and military leaders he...

From All 10 Ex-Defense Secretaries, an 'Exceptional' Op-Ed

They note Biden has won, warn the military has no place getting involved in any election disputes

(Newser) - "The time for questioning the results has passed; the time for the formal counting of the electoral college votes, as prescribed in the Constitution and statute, has arrived." So reads an unusual op-ed that appeared Sunday in the Washington Post , co-signed by all 10 living ex-defense secretaries. The...

Trump: Defense Chief 'Has Been Terminated'
Trump Fires Defense Secretary
Nov 9, 2020 1:05 PM CST

Trump Fires Defense Secretary

Mark Esper 'has been terminated'

(Newser) - In what could be the start of a wave of post-election firings, President Trump announced in a tweet Monday that Defense Secretary Mark Esper "has been terminated." The president said National Counterterrorism Director Christopher Miller will become acting defense secretary effective immediately. The Hill notes that Trump and...

Congress May Make Exception to Honor an Iraqi War Hero

Alwyn Cashe died after pulling others from burning vehicle in Iraq

(Newser) - Fifteen years after his act of heroism in Iraq, time has officially run out to posthumously award Sgt. 1st Class Alwyn Cashe the Medal of Honor. But the Defense Department hopes to make that happen anyway, assuming Congress grants a waiver of the five-year time limit, the Washington Post reports....

The Final Count: 12K Troops Will Leave Germany
Trump on Germany:
We're Done Being 'Suckers'
the rundown
Jul 29, 2020 11:05 AM CDT

Trump on Germany: We're Done Being 'Suckers'

Mark Esper announces 11.9K troops will withdraw from Germany

(Newser) - The US will be pulling almost 12,000 troops from Germany, with a bit more than half of them—6,400—set to return stateside. The announcement came Wednesday from Defense Secretary Mark Esper, who said the remaining 5,600 troops withdrawing from Germany will be spread elsewhere throughout Europe,...

Pentagon Bans Confederate Flag, but Not in a Typical Way

New policy lists what flags can be shown at military installations, not which ones can't

(Newser) - After weeks of wrangling, the Pentagon on Friday will ban displays of the Confederate flag on military installations, in a carefully worded policy that doesn't mention the word "ban" or that specific flag. The policy, laid out in a memo obtained by the AP , was described by officials...

Branches Pressure Esper for Confederate Flag Ban

It's the US flag that's placed on coffins, draft policy says

(Newser) - A draft policy circulated by Pentagon leaders would ban the display of the Confederate flag in Defense Department workplaces or public areas by service members and civilian personnel. If approved, the policy would bring the other military services in line with the Marine Corps, which banned Confederate displays on its...

Pentagon Takes Steps Toward Racial Equity in the Services

Esper wants military to recapture leadership on diversity

(Newser) - Recognizing the harm of systemic racism to individuals and the military, Defense Secretary Mark Esper has announced an effort to ensure equity for US service members. Esper made the announcement Thursday in a video, the Washington Post reports, saying the military is "not immune to the forces of bias...

Top US General Apologizes for This Image
Top US General Apologizes
for This Image
updated
Jun 11, 2020 11:46 AM CDT

Top US General Apologizes for This Image

Mark Milley, joint chiefs chairman, says he shouldn't have walked with Trump

(Newser) - The fallout from President Trump's now-famous walk from the White House to St. John's Church continues: On Thursday, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff apologized for joining the president on that June 1 walk in military fatigues, reports CNN . "I should not have been there,...

Another Big Shift After Floyd Death, This Time From Military

Army 'open' to conversation about renaming bases named for Confederate leaders

(Newser) - The death of George Floyd in police custody and the ensuing protests are sparking changes in law enforcement, media, and business—and now the US armed forces. Earlier this year, the US Army said it had no plans to scrap the names of any of its 10 bases named after...

Esper Disagrees With Trump on Use of Insurrection Act

Defense chief says situation isn't dire enough

(Newser) - Breaking with President Trump, Defense Secretary Mark Esper said Wednesday he opposes using military forces for law enforcement in containing current street protests. Esper said the Insurrection Act, which would allow Trump to use active-duty military for law enforcement in containing street protests, should be invoked in the United States...

Navy Wants to Reinstate Carrier's Captain

Brett Crozier was removed over handling of coronavirus outbreak

(Newser) - After an investigation, the Navy has decided it wants Capt. Brett Crozier, back in charge of the USS Theodore Roosevelt. The recommendation to reinstate the captain, who was fired over his response to a coronavirus outbreak on his aircraft carrier, is under review at the Pentagon, and would have to...

Cost of Ex-Navy Secretary's Trip to Guam: $243K

Modly reportedly flew at a cost of $7K an hour

(Newser) - Former acting US Navy Secretary Thomas Modly's trip to Guam to lecture sailors who gave a roaring sendoff to their fired captain cost taxpayers a whopping $243,151.65. Modly, who resigned Tuesday , flew 35 hours on a C-37B at a cost of $6,946.19 per hour, USA ...

Navy Captain Relieved of Duty Has Coronavirus

Capt. Brett E. Crozier removed from command after asking for help with outbreak

(Newser) - The US Navy captain removed from command after he asked the Navy for help with the coronavirus outbreak on board his warship has now tested positive for COVID-19, sources tell the New York Times . Capt. Brett Crozier, who ended up getting assistance from Guam , came down with symptoms before he...

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