Retired Generals Clash with Trump
2020-06-05
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1American President Donald Trump has long talked about his support for the United States military.
2But comments this week show he might not have the full support of military leaders.
3On Monday, Trump proposed using military troops to control and stop violent protests following the police killing of George Floyd, an African American man, in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
4Trump said, "If a city or state refuses to take the actions that are necessary to defend the life and property of their residents, then I will deploy the United States military and quickly solve the problem for them."
5As Trump was speaking from the White House, police officers and national guard troops began using chemical spray, smoke and sound bombs to remove peaceful protesters across the street at Lafayette Square.
6After the area was cleared, Trump walked past lines of officers in riot gear on his way to St. John's Episcopal Church at Lafayette Square.
7Members of Trump's administration joined him, including the defense secretary and the military's chief of staff.
8Trump stood in front of the religious building, which had been damaged during protests a day earlier.
9The president held a Christian holy book in one hand.
10Members of the media took pictures and videos of Trump and others with him.
11Mariann Budde is the Episcopal bishop of Washington, D.C.
12She denounced the president's use of the bible and her church for the image.
13She said the image was against "the teachings of Jesus and everything that our church stands for."
14She said Trump's action supported "the use of tear gas by police officers in riot gear" to clear the area in front of the church.
15Members of the U.S. military avoid making overtly political statements.
16Even former generals avoid criticizing a sitting president -- who serves as the commander-in-chief of the armed forces.
17But on Tuesday, retired admiral Mike Mullen said: "The events of the past few weeks have made it impossible to remain silent."
18Mullen was the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff under Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama.
19Mullen wrote in the Atlantic: "It sickened me yesterday to see security personnel-including members of the National Guard-forcibly and violently clear a path through Lafayette Square to accommodate the president's visit outside St. John's Church."
20The strongest and most public criticism came Wednesday from retired General James Mattis.
21He is Trump's former defense secretary.
22Mattis said in a statement: "When I joined the military, some 50 years ago, I swore an oath to support and defend the Constitution.
23Never did I dream that troops taking the same oath would be ordered...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."
24Mattis added, "Donald Trump is the first president in my lifetime who does not try to unite the American people...Instead he tries to divide us."
25The president answered the criticism from Mattis on Twitter.
26Trump called Mattis "the world's most overrated General."
27He added that he did not like Mattis' "'leadership' style or much else about him, and many others agree, Glad he is gone!"
28Mattis was Trump's first defense secretary.
29He resigned in 2018 after disagreeing with the president about pulling troops out of Syria.
30Current Defense Secretary Mark Esper and General Mark Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, have received criticism for joining Trump on the walk to the church on Monday.
31Esper said he knew the group was going to St. John's.
32But he said, "I was not aware a photo op was happening."
33Esper also said he did not know that police had forcibly moved peaceful protesters in Lafayette Square to clear the way for Trump.
34The White House said the order to clear protesters came from Attorney General William Barr.
35Esper also said this week that he opposed using American military troops to do the work of law enforcement.
36He said the Insurrection Act of 1807 should be invoked "only in the most urgent...of situations."
37He added, "We are not in one of those situations now."
38Trump's press secretary, Kayleigh McEnany, said the president was still willing to deploy federal troops, even after Esper's comments.
39"If needed, he will use it," McEnany said Wednesday.
40When asked if Trump still had trust in his defense secretary, McEnany said, "As of right now, Secretary Esper is still Secretary Esper, and should the president lose faith we will all learn about that in the future."
41I'm Ashley Thompson.
1American President Donald Trump has long talked about his support for the United States military. But comments this week show he might not have the full support of military leaders. 2On Monday, Trump proposed using military troops to control and stop violent protests following the police killing of George Floyd, an African American man, in Minneapolis, Minnesota. 3Trump said, "If a city or state refuses to take the actions that are necessary to defend the life and property of their residents, then I will deploy the United States military and quickly solve the problem for them." 4As Trump was speaking from the White House, police officers and national guard troops began using chemical spray, smoke and sound bombs to remove peaceful protesters across the street at Lafayette Square. 5After the area was cleared, Trump walked past lines of officers in riot gear on his way to St. John's Episcopal Church at Lafayette Square. Members of Trump's administration joined him, including the defense secretary and the military's chief of staff. 6Trump stood in front of the religious building, which had been damaged during protests a day earlier. The president held a Christian holy book in one hand. Members of the media took pictures and videos of Trump and others with him. 7Mariann Budde is the Episcopal bishop of Washington, D.C. She denounced the president's use of the bible and her church for the image. She said the image was against "the teachings of Jesus and everything that our church stands for." She said Trump's action supported "the use of tear gas by police officers in riot gear" to clear the area in front of the church. 8Criticism from retired generals 9Members of the U.S. military avoid making overtly political statements. Even former generals avoid criticizing a sitting president -- who serves as the commander-in-chief of the armed forces. 10But on Tuesday, retired admiral Mike Mullen said: "The events of the past few weeks have made it impossible to remain silent." Mullen was the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff under Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama. 11Mullen wrote in the Atlantic: "It sickened me yesterday to see security personnel-including members of the National Guard-forcibly and violently clear a path through Lafayette Square to accommodate the president's visit outside St. John's Church." 12The strongest and most public criticism came Wednesday from retired General James Mattis. He is Trump's former defense secretary. Mattis said in a statement: "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...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." 13Mattis added, "Donald Trump is the first president in my lifetime who does not try to unite the American people...Instead he tries to divide us." 14The president answered the criticism from Mattis on Twitter. Trump called Mattis "the world's most overrated General." He added that he did not like Mattis' "'leadership' style or much else about him, and many others agree, Glad he is gone!" 15Mattis was Trump's first defense secretary. He resigned in 2018 after disagreeing with the president about pulling troops out of Syria. 16Current military leadership 17Current Defense Secretary Mark Esper and General Mark Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, have received criticism for joining Trump on the walk to the church on Monday. 18Esper said he knew the group was going to St. John's. But he said, "I was not aware a photo op was happening." Esper also said he did not know that police had forcibly moved peaceful protesters in Lafayette Square to clear the way for Trump. The White House said the order to clear protesters came from Attorney General William Barr. 19Esper also said this week that he opposed using American military troops to do the work of law enforcement. He said the Insurrection Act of 1807 should be invoked "only in the most urgent...of situations." He added, "We are not in one of those situations now." 20Trump's press secretary, Kayleigh McEnany, said the president was still willing to deploy federal troops, even after Esper's comments. "If needed, he will use it," McEnany said Wednesday. 21When asked if Trump still had trust in his defense secretary, McEnany said, "As of right now, Secretary Esper is still Secretary Esper, and should the president lose faith we will all learn about that in the future." 22I'm Ashley Thompson. 23Hai Do wrote this story for Learning English. Ashley Thompson was the editor. 24______________________________________________________________ 25Words in This Story 26resident - n. someone who lives in a particular place 27spray - n. liquid that is forced out of a container in small drops 28staff - n. a group of military officers who help the commanding officer 29personnel - n. the people who work for a particular organization 30accommodate - v. to do something for someone 31oath - n. a formal and series promise to do something 32bizarre - adj. very unusual or strange 33style - n. a way of behaving or doing things 34invoke - v. to make use of a law 35faith - n. strong belief or trust in someone