Three Generals Dump on Trump

 

by Pa Rock

Citizen Journalist

Donald Trump, a man well-known for his authoritarian tendencies, likes to surround himself with the trappings of power and to be served by powerful people.   During his term as President, Trump often turned to the military to fill important roles in his government as a way of emphasizing his strength as the leader of the nation.

(Donald Trump never wore his country's uniform - nor has any member of his family - but he is reportedly very proud of one that he did wear at his private high school.)

But while Trump saw the military leaders whom he brought into the inner-circles of power as symbols of his strength, they were taking the measure of their boss and forming their own opinions as to his personal strength and character - and now they are talking.

Three United States Generals, all of whom were elevated to their highest positions by Donald Trump, are now speaking candidly and contemptuously of their former commander-in-chief.  They were literally at the heart of American government during the Trump years and had unique and clear insights into the mind of the man who was leading our nation.  The recollections and reflections of General Jim Mattis, General John  Kelly, and General Mark Milley with regard to their boss, Donald John Trump, are deeply disturbing and unsettling.

General Jim Mattis, now retired from the Unites States Marine Corps, was Trump's first and longest serving Secretary of Defense, managing to hold the office just short of two years before resigning in protest to Trump pulling US forces out of Syria.   A year after Mattis left the administration, many Americans took to the streets to protest the police murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis.  Mattis referred to those widespread demonstrations and the administration's combative response as "the result of three years without mature leadership."   He called Donald Trump:

"The first president in my lifetime who does not try to unite the American people - does not even pretend to try.  Instead he tries to divide us."

General John Kelly, also retired from the United States Marine Corps, was Trump's longest-serving White House Chief of Staff, the man responsible for making the White House operate in an efficient manner.  Kelly is the person who eventually brought to light many of Trump's disparaging and disgusting remarks about America's military veterans.

In an interview with CNN last October Kelly des described Donald Trump as:

"A person who thinks those who defend their country in uniform, or are shot down or seriously wounded in combat, or spend years being tortured as POWs are all 'suckers' because 'there is nothing in it for them.'   A person that did not want to be seen in the presence of military amputees because 'it doesn't look good for me.'  A person who demonstrated open contempt for a Gold Star family - for all Gold Star families - on TV during the 2016 campaign, and rants that our most precious heroes who gave their lives in America's defense are 'losers' and wouldn't visit their graves in France."

(General Kelly is himself a Gold Star dad, having lost his 29-year-old son to a landmine while he was fighting with US Forces in Afghanistan in 2010.)

General Kelly, who worked as the gatekeeper for the Trump administration for multiple years, went on to describe Donald Trump in that same CNN interview as:

"A person who is not truthful regarding his position on the protection of unborn life, on women, on minorities, on evangelical Christians, on Jews, on working men and women.  A person who has no idea what America stands for and has no idea what America is all about.   A person who cavalierly suggests that a selfless warrior (Gen. Mark Milley) who has served his country for forty years in peacetime and war should lose his life for treason - in expectation that someone would take action.  A person who admires autocrats and murderous dictators.  A person that has nothing but contempt for our democratic institutions, the Constitution, and the rule of law."

Ouch!

And last, but certainly not least, is General Mark Milley, now retired from the U.S. Army and the man Trump appointed to oversee the operations of the entire US military as the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.  Milley, a former Army Chief of Staff, served as Chairman of the JCS for the final fifteen months of the Trump administration and continued to serve out the remainder of his two-year term in the Biden administration.  After he had been out of office for nearly three years, Trump suggested through Truth Social that Milley had behaved in a traitorous manner by informing Chinese authorities that the American government was stable and functioning during the January 6, 2021, insurrection at the US Capitol - and the former President insinuated in the same post that death would be an appropriate punishment for that call - a call which had been authorized by members of the Trump administration.

Excerpts from Bob Woodward's newest book, "War," which were recently released by the publisher, reveal that General Milley described Donald Trump to Bob Woodward as "fascist to the core," and then added, "Now I realize he's a total fascist.  He is the most dangerous person to this country."

Three Generals, a total of 12 stars, and a big pile of damning allegations by exemplary military leaders, men whom Trump trusted and placed in pinnacle positions in the military and the government.  They observed him at close range, day-in and day-out, and now they are sharing their observations with the rest of us mere mortals - and what the Generals have to say about Donald Trump, the petty autocrat and dictator wannabe, is alarming.  These Generals recognize Donald Trump's ability to wreak havoc on order and democracy, and they want us to recognize it too.  

Donald Trump seeks to divide us and keep us fighting among ourselves.  He has a very limited understanding of our country's history and almost no appreciation for the tremendous amounts of sacrifice that went into the establishment of America - especially the sacrifices of our military - and he looks to the world's absolute worst autocrats and dictators as his personal role models for how to lead a nation.

Jim Mattis, John Kelly, and Mark Milley are not political hacks - they are highly regarded military leaders who have more than a century of combined service to our nation, its Constitution, and democracy.  They are fully aware of the threat Donald Trump poses to our future and our freedom, and they want us to be aware that danger as well.

When people like General Mattis, General Kelly, and General Milley speak, we all need to listen.