Trump May Be Preparing Pardons for Servicemen Accused of War Crimes
President Trump
The New York Times is reporting President Trump is considering pardons for Americans accused or convicted of war crimes, and the pardons may come as soon as Memorial Day.
By Dave Philipps
President Trump has indicated that he is considering pardons for several American military members accused or convicted of war crimes, including high-profile cases of murder, attempted murder and desecration of a corpse, according to two United States officials.
The officials said that the Trump administration had made expedited requests this week for paperwork needed to pardon the troops on or around Memorial Day.
One request is for Special Operations Chief Edward Gallagher of the Navy SEALs, who is scheduled to stand trial in the coming weeks on charges of shooting unarmed civilians and killing an enemy captive with a knife while deployed in Iraq.
SOC Eddie Gallagher
The others are believed to include the case of a former Blackwater security contractor recently found guilty in the deadly 2007 shooting of dozens of unarmed Iraqis; the case of Maj. Mathew L. Golsteyn, the Army Green Beret accused of killing an unarmed Afghan in 2010; and the case of a group of Marine Corps snipers charged with urinating on the corpses of dead Taliban fighters.
Nicholas A. Slatten, Blackwater
Maj. Mathew L. Golsteyn
Marines urinating on Taliban dead
The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly, said they had not seen a complete list, and did not know if other service members were included in the request for pardon paperwork.
One wonders how much influence SOC Gallagher’s prosecutors getting caught tampering with the defense attorney’s e-mails had to do with this, and coming down too harshly on the Marines, whose offense should have been handled at Office Hours. Maj. Golsteyn and Mr. Slatten of Blackwater both had to make a snap decision to protect their people, and then got caught up in lawfare by people who weren’t there and never in their lives had to do the same.
Justice? Maybe. Take what you can get when you can get it. The article in its entirety may be found here: New York Times
Category: Army, Marines, Navy, Trump!, Veterans in the news
Good.
It should be done very carefully. Specific individuals based on specific circumstances. A blanket pardon for war crimes would be a terrible message and precedent.
Our alliances are fraying and we are increasingly being regarded as a bad actor on the world stage.
Germany has already made it clear our alliance is crumbling by calling us one of the biggest threats to global security and stability.
Damn! And here I was thinking that you did not have our forwarding address.
Again, read and comprehend the effing article dimwit. Not one word about a blanket pardon.
And Germany’s opinion? eff them too. Twice in the last Century we were a threat to THEIR quests for global domination, and since 1945, WE have provided the bulk of their security from the Russian Bear.
And BTW, at the risk of being chastised by admin…..eff you too!
Don’t you love it when our resident crypto-commie cites Germany as an example of how a military force should treat prisoners and enemy combatants? A nation that starved, tortured and murdered many millions in two world wars.
Our allies are with us. Our fair weather friends hardly were.
The Executive has as its -first- duty the protection of -American- interests, such as our Liberty and our ways.
Our allies are not with us. Even the UK has made it explicitly clear they regard us as the dishonest and destabilizing actor with regard to Iran.
LOL…!!!
Which must explain why yesterday I saw a news service article headlined that the UK confirmed our assessment of Iran.
Where’d you read that? The Guardian?
Buzzfeed?
Vice?
I’d guess IRNA. But I could be wrong.
More like Daily KKKOS or DU… possibly another foray into his pentabytes of “empiric data”.
Theresa May has a tenuous hold at best on her prime ministership. I do not think the current government in the UK is speaking for its citizenry. The citizens are clamoring to be free of the EU and to be more closely allied with the US.
WHERE THE FUCKETY-FUCK did you get that, from DU? Eat shit and howl at the moon while you GFY with a 3′ long broken glass dildo wrapped in asbestos soaked in diarrhea and nuclear waste!
Like we care what the Euro-pussies think. Miniscule armies that have done little (Englandistan) and nothing (Germany) in the world-wide war of ‘Slamonazi-ism against the western civilization.
Oh. Fuck. OFF.
Nobody said shit about a blanket pardon except you. Nobody is considering letting out the remaining Mahmudiyah criminals, Bales, etc.
Oh, and lions do not care for the opinion of sheep. Our “allies” don’t (for the most part) don’t pay any significant amount of the freight. Fuck their opinions.
If by Germany you mean former chancellor Angela Merkel, I agree. Fair weather allies who use their GDP on social benefits and lets the US citizen pay for their defense- its about damn time they pay up or watch the alliance, as you say, crumble.
Are we speaking of the “allies” who take our money then piss and moan about doing anything with us?
This is not news. Germany, UK, France, and the rest of NATO have done nothing but piss and moan about the US.
But talk about removing our troops and money? Well, that is different…quite different.
These so called “allies” have been playing leftists like you for so long you don’t even notice anymore.
Why don’t we just be honest and admit it. The US has no allies and never has. It only has nations willing to exploit our taxpayers.
And, in your eyes, China, Russia, Iran and ISIS are all good actors on the world stage?
You really have a fucked up view of our country, don’t you?
Germany can’t even meet it’s obligations in NATO, Lars
https://www.stripes.com/news/as-germany-prepares-for-nato-crisis-response-role-its-military-readiness-is-abysmal-1.527253
https://www.dw.com/en/germanys-lack-of-military-readiness-dramatic-says-bundeswehr-commissioner/a-42663215
That is quite funny, since Germany was the prime instigator of two World Wars. But, then, I guess that makes Germany uniquely qualified to determine who might be a threat to world peace. Given that a former East German is running the place adds another set of unique qualifiers to determining that.
If we get rid of the “law of land warfare” which is pretty much bullshit anyway, and simply adhere to the Geneva Conventions, all those illegal combatants could legally have been shot without trial on capture. We are the only country that insists on hamstringing our military with more rules than are needed.
The FIRST rule of warfare according to the Gospel of George Smith Patton. Give that other sonofabitch the glory of dying for his country.
If oblowme can pardon known deserters and traitors, then the Trumpster should be pardoning Warriors caught up in some sketchy legalese. Just my 2 pennies worth.
Leave it to the Seagull to misstate deliberately the case. Again.
Pardon consideration takes months. He latched onto this idea on an impulse and wants it done by Memorial Day.
This is not a contemplative process for him. My bet is he will pardon everyone in the stack. If a war criminal does not get a pardon it is because he was not in the stack of applicants.
In case you’re not aware (and apparently, you aren’t) the Marines case was 12 YEARS ago. Major Golsteyn was nearly a decade ago. Chief Gallagher has been sitting in confinement for over a year.
Oh, and I keep hearing this phrase rattle around my head, something about prosecutorial misconduct? Yeah, that’s the one.
He seems to think that just because it was reported a week before Memorial Day that it has only been in consideration for a few days. 🙄
He can read between the lines. To him it’s what isn’t said that’s more important than what’s said.
In Lars’ mind, “prosecutorial misconduct” is just a small feature in the world that he believes we should be living in.
He love the words of Beria – “Show me the man and I’ll show you the crime”.
I know the truth! I know that ORANGE. MAN. IS. BAD.!!!! I hold my TALISMAN OF TRUTH (my flaccid micropenis) against all of you who fail to see the light that is SOCIALISM!
YOU WILL SEE MY WAY!
You did misstate the case.
“Orange Man bad…” – *CLICK*
“Orange Man bad…” – *CLICK*
“Orange Man bad…” – *CLICK*
“Orange Man bad…” – *CLICK*
“Orange Man bad…” – *CLICK*
“Orange Man bad…” – *CLICK*
“Orange Man bad…” – *CLICK*
“Orange Man bad…” – *CLICK*
“Orange Man bad…” – *CLICK*
…
“Orange Man bad…” – *CLICK*
“Orange Man bad…” – *CLICK*
“Orange Man bad…” – *CLICK*
“Orange Man bad…” – *CLICK*
“Orange Man bad…” – *CLICK*
“Orange Man bad…” – *CLICK*
“Orange Man bad…” – *CLICK*
“Orange Man bad…” – *CLICK*
…
And any other bit of your prefessers’ propaganda you decide to regurgitate.
And you know this how, Comrade Putin? Answer, you don’t. Once again you are apparently ignorant of reality and how shit happens. Not surprising. If you are still in the Army, someone should contact your chain of command and advise them that you are unstable and a communist sympathizer. Wonder how that would go over?
Just where the fuck were ya when Manning stole C/I and dumped it and Obama granted him a pardon, you fucknut, dipshit, over edjumacated, misguided…..eh. Go fuck yourself, Lars.
Just my 2 pennies worth 5th/77 FA. Well that surely makes cents.
It’s General George Smith Patton, Jr. (Accuracy counts—-yer welcome)
Thanks borderbill. Yes, accuracy counts. And to be totally accurate, he was the grandson of Confederate Colonel George Patton, killed at Winchester VA in 1864.
As I read this, it says the files have been requested. Everything else is pure speculation designed to spin up controversy. I think I will wait to see what happens before I get outraged… or not.
I wonder what these armchair Mil peeps would say about Pete M who was a BAR man during the Bulge and his friend was shot as they were trying to take a pillbox and the Germans kept shooting at his friend while he was on the ground so when they finally came out with their hands in the air, one of them had a shit eating grin on his face so Pete opened up his BAR on him from the groin up to his head. I had a retired NYPD Officer working with me when I was with Brink’s and he told me that his Brother was involved in liberating a concentration camp and that any camp guards that were inside the structures were shot on the spot. Then again, this was a differen’t era and not like these times where it is PC to be apologetic to your enemy. I forgot to mention that Pete shot a German skier in the back as he skied through the camp firing his burp gun while Pete and the guys were in their fox holes. I don’t know if that incident would go well today with the Mil PC crowd.
Audie Murphy slaughtered a German platoon to the last man and routed two others with heavy casualties in southern France after they lured one of his friends out of cover and killed him by faking surrender. Some of them apparently tried to surrender for real at that point, but Murphy was in Fuck You mode and reduced them to hamburger with a captured MG-42 at close range. He got the Distinguished Service Cross for it, though he reportedly didn’t keep the medal and instead sent it to his friend’s young daughter.
In Chief Gallagher’s case, I wonder if the pardon might send the wrong message, so to speak, as it implies he is guilty. Gallagher hasn’t been convicted and thus is entitled to the presumption of innocence until proven otherwise, and the severely-inappropriate, unethical, and illegal actions of the prosecution don’t exactly bolster the credibility of the charges against him.
On the one hand, I’m sure Chief Gallagher would love for the ordeal to be over, but taking a pardon for wrongdoing when the Navy has yet to prove he ever did anything wrong seems like it still gives his (likely false) accusers a win on some level.
That is a concern.
Well said. I think the charges against Chief Gallagher may be dropped in consideration for charges not being brought against the prosecuting attorneys. The government may want to ‘sanitize’ the matter. There is some crap going on in that case that the government is going to want to be concealed, IMO. I would prefer to see a trial in which he is acquitted, though. From the little I know, and I admit I don’t have the full story, the prosecuting attorneys may have committed actions that would justify their disbarment. This case stinks to high Heaven.
Re Germany, I don’t have many fucks to give for their opinion concerning anything. They are circling the drain. Other European countries aren’t far behind.
Trump has cut off the gravy train for what? Three countries? Cut off the money to all but a very few and use the saved money to pay for the wall. What do these assholes do for us that we should give them aid? Right, I’m thinking the same.
I got shot in the face by a disgruntled soon-to-be-former member for casting aspersions at NCIS, and remembering how badly they screwed up USS Iowa’s investigation on the turret explosion. Charged with war crimes and stuck in the brig, a Navy SEAL vows to fight on Boomer Sooner says: October 23, 2018 at 2:58 am I see that no one on here apparently thinks much of NCIS, an agency charged with investigating crimes, including war crimes that servicemen do commit. You may not like the fact that there are violations of the UCMJ, but there are and evidence exists that this SEAL violated a number of articles. I’m not suggesting that he is guilty, I believe in the justice system and innocent until proven guilty. However, I cannot abide by the snarkiness in which the author of this article treats NCIS simply because he doesn’t agree with the charges. Of course the defense attorney is going to say outlandish things, that’s his job, but to believe them is ridiculous. Perhaps folks missed the search warrant signed by a federal judge (not a military one). Federal judges usually don’t sign warrants without PC. “search warrant, obtained through a federal magistrate in San Diego” The SEAL’s commander also must think there is something to it since he’s decided to keep him in PTC. A service member is provided an IRO hearing to determine PC for the continued incarceration, and an independent fact-finder is brought in for the review so a third party also found PC. “There is no bail program in the military justice system. Senior commanders can place service members in pretrial confinement if they believe enough evidence exists to sustain a criminal charge and the suspect could be considered a flight risk or a danger to himself or others.” To say, or imply, this is a witch hunt is inane. I don’t believe Jonn would have allowed such nonsense. After spending time helping Jonn with active duty posers, but now seeing the idiocy the blog has devolved to, I can say that I will no longer financially support this blog… Read more »
Anyone out there remember the name of the other Battleship that had a turret explosion beside the Iowa which happened a year or two apart. My Dad who was Coast Arty during the war (WW2) said at the time that it was most likely due to an over ram of the powder bags OR any lit particles not being ejected by an air ejector. Dad said that they used to use a wet mop just inside of the gun before the bags were rammed in. I heard that tests were done by dropping bags off of a tower and one of the bags cooked off on impact with the deck.
Well, anyone that thinks everyone in pre-trial confinement (PTC) is likely guilty of the charged crime is deluding themselves. One of the men in my company spent over a year in PTC because the Brigade Commander wanted someone locked up for this “heinous crime against the German people.” Our battalion commander (O-5) and the company commander (O-3) were happy to cooperate in this injustice, even though 8th Inf. Division JAG didn’t think his PTC was warranted. Plus, the PFC was acquitted by a German court when the case was tried. Because I tried, and almost succeeded, to get him out of the stockade, LTC Jenes (later LTG) gave me a derogatory rating on “judgment” in my OER (officer efficiency report). Funny thing, when I was in the Viet of the Nam, a Congressional committee investigating US military racial problems in the FRG, the O-6, the O-5 and the O-3 all agreed it was a “good judgment” to release the PFC from PTC. But for a year, the Army had its “witch” locked up, to the satisfaction of the O-6. So, that is my answer to a guy (submariner) who most likely never went outside the wire in bad guy country.
“no one” should be “everyone in” in PTC. My editor needs to proof read more carefully.
Sounds to me like those three officers would potentially be the victims of one of those fragging incidents I have read about in Vietnam that would occasionally occur especially if the officer was not liked at all. Sounds like those three were professional ass kissers. Kind of reminds me of Lloyd Fredendall. Or at least that’s the vibe I am getting.
Fortunately, the fragging incidents were few and far between. These officers were safe in Germany. The O-3 was a clueless dolt; the O-5 was a careerist bootlicker, and the O-6 demonstrated he was mentally not all there on several occasions.
Can’t say I am surprised at that setup rgr769. It seems like you always got to have a dynamic duo or moronic trio (or just about any group of blockheads, can be large or small) thrown in there somewhere. Plenty of people who shouldn’t even be trusted as dog catchers.
Cameron, they tend to attract each other, sort of a symbiotic relationship.
Throw in a SJW civilian CID agent or two, rgr769 and it’d be about right.
Did you actually spend any time in the military Boomer?
Federal judges fuck shit up on a regular basis and dependent on what the military showed this one, he might have signed it with no real comprehension of what was going on. Given the very real indications of both ILLEGAL command influence and prosecutorial misconduct present here, the military has already fucked away the concept of a fair trial. And why was a federal judge even involved in a military justice proceeding? Because they could be lied to and manipulated more easily since they would know nothing about military in general. PTC, sure, his CO is most likely covering his ass to ensure he gets promoted again sometime, not looking like he is coddling the Chief. And his CO was the first in the line to charge this guy.
I would refer you to what happened to those dumbasses who pissed on the corpses. I really don’t care that they did it. It means nothing. No real violation there. But to take a photo of it should have gotten them all Office Hours. That marginal airwinger Commandant we had stated he “wanted them crushed” which ensured no semblance of a fair trial in the Marine Corps. An egregious case of ILLEGAL command influence. So bad that the lawyer for the defense wanted the Commandant written up for various violations of the UCMJ.
This stuff does indeed happen, the rest of the world just rarely hears of it.
The troops who took a leak on the corpses of Satan have my support.
It sounds to me like nearly all of the cases in consideration were be-there situations.
Moreover, if ‘Bama thought well enough of BradleyBoy Manning then how wrong could Trump be?
I would have stuck some Bacon up his ass!
Killing the enemy during war. Hmmm. Seems like what they were paid to do.
“War crimes” somehow implies something other than killing the enemy. And no, I don’t consider pissing on a corpse something which should be documented, but hey, it’s a far cry from rape and plunder.
“Hears and minds” is not a war winner.
Destroying the enemy’s will to fight is the war winner. Sun Tzu wrote of this over 2500 years ago, and it is absolutely the key to winning any war.
This insane belief that we can defeat implacable foes by being “nice” is insane, and it is intended to destroy -our- willingness to fight. Many of its advocates are quite actively seeking our defeat.
Absolutely correct. We ended up fighting Germany in WWII because we didn’t sufficiently defeat them in the First World War. Since then, they’ve been far less problematic than they were for the preceding 100 years.
Not to mention the Japanese who didn’t throw in the proverbial towel until after we dropped two A-Bombs on their turf!
Whoever “leaked” all this information wants to stop President Trump from doing it.
The swamp strikes again.
Shit, if they were illegals, the left would be perfectly happy with a pardon.
I believe this “war crimes” yip yap harkens back to Viet of the Nam and the sKerry fiasco, Winter Soldier in Detroit 1971. There still outstanding “war crimes” complainants (35 to be exact) that have yet to fess up to their lies told in Detroit and testimony before Congress. Todays jackasses espousing this crap, are simply tools of the left. Has anybody ever heard what happened with that $600k cash that went to aid and comfort the enemy during the 2005 or 2006 fiasco that some Congress critters approved to go to Iraq? CODEPink? No?
Speaking of which, anyone seen my ol buddy Bill “The Assassin” Perry running around lately? I’m still waiting for him to come kick my skinny MP ass…Jonn had it on A/V once upon a time. Heh.
If Gallagher is actually guilty of what several of his fellow SEALs accuse him of then he absolutely does not deserve a pardon.
So Commie Czar,
Which of his fellow SEALs are accusing him of war crimes, and which are standing with him? As best I can tell, only a few disgruntled former SEALs are accusing him. They say he was “taking pot shots” at “women and children”, having his re-enlistment in front of a corpse, and then this crime of slitting the throat of a dying terrorist.
I tend to agree with some above, that the Chief needs to be able to confront his accusers, and stand trial (once he is prepared). He will likely be acquitted and those who accused him should be investigated to determine if they were trying to instead hide their own malfeasance.
He deserves his trail.
A pardon is an admission of guilt. And nobody guilty of these crimes deserves a pardon.
And, again, I am not a communist. I expect more from an MI soldier.
And we expect much, much more out of you, Lars…
“If”
If your aunt had balls, she’d be your uncle. Do you have inside information, Lars? Because some things have come to light about the situation and the accusers that cast serious doubt on the credibility of the accusations. On top of that, he has been detained without access to legal counsel, denied other legal rights without due process, and the prosecutors tried to hit his lawyers with spyware. That sounds to most rational, clear-thinking individuals like somebody is trying to railroad Gallagher. These are not the kind of things a prosecutor would do if they had a good case against him.
With the last wave of the Disgusting Democratic pardons. I would let them all go, with time served and if they were guilty I would not clean up the records. If it looked like overkill, I would clear them, and their records. Most of the ROE where crazy and implemented by fools that were not in harms way. War is hell!
PS Germany or any other Nation that doesn’t like it can eat shit!!!!
The first of these pardons is to SGT Derrick Miller https://www.kansascity.com/news/local/article230609689.html
Who was a National Guard Soldier serving on his third tour of Afghanistan. He observed a “local” acting suspiciously on entering their wire. Went to question him with an interpreter, as he thought he might be spying prior to an attack, and then the confusion started. According to him and others present during the questioning the “local” reached for SGT Miller’s weapon, there was a struggle and SGT Miller shot him. According to the interpreter during trial SGT Miller Kicked him, threw him down, and then shot him in the back several times. Shortly after the incident the platoon went on high alert, and within moments they were attacked. According to a superior present during the attack, if not for SGT Miller’s actions the unit would have been overrun.
Instead of a medal for valor, SGT Miller was awarded with a Prison sentence for “premeditated murder” and had been in prison since 2011. He was paroled on May 20, 2019, from his 30 year sentence.
My opinion: President Trump should hold off on pardons for Gallagher and Golsteyn.
The Gallagher court martial will probably implode on it’s own.
The Golsteyn court martial is going to be a farce. The governments case is basically “We’ve got jack shit for physical evidence, no corroborating statements to prove anything, a polygraph that we can’t use and an interview the defendant gave.” And Golsteyn’s attorney will just have to stand and point to the prosecutor’s table and say “Seriously? WTF are you wasting our time? Motion to dismiss. And BTW, we’d like our clients tabs and awards reinstated.” And then file a lawsuit against the POS SecArmy who revoked them for slander and defamation.