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Overwhelming Opposition to the Trump Administration’s Attempts to Militarize Protest Response

U.S. Democracy Protection

Fact Sheet

Published on June 9, 2020

Letter From 38 Retired Admirals and Generals Opposing Military Deployments to Counter Protests
89 former Defense officials: The military must never be used to violate constitutional rights
Statement by 500+ Former U.S. Ambassadors, Military Officers, Senior Officials: The Strength of America’s Apolitical Military
58 Retired U.S. Generals and Admirals Reject Trump’s Undermining of Constitutional Rights
Statement by 23 Former Homeland and National Security Officials
Former Secretary of State Colin Powell: Trump has ‘drifted away’ from the Constitution
Former Defense Secretary James Mattis Denounces President Trump, Describes Him as a Threat to the Constitution
Former Defense Secretary Robert Gates: Pushing Away Peaceful Protestors Was ‘A Bad Mistake’
Former Secretary of Homeland Security John Kelly: ‘I agree’ with Jim Mattis on Trump
Former Defense Secretary William Perry: ‘I am outraged at the deplorable behavior of our President and Defense Secretary Esper’
Former Under Secretary of Defense James Miller: A letter to Defense Secretary Mark Esper
General (Ret.) Martin Dempsey: Trump’s ‘inflammatory’ threat to use active duty troops hurts US military
Admiral (Ret.) Mike Mullen: I Cannot Remain Silent
General (Ret.) Richard Myers: ‘I’m glad I don’t have to advise this President’
General (Ret.) Michael Hayden: ‘Milley…should not have walked over to the church with Trump’
Admiral (Ret.) William McRaven: Clearing of peaceful protesters not morally right
General (Ret.) John Allen: A Moment of National Shame and Peril—and Hope
Admiral (Ret.) James Stavridis: I Spent My Career in the U.S. Navy. The U.S. Military Must Stand Up for Its Soul in This Moment
General (Ret.) Joseph Votel: An apolitical military is essential to maintaining balance among American institutions
General (Ret.) Tony Thomas: ‘Not what America needs to hear’
General (Ret.): Barry McCaffrey: ‘Using military forces other than Nat Guard would be inflammatory’
General (Ret.) Vincent Brooks: ‘I see the manipulation of the image of the military by our President’
Lieutenant General (Ret.) Mark Hertling: ‘…President Trump’s chipping away at Constitution norms over the last 3+ years. We’ve seen a crescendo and a constant deterioration, and in the last three days it has reached an inflection point’
Vice Admiral (Ret.) Mike Franken: ‘[The military] is not a weapon to use against our citizens or our states’
Lieutenant General (Ret.) James Pillsbury: Trump’s threat to deploy active duty military could be ‘disastrous’
Major General (Ret.) Dana Pittard: ‘At this point it is something that law enforcement can handle’
Brigadier General (Ret.) Loree Sutton: Federal troops should not be used unless state governors require ‘additional reinforcements’ to ‘quell domestic unrest’

To download this fact sheet please click here: Fact Sheet on Opposition to Trump Administration’s Attempts to Militarize Protest Response_Updated.pdf

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