Last September, three United States Navy SEALs, Matthew McCabe, from Perrysburg, Ohio, and Jonathan Keefe of Yorktown, Virginia, and Julio Huertas of Blue Island, Illinois, were sent into danger to capture Ahmed Hashim Abed, a Muslim terrorist who planned and carried out the kidnapping of four US contractors and their subsequent murders, mutilation, and burning back in March of 2004. They succeeded.
Keefe, and Huertas are due to go on trial in April, in Iraq of all places, for “Failing to safeguard a detainee”, McCabe to be court-martialed in May at Norfolk, Virginia, for allegedly punching Abed in the stomach. Their accuser is Ahmed Hashim Abed, the murdering Muslim.
Rep. Dan Burton, R-Indiana, sent a letter to Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, General Cleveland, and Admiral Roughead, which was also signed by who by forty other Representatives, requesting the charges against the three SEALs be dropped. It is distressing that Zack Space’s name was not among the forty US Representatives who signed Burton’s letter.
In response, Maj. Gen. Charles Cleveland, commander of Special Operations Command Central, in a letter to Burton stated, "The abuse of a detainee, no matter how minor, creates strategic repercussions that harm our nation's security and ultimately costs the lives of U.S. citizens." Repercussions? What does he think the Muslims are going to do? Behead their prisoners? Drag our dead soldiers naked through the streets? They have already done that. Or, is Cleveland following orders from higher up?
The military is subservient to the administration. They are responsible to the President, in this case, Obama. If Obama disagreed with Cleveland’s, and Admiral Gary Roughead, Chief of Naval Operations, who does not apparently oppose these court-martial proceedings, a word from him would cause them to disappear never to be heard again. That obviously hasn't happened.
I do not profess to have all the facts, but I do know this. These military men did the job they were assigned, did it voluntarily and efficiently. But to be put on trial by an accusation from the murderer of hundreds of Americans, as well as those of other countries, for an accusation of “he hit me”, is beyond belief.
Last Friday, at a pre-court-martial hearing, the military judge on the case, Commander Tierney Carlos, ordered the military prosecutor who is directing the case against McCabe, to grant immunity to SEALs, and others, who were present at the alleged incident and are expected to dispute the charge brought by a sailor who stated that he saw McCabe punch Ahmed Hashim Abed. This granting of immunity is important as one of those witnesses, Julio Huertas, who is being charged with dereliction of duty, impeding an investigation, and lying about McCabe’s actions.
I am distressed by this whole fiasco, but not surprised. Obama has shown his animosity toward the military in the past and will likely do so in the future.
Keefe, and Huertas are due to go on trial in April, in Iraq of all places, for “Failing to safeguard a detainee”, McCabe to be court-martialed in May at Norfolk, Virginia, for allegedly punching Abed in the stomach. Their accuser is Ahmed Hashim Abed, the murdering Muslim.
Rep. Dan Burton, R-Indiana, sent a letter to Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, General Cleveland, and Admiral Roughead, which was also signed by who by forty other Representatives, requesting the charges against the three SEALs be dropped. It is distressing that Zack Space’s name was not among the forty US Representatives who signed Burton’s letter.
In response, Maj. Gen. Charles Cleveland, commander of Special Operations Command Central, in a letter to Burton stated, "The abuse of a detainee, no matter how minor, creates strategic repercussions that harm our nation's security and ultimately costs the lives of U.S. citizens." Repercussions? What does he think the Muslims are going to do? Behead their prisoners? Drag our dead soldiers naked through the streets? They have already done that. Or, is Cleveland following orders from higher up?
The military is subservient to the administration. They are responsible to the President, in this case, Obama. If Obama disagreed with Cleveland’s, and Admiral Gary Roughead, Chief of Naval Operations, who does not apparently oppose these court-martial proceedings, a word from him would cause them to disappear never to be heard again. That obviously hasn't happened.
I do not profess to have all the facts, but I do know this. These military men did the job they were assigned, did it voluntarily and efficiently. But to be put on trial by an accusation from the murderer of hundreds of Americans, as well as those of other countries, for an accusation of “he hit me”, is beyond belief.
Last Friday, at a pre-court-martial hearing, the military judge on the case, Commander Tierney Carlos, ordered the military prosecutor who is directing the case against McCabe, to grant immunity to SEALs, and others, who were present at the alleged incident and are expected to dispute the charge brought by a sailor who stated that he saw McCabe punch Ahmed Hashim Abed. This granting of immunity is important as one of those witnesses, Julio Huertas, who is being charged with dereliction of duty, impeding an investigation, and lying about McCabe’s actions.
I am distressed by this whole fiasco, but not surprised. Obama has shown his animosity toward the military in the past and will likely do so in the future.
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