Not the Headlines Extra! Unlawful Orders

The ListeningTube presents Not the Headlines Extra. I'm Bob Woodley. By now you may have heard about a video made by members of the United States Congress reminding members of the military and intelligence communities that they are under no obligation to follow an unlawful order. They were careful to say unlawful in order to cover their asses. And while they figured that saying unlawful would cover their asses, they didn't figure how the rest of what they said would be interpreted. As a veteran, I'm just gonna say it rubbed me the wrong way. First of all, every man and woman in the military is told very early on that they don't have to obey an unlawful order. Now, back in my day, you could get out of trouble with the law if you volunteered to join the military, specifically the army or the marines. So in those cases, they might not have got to the part about obeying unlawful orders right away. But the Air Force guys weren't like that. The Air Force didn't take those guys. I don't know if the Navy did. The point is that we all know that we don't have to follow unlawful orders. Nobody needs to be reminded of that. Anyone who is engaged in combat is up to speed on the Geneva Convention as well. We know what war crimes are and that a captain can order a sergeant to break the law. So what was the purpose of the video? Certainly, it was meant to be provocative. It was guaranteed to gather attention from media of all types. Full disclosure, I'm talking about it right now. Mission accomplished. All sorts of opinions have been tossed out for anyone to catch. At the worst, it was meant to be a dog whistle to anyone in the military who has doubts about their role to question it, and perhaps refuse to participate any further. Such a disruption in the chain of command could lead to anarchy in the ranks. That could be deadly under certain conditions. From a political viewpoint, they must have seen some type of benefit to their cause in order to follow through with the recording and producing of the video. I don't know what benefit they may have by sowing doubt in the minds of the men and women who defend our country. While the press keeps showing us the edited part of the video that shows all of them saying unlawful orders after all the participants introduce themselves and their credentials, it says We know you are under enormous stress and pressure right now. Are they? Not any more than it normally is, like when your locker is being inspected or you have to march in unison. These congressmen are creating a false narrative in order to justify their overstating the obvious. So right off the bat, I'm not buying the premise. Then it says Americans trust their military, but that trust is at risk. Is it? Is it representatives from my home state of Pennsylvania? Why is our trust in our military at risk? Are you saying we can't trust our military? The few Americans from just about every city and town in the country who we pay to defend us? They volunteered to learn how to contribute to the security of our country and then perform that task. And you say we can't trust them? Well, maybe they are being vague enough to only be provocative. And if that wasn't enough. A senator who spent time in space as part of an experiment along with his twin brother just came right out and accused the current administration of pitting our uniformed military without actually finishing the sentence, which was completed by two other representatives, to finally say, and intelligence community professionals against American citizens. They may have broken up the statement into different segments read by each of them in order to be able to defend themselves in court. If they only say part of each sentence, they can't be convicted of saying the entire sentence despite what the message was meant to incite. So we're pitting our military against American citizens, according to Senator Kelly. The message is clear. When the speakers team up to claim that threats to America's Constitution aren't just coming from abroad, but from within, an obvious reference to the current president and his administration, this became a different message. Not a reminder of responsibility, but an attempt to sow discord among the rank and file. Not just the rank and file, but also the mid-level officers and even generals and admirals. It's called the chain of command for a reason. A broken link can result in failure, and that's what it seems these lawmakers are advocating. Sure they cover their asses by using legal terms, but it's still one of the most divisive, destructive, and demeaning statements ever submitted by a group of American members of Congress. They even claim that this is a difficult time to be a public servant. Why? Why is it difficult? Is it because of the question of job security under an administration that's trying to make our government more efficient? That really doesn't apply to the military. Their assumption is absurd. Those who are serving are more proud to do so than they have been in years. Then the lawmakers in the video assure the viewers who follow their lead that we have your back. In other words, go ahead and disobey an order that you want to question. We'll stick up for you. But these congressmen have nothing to lose, and their support may not matter much when it comes to military justice. Trust me, there's only so much a congressman can do. If you're in the military and you take the advice of this video, you'll be hung out to dry. The press will try to make you a martyr, but it won't matter. I would advise anyone in the military to ignore these fools who are trying to make you the one who suffers for what they believe. Despite the legalese and the statement, this video presented by four representatives, all Democrats, including Jason Crow of Colorado, Maggie Goodlander of New Hampshire, and two from Pennsylvania, Chris Deluzio and Chrissy Hoolihan, as well as Democratic senators Elisa Slotkin from Michigan and Mark Kelly of Arizona, the astronaut, is being called an act of sedition by the president. Exactly what is sedition? I'm going to look that up. He's gonna look it up. He's really gonna do it. I want the truth! You can't handle the truth. Merriam Webster says sedition is incitement of resistance to or insurrection against lawful authority. Based on that, I'd have to say that's exactly what these congressmen did, despite the legal disclaimers. The FBI is asking for interviews with all of them, and Senator Kelly, being retired military, may be called back to active duty to face discipline. Regardless of what happens to the participants of the video, it was a bad idea. I can't help but wonder whose idea it was and if any of the participants were pressured. Probably not, sadly. But if a soldier or airman or seaman out there takes them up on their offers of protection, it will confirm that they had an intention of inciting resistance. The most these wayward congressmen and women could hope for is that it doesn't happen. I'm Bob Woodley from the Listening Tube. Get a lot more content from the listening tube with Bob Woodley Podcast.