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Originally posted by wtg:
So Trump and Melania, holding hands, visited the John Paul II National Shrine today. The archdiocese knew nothing about it ahead of time.

Waiting for the visits to a synagogue, mosque, and Buddhist and Hindu temples....

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Defense Secretary Mark Esper says he was given no notice before President Donald Trump led him and other senior administration officials to St. John's Episcopal Church for a widely criticized photo opportunity.

"I thought I was going to do two things: to see some damage and to talk to the troops," Esper said Tuesday night in an exclusive interview with NBC News.

Esper said he believed they were going to observe the vandalized bathroom in Lafayette Square, which is near the church.

"I didn't know where I was going," Esper said. "I wanted to see how much damage actually happened."

A Pentagon spokesman later told NBC News that Esper was aware the church was one of the locations where he would be viewing damage. The spokesman reiterated that Esper didn't know the president was going to use it as a photo opportunity.

Esper gave the interview a few hours after NBC News reported that he and Army Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, were caught by surprise when Trump led them to the church for a staged visit.

Esper and Milley were among a group of White House officials and aides who followed Trump as he walked from the White House to the historic church after officers in riot gear cleared the area of peaceful protesters.

"Their understanding is they were going into Lafayette Park to review the efforts of the troops," a defense official said.

Milley and Esper were on their way to the FBI's Washington field office to monitor protests with Attorney General William Barr and FBI Director Christopher Wray when they were diverted to the White House to update the president. After the briefing, Trump delivered an address in the Rose Garden in which he threatened to deploy the military to quell the unrest over the police-involved death of George Floyd in Minneapolis.

Trump ended the speech by saying he was going to pay his respects "to a very, very special place," but he did not elaborate.

The official said Trump, who held up a Bible for a photo op outside the church, did not walk out of the White House with it, so they had no warning. Esper and Milley were also not aware that the officers used tear gas to force the protesters out of the area, the official said.

"They were not aware that Park Police and law enforcement made the decision to clear the square," the official said.

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It sickened me yesterday to see security personnel—including members of the National Guard—forcibly and violently clear a path through Lafayette Square to accommodate the president's visit outside St. John's Church. I have to date been reticent to speak out on issues surrounding President Trump's leadership, but we are at an inflection point, and the events of the past few weeks have made it impossible to remain silent.

Whatever Trump's goal in conducting his visit, he laid bare his disdain for the rights of peaceful protest in this country, gave succor to the leaders of other countries who take comfort in our domestic strife, and risked further politicizing the men and women of our armed forces.

There was little good in the stunt.

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I remain confident in the professionalism of our men and women in uniform. They will serve with skill and with compassion. They will obey lawful orders. But I am less confident in the soundness of the orders they will be given by this commander in chief, and I am not convinced that the conditions on our streets, as bad as they are, have risen to the level that justifies a heavy reliance on military troops. Certainly, we have not crossed the threshold that would make it appropriate to invoke the provisions of the Insurrection Act.

Furthermore, I am deeply worried that as they execute their orders, the members of our military will be co-opted for political purposes.

Even in the midst of the carnage we are witnessing, we must endeavor to see American cities and towns as our homes and our neighborhoods. They are not “battle spaces” to be dominated, and must never become so.

We must ensure that African Americans—indeed, all Americans—are given the same rights under the Constitution, the same justice under the law, and the same consideration we give to members of our own family. Our fellow citizens are not the enemy, and must never become so.

Too many foreign and domestic policy choices have become militarized; too many military missions have become politicized.

This is not the time for stunts. This is the time for leadership.

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Defense Secretary Mark Esper says he was given no notice before President Donald Trump led him and other senior administration officials to St. John's Episcopal Church for a widely criticized photo opportunity.

"I thought I was going to do two things: to see some damage and to talk to the troops," Esper said Tuesday night in an exclusive interview with NBC News.

Esper said he believed they were going to observe the vandalized bathroom in Lafayette Square, which is near the church.

"I didn't know where I was going," Esper said. "I wanted to see how much damage actually happened."

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Defense Secretary Mark Esper declared on Wednesday his opposition to sending active-duty troops into U.S. cities to deal with violent protesters, two days after President Donald Trump threatened to do so if governors don't call up National Guard troops.

"The option to use active-duty forces in a law enforcement role should only be used as a matter of last resort and only in the most urgent and dire situations. We are not in one of those situations right now," Esper said in his first public comments since the protests erupted.

"I do not support invoking the Insurrection Act," Esper said, referring to the president's authority to deploy active-duty troops to respond to protests.

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Originally posted by wtg:

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Defense Secretary Mark Esper declared on Wednesday his opposition to sending active-duty troops into U.S. cities to deal with violent protesters, two days after President Donald Trump threatened to do so if governors don't call up National Guard troops.

"The option to use active-duty forces in a law enforcement role should only be used as a matter of last resort and only in the most urgent and dire situations. We are not in one of those situations right now," Esper said in his first public comments since the protests erupted.

"I do not support invoking the Insurrection Act," Esper said, referring to the president's authority to deploy active-duty troops to respond to protests.

https://www.politico.com/news/...ment-protests-298314

Think we're heading for the DoD [pick your day of the week] massacre?

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President Donald Trump and other top aides were upset that Defense Secretary Mark Esper publicly opposed the deployment of active-duty forces to confront protesters in U.S. cities, as Trump has suggested, and viewed the Pentagon chief’s remarks as out of line.

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The remarks generated some pushback at the White House, where three Trump aides who asked not to be identified said the secretary should have moderated his comments to draw less of a distinction with the president. Nonetheless, aides said they don’t expect Trump to seek Esper’s departure.

Esper is meeting with the president Wednesday to discuss the situation in Afghanistan, according to a White House official.

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On the battlefield, the roar of helicopter blades paired with a Red Cross is salvation for wounded troops and civilians.

But the thwomping blades of military helicopters, including one with Red Cross markings, were part of a low-flying show of force over Washington’s streets Monday night — an incident now under investigation.

Numerous videos on social media showed an unarmed Lakota medevac helicopter hovering over demonstrators. Its Red Cross markings, visible on the aircraft’s belly and side, was flown by the Washington D.C. Army National Guard. At least two helicopters roared overhead, sending people and debris flying.

One helicopter buzzed protesters from a height nearly level with three- and four-story buildings in the Chinatown area, ripping tree limbs away. Rotor wash hurled glass from broken windows like shrapnel. Protesters and a few remaining journalists scattered to the sides of the street to seek shelter beneath awnings, or went sprinting away, shouting “I can’t hear!” and “I can’t see!”

Many closed or covered their eyes to protect from flying debris and ran blind, causing them to stumble and fall before they scrambled back up.

Maj. Gen. William J. Walker, commander of the D.C. National Guard, has directed an investigation into the “low-flying maneuver,” a spokesman said Tuesday evening. The decision to use the maneuvers was authorized by the highest levels of that command, the New York Times reported.

But the use of medevac helicopters during demonstrations after curfew stunned justice experts, who said the Red Cross symbolizes mercy.

“Misuse of the Red Cross symbol is prohibited even during peacetime by the First Geneva Convention, to which the U.S. is a party,” said Rachel E. VanLandingham, a former Air Force attorney and professor at the Southwestern Law School in Los Angeles.

Linking the symbol with law enforcement, VanLandingham said, can weaken its “effectiveness as signifying medical and humanitarian assistance, a symbol of trust that is needed to give those vehicles with that symbol needed access where they are needed during armed conflict.”

It is unclear whether the helicopter was one of few available. VanLandingham said it might have been prudent to consider covering up the Red Crosses before flight.

The use of the helicopter also may violate Army regulations, Corn said, including domestic operations that outline the use of medical resources for “the evacuation of patients, movement of medical supplies and personnel, and support of search and rescue activities.”

Flying low in urban areas presents numerous risks to the pilots, crew, aircraft and people on the ground, Hunter said, factors that are typically considered before flying such a mission.

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“Misuse of the Red Cross symbol is prohibited even during peacetime by the First Geneva Convention, to which the U.S. is a party...”

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The use of the helicopter also may violate Army regulations, Corn said, including domestic operations that outline the use of medical resources for “the evacuation of patients, movement of medical supplies and personnel, and support of search and rescue activities.”

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The decision to use the maneuvers was authorized by the highest levels of that command, the New York Times reported.

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Think we're heading for the DoD [pick your day of the week] massacre?

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Originally posted by Piano*Dad:
Apparently, Joe Scarborough agrees with me ...

reported on Fox no less!

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Esper is apparently so embarrassed by the incident that he is directly contradicting his boss. At a news conference on Wednesday he insisted, “I do not support invoking the Insurrection Act. The option to use active-duty forces in a law enforcement role should only be used as a matter of last resort and only in the most urgent and dire of situations. We are not in one of those situations now.” He also promises to investigate the low-flying helicopter that appeared to try to intimidate protesters Monday night.

Since Esper has now debased himself both by participating in the stunt and coming up with a pathetic excuse to explain his lack of judgment, it might be time for him to resign.