President Donald Trump issued a statement suggesting General Mark Milley – whom he refers to as “Dumbass” – should be tried for “treason” if reports that the Joint Chiefs Chairman secretly called China are true.
The Political Insider reported that Milley, according to a new book titled, Peril, claims to have grown so concerned about Trump’s ‘mental state’ that he notified China to tell them that the United States wasn’t about to start a war with them.
Milley, the writers of the book allege, assured General Li Zuocheng of the People’s Liberation Army of China that the United States military would not strike.
Milley would later make officers pledge “not to take orders from anyone unless he was involved” following the Capitol riot in January.
Perhaps most astonishing is a quote provided by the Washington Post which shows Milley was willing to warn China if an attack was in the works.
“General Li, you and I have known each other for now five years. If we’re going to attack, I’m going to call you ahead of time,” Milley purportedly said. “It’s not going to be a surprise.”
Read those words again. The Joint Chiefs Chairman was apparently ready to warn a foreign adversary about U.S. military plans.
Wait a sec. Milley told his Chinese counterpart he would warn him of a pending attack? Wow.
“General Li, you and I have known each other for now five years. If we’re going to attack, I’m going to call you ahead of time. It’s not going to be a surprise.”https://t.co/ZbdHqYbEpS
— Josh Rogin (@joshrogin) September 14, 2021
RELATED: Report: General Milley Secretly Called China To Tell Them Trump Wasn’t Planning To Attack
Trump: Milley Should Be Tried For Treason
What General Milley is being accused of having done cannot be overstated. In the Political Insider report, I described Milley’s actions against President Trump as “borderline treasonous.”
The former President issued a statement indicating he viewed those actions – if true – in a similar fashion.
“If the story of ‘Dumbass’ General Mark Milley … is true, then I assume he would be tried for TREASON in that he would have been dealing with his Chinese counterpart behind the President’s back and telling China that he would be giving them notification ‘of an attack,'” he said.
“Can’t do that!” Trump added.
JUST IN – Trump says “it’s treason, if true” on Gen. Milley report.pic.twitter.com/ld5c4HnnAc
— Disclose.tv (@disclosetv) September 14, 2021
Trump Doubts The Story
Trump, having been a full-time target of a media that hasn’t always reported honestly about him, actually sounded skeptical about the story.
“The good news is that the story is Fake News concocted by a weak and ineffective General together with two authors who I refused to give an interview to because they write fiction, not fact,” he said.
The former President defended himself against the accusation that he was considering launching a military strike against China – for which there has been no other indication.
“For the record, I never even thought of attacking China—and China knows that,” said Trump. “The people that fabricated the story are sick and demented, and the people who print it are just as bad.”
Trump goes on to note that he served as a President who sought to get America out of wars, not one who starts them.
NEW!
“If the story of “Dumbass” General Mark Milley…is true, then I assume he would be tried for TREASON in that he would have been dealing with his Chinese counterpart behind the President’s back and telling China that he would be giving them notification “of an attack.” pic.twitter.com/bLCfFhNPgA
— Liz Harrington (@realLizUSA) September 14, 2021
Milley’s actions are extraordinarily serious. They could have very easily prompted China, perhaps now fearful that America’s top military officer thought President Trump was so unhinged he could greenlight an attack, to launch their own military action against America first.
He could have started an actual war between nuclear powers.
“So first of all, if it is actually true — which is hard to believe that he would have called China and done these things and was willing to advise them in advance of an attack — that’s treason,” Trump later said in an interview with NewsMax.
Pentagon officials: Gen Milley did not try to insert himself in the chain of command regarding the launch of nuclear weapons, but he made sure everyone knew what their roles were and what they weren’t. They reviewed lawful launch procedures following Pelosi phone call.
— Jennifer Griffin (@JenGriffinFNC) September 14, 2021
The Pentagon, according to Fox News reporter Jennifer Griffin, has denied the aspect of the book which indicates Milley tried to insert himself in the chain of command on a nuclear strike after the Capitol riot.
Excerpts from the new book show that General Milley took similar action after the January 6 riot at the Capitol, something CNN reports left the top military officer “deeply shaken.”
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“In response, Milley took extraordinary action, and called a secret meeting in his Pentagon office on January 8 to review the process for military action, including launching nuclear weapons,” they write.
Senior Trump admin national security official to me on Gen. Milley’s reported secret calls to Chinese generals:
“It was dangerous for Mark Milley to be doing freelance diplomacy on China without involving any of the other senior officials dealing with China at the time…” 1/3
— Josh Rogin (@joshrogin) September 14, 2021
Milley allegedly instructed officers “not to take orders from anyone unless he was involved.”
“No matter what you are told, you do the procedure. You do the process. And I’m part of that procedure,” he is quoted as having said, then making officers “verbally confirm they understood.”
Did you check with your sources about whether the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff should be even having phone calls with the Speaker of the House about circumventing the nuclear chain-of-command?
— Kyle Becker (@kylenabecker) September 15, 2021
As the Daily Beast reports, the president has “sole authority” to launch nuclear weapons, and “no one either in the armed forces or the cabinet has to concur or agree with his decision to launch nuclear weapons insofar as the order is legal.”
The Political Insider reported that the ‘legal’ term is the key phrase, where military leaders typically resign if they believe the President is requesting an illegal action.
“Milley did not try to insert himself in the chain of command regarding the launch of nuclear weapons, but he made sure everyone knew what their roles were and what they weren’t,” Griffin reported, according to Pentagon officials.
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