Although Donald Trump plans to build up the military if he wins the presidency in 2016, he may not have the support, or even the leadership of the military. Many top commanders in the Pentagon are contemplating retiring if Trump wins the election.
Although Trump lauds the military, his radical plans — banning Muslims from entering the country, internet censorship, and his strategy to defeat ISIS by committing war crimes — are generally despised by military personnel. Many service members and military leaders feel that Trump’s ideas go against the values that they swore they would defend with their lives.
However, the military also swears to “obey the orders of the president of the United States,” which puts Trump dissenters in a pickle. According to the Daily Beast, while many in the military disagree with Trump’s xenophobic and liberty-restricting plans, Trump’s war mongering upsets them even more.
The majority of the Pentagon leaders that the Daily Beast interviewed have sent men on fatal missions. They fear that Trump’s aggressive but unrealistic plans would cost many soldiers their lives.
“This is not the country I joined to defend.”
“I am turning in my papers.”
“I’m moving to a farm.”
“Personally, I hope no one will be called upon to serve under a President T… I can’t bring myself to type the words,” said retired Rear Admiral John Hutson, who the Daily Beast interviewed in July.
Trump’s military strategy strikes many in the Pentagon as much too aggressive and unrealistic. Another GOP frontrunner, Ted Cruz, also had his military strategies criticized by Pentagon leaders. Specifically, Cruz’s plan to carpet bomb a city was criticized by many soldiers, especially when he added that the bombing wouldn’t level cities, but instead look for ISIS camps specifically, which soldiers called entirely unrealistic.
Although Trump and other Republican presidential candidates pretend that they are friends of the military, the military is no friend to the war mongering candidates.
Featured image via Flickr
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