The Biden Administration and All Things Politics

[fishonjazz]

Enlisted military at the very least is absolutely forbidden from making statements to the press that could in any way be construed as representing the military unless you are more or less acting under orders in coordination with your command's PR officer. You are also absolutely forbidden from engaging in political activities, protesting or expressing political positions while in uniform.

It might be a bit different for a general but even then military personnel are not supposed to express political opinions while acting in any official capacity.

would saying that women in the military are strong and vital and good for the military be considered to be a political statement?

 

[One Brow]

would saying that women in the military are strong and vital and good for the military be considered to be a political statement?

It would if you reference Tucker Carlson to say he's wrong.

 

[Gameface]

I did not mean to indicate otherwise. I was hoping you would weigh in.

To your knowledge, would someone be prosecuted for violating these standards (as opposed to reprimanded, reassigned, etc.)?

EDIT: I got a little long winded, sorry.

So, the Navy has a system that is less than court martial but more than a reprimand or minor punishment by your immediate superior called "Captain's Mast." It is a formal process that is conducted at the command level where, if on a ship, the ship's captain (ship captains are not necessarily the rank of "captain" which would correlate to a a colonel in the Army. Just a little trivia, but on ships that are captained by an officer of the rank captain, that officer is informally referred to as a "full-bird captain" because the rank insignia for a captain is a silver eagle. Smaller ships like destroyers and frigates are usually captained by lieutenant commanders or commanders) ... where was I? OK. So there is a formal proceeding called "Captain's Mast" where the enlisted offender (officers don't go to Captain's Mast as far as I understand, at least not in the same way enlisted sailors do) is given a punishment that is determined solely by the ship's captain. Punishments can include reduction in rank, confinement to the ship (I've seen up to 90 days), confiscation of pay (I've seen two months pay), and "extra duty." Extra duty means that you have to muster 3 times a day to perform additional duties, usually cleaning, and muster one more time every day to have your uniform inspected. A sailor facing Captain's Mast can request to be court martialed instead where they will receive representation and go through a formal proceeding not conducted by their command leadership. They can also request court martial after Captain's Mast if they don't feel like the punishment was fair. The possible punishment from a court martial is being imprisoned and/or separated from the Navy with a bad conduct discharge or dishonorable discharge.

OK, all that to say that it is very possible that an enlisted person who violated those standards would very likely face Captain's Mast, even for a rather minor violation. The Navy loves reducing the rank and taking the pay of enlisted people, but it's not applied very evenly. I was in a technical field that was in high demand and my division, the Weapons Division (CS7), almost never sent sailors to Captain's Mast, even for things that many other sailors would go to Captain's mast for. We Dealt with things within the Division. The same was true at the department level, where I was in the Combat Systems Department, along with the electronics techs that worked on the ship's radar systems, the ship's interior and exterior communications equipment, the ship's operator consoles for the OPS departments equipment for monitoring radar and doing air traffic control, etc., the IT department who worked on ships local network, and the cryptology division who worked with the classified information traffic. No one from our department went to Captain's Mast unless it was absolutely unavoidable. Deck Department, OPS Department, Service Department, they'd get sent to Captain's Mast at the drop of a hat.

 

[Gameface]

would saying that women in the military are strong and vital and good for the military be considered to be a political statement?

That's a really good point. I think the issue was that he was rebutting a political commentator and speaking to the media possibly without clearing it first, but I don't think generals typically have to clear things with anybody.

 

[fishonjazz]

It would if you reference Tucker Carlson to say he's wrong.

What office of politics does tucker carlson hold?

Also i was asking more of hypothetical question. Not specific to this particular issue. Can someone in the military say that women make good soldiers? Like can they say it in a vacuum or is that still a political statement in and of itself?

 

[Gameface]

What office of politics does tucker carlson hold?

Also i was asking more of hypothetical question. Not specific to this particular issue. Can someone in the military say that women make good soldiers? Like can they say it in a vacuum or is that still a political statement in and of itself?

I think communication with the media has to be cleared in some way. I would expect that a general could make that call for their self and their command in most situations, but if a general wants to make a statement to the media that could in any way shape or form be considered "political" they should probably "run it up the flag pole" to make sure the people above them were okay with it.

Like I already said, I think the issue was more that Tucker Carlson is a "politically affiliated media personality," so making a counter-point to something he said could be seen as a political statement.

The military at the top levels are very aware that they do not want to be at the mercy of political tides for funding and support. It is also the most healthy relationship for a military to have with its nation in a democratic (constitutional republic) system.

 

[Safetydan]

I agree that it seems wrong. That General should have been court-martialed and imprisoned. For members of the military there are laws against becoming politically involved, laws which this General has violated. Tucker Carlson and Fox News are protected by the First Amendment but the General is not. The result of this unlawful behavior by the General and those like him serves to alienate a large chunk of the country at a time when the military his finding it hard to recruit soldiers. This General is performing unlawful actions that threaten the nation. He should be not be above the law simply because he is on the political left, but we all know nothing will come of this because there is a two-tiered justice system depending on your political leaning.

No comment on the rest of the post, but the bolded portion is egregiously BS.


Edit: I'll add that a "two-tiered justice system" definitely exists, It's just not based on political leaning, obviously.

 

[Al-O-Meter]

No comment on the rest of the post, but the bolded portion is egregiously BS.


Edit: I'll add that a "two-tiered justice system" definitely exists, It's just not based on political leaning, obviously.

The hypothesis makes a testable prediction. We'll see if the General, who is clearly a creature of the political left, has all of this blow over with no real repercussions after an "investigation" that is nothing more than a show being put on as a little C.Y.A. by those about to sweep it under the rug.

 

[Gameface]

A general making a statement in support of female military service members is a clear indication that the general is on the political left? What an absolutely odd thing to say.

 

[Safetydan]

A general making a statement in support of female military service members is a clear indication that the general is on the political left? What an absolutely odd thing to say.

Conservatives correctly identifying what is on the left challenge: Difficulty level - Impossible

The hypothesis makes a testable prediction. We'll see if the General, who is clearly a creature of the political left, has all of this blow over with no real repercussions after an "investigation" that is nothing more than a show being put on as a little C.Y.A. by those about to sweep it under the rug.

Use your imagination (or stop, I don't know whats going on here??). That doesn't work as a testable prediction when so many other plausible explanations for your ****** scenario exist. Try harder.

 

[Al-O-Meter]

A general making a statement in support of female military service members is a clear indication that the general is on the political left? What an absolutely odd thing to say.

The support for female military service isn't in and of itself political or why the general is in hot water. Don't play stupid. It doesn't fit you.

 

[fishonjazz]

A general making a statement in support of female military service members is a clear indication that the general is on the political left? What an absolutely odd thing to say.

Agreed. In his defense its a pretty clear indication that he isn't on the political right since the statement is supportive of women. So he would have to be on the left or in the middle at least.

 

[One Brow]

We'll see if the General, who is clearly a creature of the political left, has all of this blow over with no real repercussions ...

1) He's already had his retirement delayed while on Administrative Review
2) He's been publicly humiliated

So, if you are expecting further repercussions, what's your historical precedent for them? For example, McArthur was removed from command, but suffered no loss of rank or retirement benefits, and his transgressions were worse than Donahoe's. Which general has been punished more severely for erroneous comments?

 

[One Brow]

The support for female military service isn't in and of itself political or why the general is in hot water. Don't play stupid. It doesn't fit you.

What did the general say to make him "clearly a creature of the political left"?

 

[The Thriller]

View: https://twitter.com/mjs_dc/status/1580616229223792641?s=46&t=TzW8LPs-AXIAU_LqoxzgXQ


LOL. Good

 

[JazzGal]

The hypothesis makes a testable prediction. We'll see if the General, who is clearly a creature of the political left, has all of this blow over with no real repercussions after an "investigation" that is nothing more than a show being put on as a little C.Y.A. by those about to sweep it under the rug.

As long as Trump is not held accountable for his crimes, the right has little room for judgment.

Sent from my SM-A426U using JazzFanz mobile app

 

[One Brow]

As long as Trump is not held accountable for his crimes, the right has little room for judgment.

We can do better than what-aboutisms. Regardless of Trump, the truth is that what Donahoe posted was not left-wing and this type of post has never resulted in a criminal case case (at least, not for a general). @Al-O-Meter is being his usual blow-hard self.

 

[Gameface]

SNL really knocked it out of the park with this skit...



... wait, what's that? That wasn't a skit? That was actually Walker acting like a mentally challenged toddler?

 

[The Thriller]

This is exactly what I mean by how authoritarian and dangerous DeSantis is to our democracy.


View: https://twitter.com/robertmaguire_/status/1581299950218252288?s=46&t=jxeKHwyK8vwnNcGGsplFpA

 

[Bucknutz]

This is exactly what I mean by how authoritarian and dangerous DeSantis is to our democracy.


View: https://twitter.com/robertmaguire_/status/1581299950218252288?s=46&t=jxeKHwyK8vwnNcGGsplFpA

More lies from Mr. Left Wing Hyperbole.

Do you know much about Florida, Thriller? Do you know what counties got hit directly by Ian?

Lets look at Republican counties that are experiencing flooding from Ian:

Voter Registration - By County and Party - Division of Elections - Florida Department of State

Lake County: 61/39 Split for Republicans

Lake County facing historic flooding following Hurricane Ian

Hurricane Ian broke the record for flooding in Astor, a record that dates back to 1933.

www.wesh.com

They were not included in this executive order

Volusia County: 56/44 Slit for Republicans

Volusia County faces continued threat of flooding more than a week after Hurricane Ian as governor praises Floridians' resiliency | CNN

Volusia County on the Atlantic coast of Florida faces the continued threat of flooding more than a week after Hurricane Ian ripped through the state.

www.cnn.com

They were not included in this executive order

DeSoto County: 56/44 Slit for Republicans

For flooded inland Florida, Hurricane Ian saved the worst for last

Hurricane Ian carried a one-two punch for the inland Florida city of Arcadia and its surrounding county.

www.reuters.com

I bet you can guess it...they were not included in this executive order

Seminole County 51/49 Split for Republicans

Lack of flood insurance in hard-hit Central Florida leaves families struggling after Hurricane Ian | CNN

When Amanda Trompeta was woken up by her dog barking early last Thursday morning, she assumed he was just frightened by Hurricane Ian. But then she got out of bed -- and found herself standing ankle-deep in floodwater.

www.cnn.com

Once again, not included in this executive order

Hardee County 64/36 Split for Republicans
Highlands County 65/35 Split for Republicans

Historic flooding hinders recovery efforts in rural Florida counties

In the aftermath of Hurricane Ian, swaths of standing water are creating access issues in rural Highlands, Hardee and DeSoto counties.

wusfnews.wusf.usf.edu

What counties were included in the executive order?

I even marked a map for you, just to show you that you have no depth and you just post ********.

3 counties in light blue...direct hit by Ian
5 Counties crossed out in red - republican majority counties that didn't fall under the executive order
1 County crossed out in Blue - the 1 democratic county that didn't call under the executive order


The other counties that I didn't mark in the surrounding area
Polk - Republican
Manatee - Republican
Osceola - Democratic
Glades - Republican
Hendry - Republican



Very authoritarian @The Thriller. Just scare porn posts, that do not back up your theory.

Try harder.