One knew that the leaks of the behind the scenes stuff would start after Trump left office…..
A new book ‘Peril’ by Bob Woodward, relates how the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, the nation’s highest unformed military officer worried that his President COULD start a armed conflict with the Chinese…
General Milley did not make one call….
He made several…..
The man was scared of a President that had the ability to order a nuclear strike at anytime….
The General had a system to be alerted if such an order was given (And had his staff agree to this ‘eye to eye’) during the last months of the Trump administration when Trump was trying to reverse his loss of office….
And the general was not alone in his worries….
Several high ranking Trump admin people went t0o bed every night worried also…..
Unease by many American was shared by the people in the higher parts of the American government….
And THIS should be a message to others that Donald J. Trump should NEVER be allowed to go near the top of the American Government again….
One call took place on Oct. 30, 2020, four days before the election that unseated President Trump, and the other on Jan. 8, 2021, two days after the Capitol siege carried out by his supporters in a quest to cancel the vote.
The first call was prompted by Milley’s review of intelligence suggesting the Chinese believed the United States was preparing to attack. That belief, the authors write, was based on tensions over military exercises in the South China Sea, and deepened by Trump’s belligerent rhetoric toward China.
“General Li, I want to assure you that the American government is stable and everything is going to be okay,” Milley told him. “We are not going to attack or conduct any kinetic operations against you.”
In the book’s telling, Milley went so far as to pledge he would alert his counterpart in the event of a U.S. attack, stressing the rapport they’d established through a backchannel. “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.”
Li took the chairman at his word, the authors write in the book, “Peril,” which is set to be released next week.
In the second call, placed to address Chinese fears about the events of Jan. 6, Li wasn’t as easily assuaged, even after Milley promised him, “We are 100 percent steady. Everything’s fine. But democracy can be sloppy sometimes.”….
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Milley also summoned senior officers to review the procedures for launching nuclear weapons, saying the president alone could give the order — but, crucially, that he, Milley, also had to be involved. Looking each in the eye, Milley asked the officers to affirm that they had understood, the authors write, in what he considered an “oath.”…
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The chairman knew that he was “pulling a Schlesinger,” the authors write, resorting to measures resembling the ones taken in August 1974 by James R. Schlesinger, the secretary of defense at the time. Schlesinger told military officials to check with him and the chairman of the Joint Chiefs before carrying out orders from President Richard M. Nixon, who was facing impeachment at the time.
Though Milley went furthest in seeking to stave off a national security crisis, his alarm was shared throughout the highest ranks of the administration, the authors reveal. CIA Director Gina Haspel, for instance, reportedly told Milley, “We are on the way to a right-wing coup.”….
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His decision just months earlier to place himself between Trump and potential war was triggered by several important events — a phone call, a photo op and a refusal to rule out war with another adversary, Iran.
The immediate motivation, according to the book, was the Jan. 8 call from Pelosi, who demanded to know, “What precautions are available to prevent an unstable president from initiating military hostilities or from accessing the launch codes and ordering a nuclear strike?” Milley assured her that there were “a lot of checks in the system.”
The call transcript obtained by the authors shows Pelosi telling Milley, referring to Trump, “He’s crazy. You know he’s crazy. … He’s crazy and what he did yesterday is further evidence of his craziness.” Milley replied, “I agree with you on everything.”
Note…
The book has some stuff on Biden and Manchin and Pence certifying the Election vote also….
While this is supposed to be shocking I’m sure?
Somehow, I don’t find it very surprising.
And let’s not forget…the majority of Republicans still support this guy.
Over 60% Jack and the same number think the election was stolen from Trump.
“Republicans have blood on their hands,” Speaker Nancy Pelosi.