On the recordFebruary 26, 2025
Mr. Speaker, in President Trump's first term, facing a crowd of protesters, he asked our military: Can't you just shoot them? Just shoot them in the legs or something? Thankfully, his former Secretary of Defense shot down that idea. Today, the President seems to be choosing military leadership he believes will say yes. He is purging dedicated, capable leaders with no explanation other than removing roadblocks. This is a blatant attempt to politicize our military, replacing loyalty to our Constitution with political loyalty to Trump. Our Founding Fathers designed our military to be explicitly apolitical. They must be rolling in their graves today. When I joined the Marines in 2001, I raised my right hand and swore an oath to defend the Constitution of the United States just like every other servicemember and veteran. That oath is sacred. We swear our lives, to kill and to die, if necessary, to the United States, not to the President. The Trump administration must not be allowed to undermine that oath. ____________________





