Rim Country Gazette: Former Navy SEAL who killed bin Laden: Trump's military parade is 'third world b*llsh*t'

Monday, February 12, 2018

Former Navy SEAL who killed bin Laden: Trump's military parade is 'third world bllsht'

CORONADO, CA - APRIL 15: During a Hell Week surf drill evolution, a Navy SEAL instructor assists students from Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL (BUD/S) class 245 with learning the importance of listening April 15, 2003 in Coronado, California. The intense physical and mental conditioning it takes to become a SEAL begins at BUD/S training. During this six-month mind and body obstacle course, recruits are pushed to their physical and mental limits. Further development of the core values, Honor, Courage, Commitment and Integrity, is an essential component of SEAL training and one that is weaved throughout a SEAL's career. First phase is the basic conditioning phase and is eight weeks in length. Physical training involves running, swimming, and calisthenics, all of which become increasingly difficult as the weeks progress. The fourth week of training, "Hell Week," is five-and-a-half days of continuous training with very little sleep. This week is designed to push students to their maximum capability both physically and mentally. The remaining weeks are spent in hydrographic reconnaissance and basic maritime training. (Photo by Photographer's Mate 2nd Class Eric S. Logsdon/U.S. Navy via Getty Images)

A string of heavy-hitting military veterans are hammering Trump over his ill-conceived idea to blow an estimated $20 million or more to line our troops up and force them to march down Pennsylvania Avenue, saluting him in his private box outside the White House.

First, Major General (Ret) Paul Eaton, the former commander of the U.S. Army Infantry Center and the man dubbed the “father of the Iraq Army” for his work training Iraqis after the U.S. invasion, released an absolutely blistering letter calling Donald Trump a 'wannabe banana republic strongman.'

Then Admiral (Ret) James Stavridis released a public letter saying the troops don’t need a 'puffy parade,’ they need real-life support like higher wages, better veteran care, and the weekend off to rest, not wasting their time in the summer heat inflating Trump’s ego.

Adding to the list is Robert J. O’Neill, the former Navy SEAL who shot Osama bin Laden in 2011.

Robert J. O'Neill ✔ @mchooyah

A military parade is third world bullshit. We prepare. We deter. We fight. Stop this conversation.

9:53 AM - Feb 8, 2018

The list of people objecting to Trump’s costly parade is growing by the minute. The D.C. City Council also weighed in on the idea of tanks rolling through the streets of D.C. and said "tanks, but no tanks."

Mayor Muriel E. Bowser (D) — whose administration is responsible for much of the city services associated with a parade — was skeptical about the idea.

“We would always be concerned about the impact on the city, the impact on safety, the impact on pulling personnel, the impact on our roadways, and quite frankly, the attention it would attract,” Bowser said Wednesday.

“Usually when you see big military parades, it’s celebrating an end of a war, and I don’t think that’s been announced.”

Her spokeswoman, Anu Rangappa, added that the city would have more to say once it hears from the Pentagon or the White House. “In the meantime, we do know that just like the wall, he will have to pay for it,” she said.