Will Rummy stoop low enough to Court-Martial retired Generals?

[dajoki]

Slate
http://www.slate.com//id/2140616/

Could Rumsfeld Court-Martial the Retired Generals?
Surprisingly, yes.

By Fred Kaplan
Posted Wednesday, April 26, 2006, at 2:59 PM ET

Donald Rumsfeld has a notorious vindictive streak. How low will he stoop to pursue it? Let's put him to the test. If he wanted to get really brutal, Rumsfeld could convene a court-martial and prosecute the six retired generals who have been calling for his head. Military law, if read literally, permits him to do this. So, will he?

One of the assumptions surrounding the recent criticism of Rumsfeld is that the retired generals, unlike active-duty officers, are free to criticize the defense secretary without fear of reprisal. Surprisingly, this assumption is untrue. Under the Uniform Code of Military Justice, one of the many activities deemed punishable by court-martial is "contempt toward officials." This code of laws applies not just to active-duty officers but to retired ones, too. It's right there in Article 2, Section (a) (5): Persons subject to the UCMJ include "retired members of a regular component of the armed forces who are entitled to pay."

The key phrase is "entitled to pay." If you resign from the military, and thus give up all retirement pay and benefits, you're free from the clutches of military law. But if you retire and thus keep getting paid 50 percent to 75 percent of your peak active-duty salary (plus cost-of-living adjustments pegged to the consumer price index), you're still in the cage. (Many retirees learned this the hard way, when they were called back into service in Iraq.)

If Rumsfeld wanted to stick it to the retired generals who are daring to question his wisdom—Anthony Zinni, Greg Newbold, Paul Eaton, Charles Swannack, John Batiste, and John Riggs—he could invoke Article 88 of the military justice code, which reads:

Any commissioned officer who uses contemptuous words against the President, the Vice President, Congress, the Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of a military department, the Secretary of Transportation , or the Governor or legislature of any State, Territory, Commonwealth, or possession in which he is on duty or present, shall be punished as a court-martial may direct.

[C_U_L8R]

1. if he tries it... there could be mutiny

nothing like messing with people's retirement packages to rile em up....
just ask Ken Lay

[tsuki]

2. I wondered about this because I always thought a general

officer was either active or inactive. But on the other hand, there is the example of a general officer running for an elected position. Eisenhower was certainly critical of Truman.

You can convene a court martial, but can you control it? That is the question.

[LiberalFighter]

3. Could Rummy be court-martialed?

[dajoki]

4. Now there's a good question!!

Anybody?

[Democracy deth watch]

5. Not too many civilians get court martialed, do they?

I'm thinking Rumsfeld is exempt from getting court martialed. I wonder what penalties the generals would face if convicted. Brig? Fines? Dishonorable discharge?

[dajoki]

6. Definitaley loss of pensions n/t

[spindrifter]

7. I think you have to be a member

of the armed services to be court martialed. The military courts provide an equivalent for military service members to the federal courts which have jurisdiction over the rest of us. But how to get Rumsfailed out of office...that is the question.

[serryjw]

9. Whats' the difference B/T Rummy being retired

navy and the retired generals? Why couldn't Rummy be court martialed?

[LiberalFighter]

11. He was in the Navy and Reserve

Mr. Rumsfeld attended Princeton University on academic and NROTC scholarships (A.B., 1954) and served in the U.S. Navy (1954-57) as an aviator and flight instructor. In 1957, he transferred to the Ready Reserve and continued his Naval service in flying and administrative assignments as a drilling reservist until 1975. He transferred to the Standby Reserve when he became Secretary of Defense in 1975 and to the Retired Reserve with the rank of Captain in 1989.

[spindrifter]

13. Was is the operative word.

At some point, they are no longer in the armed service.

[LiberalFighter]

16. At what point are those retired Generals no longer in armed service?

[dajoki]

12. I think it's *'s call...

being that he's a Cabinet member.

[Donna Zen]

8. That's not how Rummy works

...come on DUers! We've watched these fucks long enough to know how they work. The retired generals really didn't make all that much money compared to their qualifications and experience when one considers what they would have earned in the outside world. They retire at a fairly young age and then try to sock something away. But if Rummy wants to make their lives and the lives of those they love miserable, he can do it. And..he will do it. Loss of friendships, strange investigations, prying eyes, articles filled with lies, and doors of opportunity closed.

Why be overt, when the levers of covert are at your disposal?

As Gert Clark once said: Wes left the military with just his reputation, and now they're trying to take that away from him.

That's what they do. And because they are generals, often the members of the left lend a hand. Sorry to have to say that, but only last night, I was sickened by a smear from the left. These generals are trying to stop Rummy, and probably another war.

[mr.alleycat]

14. I'm with Zen

That's how they work, and the word gets around to the other generals just as clearly.

[Donna Zen]

15. Thanks for the vote of support

...one other thing: I'd bet it has already started. These folks are true heroes.


Gone: Invitations for special committees and fact-finding to pad their resumes... board positions... speeches and lectures... advisor gigs. And then there is seeing your name and your families associated with bad news (lies) And of course there is worse.

They tried to ruin Richard Clarke and Paul O'Neill.

They are posionous devil spawn who need to removed from all positions of power.

[cliss]

10. Rule #1 for fighting:

Always choose your battles.

In the case of the military, Rumsfailed knows the retired generals speak for the enlisted ones. A recent survey shows that around 63% of the enlisted men feel that Rumsfailed should be replaced. That's not exactly a ringing endorsement. I'd say he's fighting for his political life.

So Rumsfailed could attack the generals, but to what end? Would that help matters? If you are besieged and are struggling just to stay afloat, sometimes attacking doesn't work.

Maybe appealing to the general population is a better move, like the Photo Op we just saw in Iraq.

How many wars can he fight? He's got 2 in Iraq and Afghanistan. Now he has to battle his own military?