U.S. Air Force Major Jason Watson has been detained after calling out Trump’s rampant corruption and his dangerous war on Iran.

Air Force Major Jason Watson—who was arrested on the steps of the U.S. Capitol Building last month while calling for President Trump’s impeachment—has been arrested again.

Watson was detained on Tuesday, just one day after an exclusive CNN interview in which he said the president was “violating the Constitution, breaking the law, [and] engaged in rampant corruption.” Watson is currently in pretrial confinement in Maryland based on “allegations of continued misconduct” according to the Air Force. It did not identify the specific misconduct allegations, although his attorney believes that his recent CNN appearance is to blame.

“What is happening with President Trump is not normal. He has failed us,” Watson told CNN’s Erin Burnett on Monday. “And not only is he a failure as president, he is flagrantly violating the Constitution, breaking the law, engaged in rampant corruption, and is killing Americans. And that is unacceptable to me and it should be unacceptable to all of us.”

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  • halcyoncmdr@piefed.socialEnglish
    94·
    2 days ago

    Air Force Major Jason Watson

    Just a reminder that the enlisted and officer oaths are different, and could be a factor here. Notably that officers do not swear an oath to follow the orders of the President like the enlisted do.

    A Major would be an Officer (O-4).

    The Oath of Enlistment (for enlisted):
    “I, _____, do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over me, according to regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice. So help me God.”

    The Oath of Office (for officers):
    “I, _____ (SSAN), having been appointed an officer in the _____ (Military Branch) of the United States, as indicated above in the grade of _____ do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign or domestic, that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office upon which I am about to enter; So help me God.”

    • Murse@slrpnk.net
      68·
      2 days ago

      Enlisted are still oath-bound to engage Trump the same way they do any other enemy of the US.

      They are also obligated to follow his orders, but only if those orders are legal. While fucking bonkers that the same oath requires them to do both, it isn’t actually a conflict: they can still follow legal orders while taking measures to depose him. Hell, they can even follow those legal orders posthumously. But that doesn’t free them from their duty to defend us against domestic enemies like Trump. Their inaction thus far is a violation of their oath and dereliction of their duty.

      • bytejunk@piefed.socialEnglish
        4·
        12 hours ago

        Correct reading as to “legal orders”: the oath itself, while binding to the president’s orders, does not make it unconditional: it explicitly subjects that binding to a limit: “according to regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice”.

        This means that enlisted personnel have the right, and in fact, the obligation, to refuse following unlawful orders.

      • 2piradians@lemmy.worldEnglish
        10·
        1 day ago

        Yeah I remember officers having their careers ended for criticizing Bush. Word was that troops were prohibited from that type of activity, officers especially so.