Col. (ret.) Lisa Schenck, who is Chief Judge of the U.S. Court of Military Commission Review, writes here in Stars and Stripes that "politicization of the military has a long history."
Our military and military justice system should not be used as a tool to score political points. Any changes to military policy going forward should be based on an educated, measured approach rather than hasty reactions to biased media coverage and false perceptions. Our service members deserve better.
An opening salvo in a Hegsethian effort to repeal the Gillibrand legislation?
The floor is open. Real names only, please, for comments.
In reading the article, I was struck by the notion that people will point an accusing finger of "politicization" when it is the "other side" that does something.
ReplyDeleteThis is not unique to the US, though it can be amplified due to the size of the US, and the size of its armed forces.
This very Blog raised issues and discussion concerning the firing of Warren Wells. Discourse and debate about policy changes and developments in the law is necessary and vital to an informed approach. But the article is rather transparently partisan.
Forgive my bluntness, but the tone and language of the article illustrates the author's own biases.
While I have written about the dangers of a "rush to judgment" predicated upon news reporting that is not always objective, and which certainly is not positioned to test evidence reliably in specific cases, there are well-documented concerns when non-juridical commanders can interfere in what are essentially prosecution of what are criminal offences.
I do not know the author, but it is relatively obvious to this outsider that the current American federal government is using military justice to score political points as much as any prior administration.
I know Lisa well. She is a brilliant lawyer and was a great judge. I share many of her concerns. Candidly, I would love to see much of Senator Gillibrand's legislation repealed or scaled back. IMO she has done tremendous damage to the rights of service members accused of sexual assault. She tried (unsuccessfully) to get TJAG to certify a case of mine where ACCA found it factually insufficient (after my client spent two years in jail on an 18 year sentence.)
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