A retired Navy SEAL whose war crimes trial made international news has launched a video attack on former SEAL teammates who accused him of murder, shooting civilians and who testified against him at his San Diego court-martial in June.
In a three-minute video posted to his Facebook page and Instagram account Monday, retired Chief Special Operator Edward Gallagher, 40, referred to some members of his former platoon as “cowards” and highlighted names, photos and — for those still on active duty — their duty status and current units, something former SEALs say places those men — and the Navy’s mission — in jeopardy. […]
Two former SEALs who served in Gallagher’s platoon in Iraq during his 2017 deployment spoke to the Union-Tribune Monday about the video. Neither testified at Gallagher’s court-martial. David Shaw, a former petty officer 1st class, said he questioned Gallagher’s decision to publicize information that’s normally kept quiet for operational security…
Shaw also defended his former teammates and their decisions to testify against their chief.“ Each and every one of the guys who came forward were performers of the highest caliber and people of the highest reputations within the platoon,” Shaw said. “(One) was selected to serve at the most premier institution at Naval Special Warfare and that tells you everything you need to know about his performance and speaks volumes about his character.”
Another former SEAL from the platoon said publicizing the faces of active-duty SEALs — including one assigned to the elite Development Group, or SEAL Team 6 — could put the lives of the men and their families in danger.
It appears Gallagher is going for wingnut welfare. By putting targets on the backs of his critics:
The video appears to be a trailer for an unspecified future project. Tim Parlatore, one of Gallagher’s attorneys, declined to say Monday what that project is or when it will be published.
He’s Trump’s boy all the way.
I’ve been watching the right’s media machine for a long time. And there have always been shady characters lifted to the top of the wingnut food chain — Oliver North and G. Gordan Liddy come to mind. But actual war criminals, accused of killing civilians including kids and knifing prisoners, becoming right-wing media heroes even surprises me, even if they were acquitted by a last-minute, very dubious, witness testimony. Of course, this would not be happening if Trump hadn’t been glued to Fox news and heard from their resident psycho, Pete Hegseth, who represents the racist murderer wing of the military, saying this guy was “tough warfighter.”
I don’t know what his shelf-life is but both North and Liddy made a handsome living in the right-wing media for many years. So selling out his fellow Navy Seals, possibly even getting them killed, could be his ticket to Fox News stardom.
Why does the right-wing hate the troops so much?