Letters to my Friends: Veterans and Service Members
By: Isaac H. Todd
Tags: Veterans, Military, BlackLivesMatter, Trump

This is the first in a series of public letters addressed to those with whom I share a common identity or experience. The purpose is to engage our awareness and spark action among individuals with the power to influence a better America in these consequential times. I value sincere discussion, and am happy to continue the conversation on the phone or hopefully soon, in person.

Dear Veterans and Service Members,

I took my first oath of office as a U.S. Army officer on May 28, 2011. Like all of you, I raised my right hand and swore to “support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic.” An important tension was born at that moment. As I assumed the authority to assert executive power on behalf of the nation, I simultaneously committed myself to the principles of limited government and protection of individual rights — fundamental principles enshrined in our Constitution. This oath is normally easy to uphold; we do so without a second thought. Yet, instances that challenge our principles should cause us to pause. There are periods when that critical tension binding power to purpose must be actively maintained — upheld with deliberate effort. Whether you are a current service member, bound by the duties of the rank and appointment you hold, or a veteran who still believes in the values you once swore to defend, I humbly implore you to examine your oath and what it requires of us as guardians of the American way of life.

A guardian is someone whose purpose is to apply their strength in the service of those less powerful. Soldiers do this when they shield children during a firefight, airmen when they interdict attacks against our allies, sailors when they ensure the freedom of global commerce. All officers and NCOs are guardians of the service members they are entrusted to lead. Although not every day-to-day action will directly implicate guardianship, neither our acts nor our omissions should ever violate that primary purpose. We must always remember who it is we ultimately serve.

Our oath is easy to uphold when the duty to follow orders aligns with Constitutional principles. There is no divergence between power and its legal and normative limits. Veterans have more flexibility because we no longer wield federal power, and are correspondingly not duty-bound to follow orders. However, as veterans we often still practice certain reservations, for example, refraining from engagement in public debate. Perhaps this comes from growing up in a culture that recognizes how important being apolitical is to the military’s legitimacy, and from a sense that we still represent our former profession and aim to support its service to all Americans.

At the same time, each of us was taught we have an obligation to disobey any order that is unlawful, unethical, or immoral. I identify this point only to highlight that our formal training promotes a constant responsibility to remember our oath and think critically about whether our decisions support that purpose. A study of military history reveals numerous instances where a person’s critical thought and ethical fortitude could have mitigated atrocity. The story that hits home for me is Christopher Browning’s, Ordinary Men: Reserve Police Battalion 101 and the Final Solution in Poland. You should read it in full. I’ll simply say a key lesson is that all of us have the potential to abuse our power or permit injustice if we are passive actors who fail to think critically, draw clear moral boundaries in advance, and implement accountability mechanisms for when our courage falls short.

For what do we preserve our neutrality and legitimacy if not to better achieve our mission as guardians? The catch-22 is if we stand silent indefinitely then we will never employ the power of that legitimacy in service of the end for which it exists. Our senior military leaders struggle with this dilemma, but many think we have reached the decisive point. On June 2, 2020, Retired Admiral Mike Mullen, former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, wrote: “I have to date been reticent to speak out on issues surrounding President Trump’s leadership, but we are at an inflection point, and the events of the past few weeks have made it impossible to remain silent.” Most service members abhor the extreme polarization gripping our country and hope to remain above it. Yet, as we have all been told, hope is not a sufficient strategy.

There is a point at which military duty and politics converge. Attempts to use the military as a political tool, or clear dangers to national security and the core rights of Americans, both cross the line. As steadily heated water kills the frog, three years of mostly legal norm-breaking risks blinding us to long term, dramatic harm. I shudder to call it fortunate, but at the very least the administration’s abuse of Americans in Lafayette Square seems to have shocked some of our voices into operation:

“Law-abiding protesters just outside the White House were dispersed using tear gas and rubber bullets — not for the sake of safety, but to clear a path for a presidential photo op… President Trump’s actions Monday night violated his oath to ‘take care that the laws be faithfully executed,’ as well as the First Amendment ‘right of the people peaceably to assemble.’ You may not have been able to stop President Trump from directing this appalling use of force, but you could have chosen to oppose it. Instead, you visibly supported it.” — James Miller, resignation letter delivered to the Secretary of Defense, Mark Esper, on June 2, 2020

“Whatever Trump’s goal in conducting his visit, he laid bare his disdain for the rights of peaceful protest in this country, gave succor to the leaders of other countries who take comfort in our domestic strife, and risked further politicizing the men and women of our armed forces… I remain confident in the professionalism of our men and women in uniform. They will serve with skill and with compassion. They will obey lawful orders. But I am less confident in the soundness of the orders they will be given by this commander in chief…” — Admiral (Ret.) Mike Mullen, essay in The Atlantic, on June 2, 2020

These are examples of what right looks like: public servants refusing to violate fundamental liberties; veterans speaking up for their core values; leaders advancing a much-needed conversation. Admiral Mullen alludes to a number of consequences of the President’s actions as examples of how the President degrades our national security. We cannot push back against Chinese aggression in Hong Kong while we are stifling protest at home. We cannot leverage global institutions and lean on allies to amplify our power when we surrender our ideals and withdraw into domestic discord. We do not have a force fit to fight when our Black service members are subject to unyielding, systemic injustice.

Recently, the Commandant of the Marine Corps, General David Berger, banned public displays of the Confederate flag because that symbol fosters disunity within teams that must be cohesive combat units. The Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force, Kaleth Wright, spoke out about his fear, for himself and his Black airman, when they interact with police: “Believe me my heart starts racing like most other Black men in America when I see those blue lights behind me.” The social issues of today are actually national security issues that implicate our oath and mission as guardians of our fellow Americans.

The plain reality is that present events will cause our country to change. America has always been in a process of social change. Sometimes very gradually. Sometimes in dramatic bounds. We can choose to resist change because it is uncomfortable or because it does not seem to directly advance our individual self-interest. Or, we can find within ourselves the humility to admit we do not fully understand it, but still choose to believe the voices demanding that inevitable change. Intellectually, we all support the Constitutional principle of equal rights. However, we must actively choose to unify around the righteous march towards equality.

Today’s crisis is beyond policy differences. Former Secretary of Defense and Marine Corps General Jim Mattis drew criticism when he refused to speak out about the policy disagreements he had with the president who appointed him. On June 3, 2020, Mattis broke his silence:

“Instructions given by the military departments to our troops before the Normandy invasion reminded soldiers that ‘The Nazi slogan for destroying us…was Divide and Conquer. Our American answer is In Union there is Strength.’… Donald Trump is the first president in my lifetime who does not try to unite the American people — does not even pretend to try. Instead he tries to divide us. We are witnessing the consequences of three years of this deliberate effort. We are witnessing the consequences of three years without mature leadership.”

The current Commander in Chief does not strengthen the military, does not exemplify our values and ideals and, unlike us, consistently fails to faithfully execute his oath to “support and defend the Constitution of the United States.” We are at a consequential point. There are no policy preferences, funding decisions, or judicial appointments that can justify supporting a president who tears apart our society. When leader after leader comes out against President Trump — leaders whom we have come to know, respect, and trust over their decades of service — it is time for every one of us to stop and take stock.

Now is the time for action. Think humbly about the forces in our society you might not see. Engage in genuine dialogue you might not like. Not to prove you are correct, but with the honest goal of better understanding. Take productive steps to learn more, overcome differences, and help author our shared American story. Look in the mirror and ask, what’s my purpose? Am I a wolf or a sheepdog? A bystander or a guardian? As you have done countless times before, sacrifice what is comfortable for what is necessary. Choose difficult over easy. Fight for right.

Sincerely yours,

Isaac