Moulton Statement on Esper Firing
QUANTICO, Va. — Rep. Seth Moulton (D-MA) issued the following statement following the announcement that President Donald Trump fired Secretary of Defense Mark Esper:
I have no doubt that Secretary Esper was fired for being critical of President Trump’s policies, which is Esper’s role as the civilian in charge of the Department of Defense.
Civilian leadership in the military is fundamental. We are now going through a political transition period in our country where the civilian leadership will insulate the military’s leaders from having to weigh in on partisan issues which could irreparably erode the American people’s trust in our Armed Forces. That faith that the military is above partisanship is essential to the missions that we ask our military to carry out on our behalf.
I hope that President Trump does nothing in the next 11 weeks that puts Gen. Milley and the Joint Chiefs of Staff in a position where they will need to make a partisan decision on a civilian, political matter.
I hope that my Republican colleagues in Congress, especially those who have served in uniform as I have, will take their duty to provide a check on the executive branch seriously and recommit themselves to civilian leadership of our military.
The young Marines who volunteered to serve their country that I am meeting with today deserve nothing less.
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Background
Today, Rep. Moulton is leading a Congressional delegation connected with his oversight duties as a Member of Congress to Marine Corps Base Quantico where he is reviewing how the United States Marines Corps are preparing new Marine officers to handle the threats our country will face in the future. While on the visit, President Trump announced he has fired Secretary of Defense Mark Esper.