Trump's Pentagon pick Scott O'Grady backs Michael Flynn's idea of martial law and suspension of US Constitution
The inauguration of the new administration at the White House is a month-and-half away but loyalists of President Donald Trump are in no mood yet to pave way for a smooth transfer of power. Days after former national security adviser (NSA) Mike Flynn asked the president to suspend the Constitution, declare martial law and have the military hold a new poll, the latter’s nominee for a top post in the Pentagon has come up with a similar thought.
Scott O’Grady, nicknamed ‘Zulu’, has compared the election to a ‘coup’ and echoed the president’s claim that he won by a ‘landslide’, even though the GOP leader has lost to Democrat Joe Biden by a decent gap. O’Grady, a former air force pilot whose jet was gunned down by a Russian missile in Bosnia in 1995, has been picked by Trump for the post of assistant secretary of defense for international security affairs.
In a tweet posted on November 25, O’Grady said “Trump won & Biden & his Comrades will now attempt a coup”. O’Grady’s Twitter account, which uses the handle @ZuluF16, is a protected one with the tweets not readily accessible.
On Wednesday, December 2, he retweeted an account that shared an article saying Flynn had shared a petition that called for martial law. O’Grady retweeted the same account which suggested Trump should announce martial law. The petition O'Grady retweeted also called for the army to oversee a revote of the election.
“I don't know who needs to hear this,” the account said, adding: “But calling for martial law is not a bad idea when there is an attempted coup against the president and this country happening right now.”
O'Grady's radicalism not new
O’Grady’s radical viewpoints are not new. The man, who chaired Veterans for Trump effort this year, has promoted content in the past that condemned former defense secretary James Mattis as a “traitor” or content that accused Hillary Clinton and George Soros of being involved in foreign plots against polls, MSNBC reported.
Retired Gen. Barry McCaffrey slammed O’Grady in a tweet saying: “Scott O'Grady: Trump Pentagon nominee spreads debunked conspiracies and tweets suggesting Trump declare martial law - CNNPolitics. BELIEVE YOUR EYES. THIS IS REAL DANGER. TRUMP ACTIONS TO CONTROL DOD ARE A SERIOUS THREAT.” He tweeted a link of a CNN report from Friday, December 4, the headline of which read: ‘Trump Pentagon nominee spreads debunked conspiracies and tweets suggesting Trump declare martial law’. In another tweet, McCaffrey slammed Flynn calling him a “threat to the rule of law”.
Scott O'Grady: Trump Pentagon nominee spreads debunked conspiracies and tweets suggesting Trump declare martial law - CNNPolitics. BELIEVE YOUR EYES. THIS IS REAL DANGER. TRUMP ACTIONS TO CONTROL DOD ARE A SERIOUS THREAT. https://t.co/rfH5s03SNy
— Barry R McCaffrey (@mccaffreyr3) December 4, 2020
Mike Flynn is a threat to the rule of law. Disgraceful language likely to incite violence. Republican leaders must confront this dangerous behavior. ZERO possibility of the Armed Forces being involved in the Presidential transfer of power. https://t.co/2rZJnEPbTM
— Barry R McCaffrey (@mccaffreyr3) December 4, 2020
On November 30, the White House revealed O’Grady’s nomination for the top Pentagon post. It is, however, a political post that would not carry over into the next administration.
O’Grady’s nomination came following a purge at the Pentagon and forced departure of former defense secretary Mark Esper after the elections. The man’s heroic moment came after his plane was gunned down and he survived days in hostile territories to be eventually rescued by US Marines.