Milley swipes at Trump in retirement speech
JOINT BASE MYERHENDERSON HALL, Va. — Army General Mark Milley delivered a fullthroated defense of democracy and not-so-subtle swipes at former president Donald Trump during a packed ceremony on Friday as he closed out his four, often tumultuous years as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
Under cloudy skies at Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall, Milley, a Winchester native, never mentioned the former president by name. But he practically shouted on two different occasions that the US military swears to protect the Constitution “against ALL enemies, foreign AND domestic.”
“We don’t take an oath to a king or a queen or to a tyrant or a dictator. And we don’t take an oath to a wannabe dictator,” he said. “We don’t take an oath to an individual. We take an oath to the Constitution, and we take an oath to the idea that is America, and we’re willing to die to protect it.”
Milley, 65, is retiring after more than four decades of military service, including multiple combat deployments and two often turbulent years as Joint Chiefs chairman under Trump. And it was those years, and the battles he fought against Trump, that formed much of the underpinning of his farewell address and also were sprinkled throughout other speeches in the ceremony.
As chairman, Milley pushed back against a host of Trump’s plans, including demands to pull all troops out of Iraq and Syria and his desire to put active-duty troops on Washington’s streets to counter racial protests. Several books have described Milley’s deep concerns about Trump’s fitness as commander in chief and his worries that Trump would try to use the military to help block President Biden’s election.
Just a week ago, Trump railed against Milley in a post on Truth Social, condemning him as a treasonous, “Woke train wreck” whose actions have been “so egregious that, in times gone by, the punishment would have been DEATH!” The post, which some interpreted as a threat, has prompted Milley to ensure his family has adequate protection.
But seemingly in response, Milley said, the military will protect the Constitution, no matter the personal price, and “we are not easily intimidated.”
Biden, who spoke at the ceremony, continued the democracy theme, praising Milley’s staunch defense of the Constitution, which “has always been Mark’s North Star.” And he said the general has been a steady hand guiding the military during one of the most complex national security environments.
The farewell tribute on the base just outside Washington was both rousing and somber, with marching bands, troop salutes, and speeches.
Milley’s four-year term as chairman ends at midnight Saturday, and Air Force General CQ Brown takes over Sunday.
One of the performances was a stirring rendition of “God Bless America” by Army Captain Luis Avila, who was severely injured and lost a leg in a bomb blast in Afghanistan. Milley’s choice of Avila was a tribute to wounded troops but also served as a pointed jab at Trump.
Milley has said Trump made disparaging remarks about Avila, who sang from his wheelchair at a ceremony for Milley in 2019. Milley said Trump asked him at the time, “Why do you bring people like that here? No one wants to see that, the wounded.”