DefSec Esper: ‘I’m Fully Confident the Commander-in-Chief Will Not Give Us an Illegal Order’
Defense Secretary Mark Esper faced a number of questions from reporters at a briefing this afternoon on Iran.
CNN Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr asked about the push for deescalation before bringing up President Donald Trump’s threat to cultural sites.
“You have said several times in the past couple days that you will follow international law on potential war crimes. Let me set that aside, I think everyone would expect you to do exactly that. My question is not hypothetical. The president is out there with his position. If you get an order, would you resign from office rather than violate the law?” she asked.
Esper said he wouldn’t get into “some hypothetical that you’re portraying,” saying, “I’m fully confident the commander in chief will not give us an illegal order, and as I said, the United States military will, as it always has, obey the laws of armed conflict.”
Esper broke yesterday with the president’s threat to target cultural sites if Iran retaliates.
You can watch above, via Fox News.
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