Fox & Friends co-host Brian Kilmeade said military officials who take issue with President Donald Trump’s intervention on behalf of Eddie Gallagher, a U.S. Navy SEAL in the middle of a highly publicized war crimes case, should “get over it.”
Kilmeade made the comment on Monday morning while commenting on the news that U.S., Navy Secretary Richard Spencer was forced to resign by Defense Secretary Mark Esper over the weekend for protesting Trump efforts to restore Gallagher’s rank after he was in demoted for misconduct.
“Know what it sounds like? It sounds like admirals used to giving orders, but they don’t remember to get there they had to take orders,” Kilmeade said of Spencer. “They’re just bent out of shape by the fact that they’re not in control of this process. The president was able to use the power he had to look at the situation over the course of three years.”
“Get over it,” he added. “Get the Gerald R. Ford aircraft carrier going. He’s got other things to worry about. This just seemed petty and personal.”
At the end of Gallagher’s military trial, he was acquitted of the major charges — murder, attempted murder, and obstruction of justice — for his involvement in the death of a captured teenaged militant in Iraq, but was found guilty of posing with the corpse of
However, Trump claims he did not force Spencer out solely for protesting his involvement in the Gallagher case, as he instead tweeted:
“I was not pleased with the way that Navy Seal Eddie Gallagher’s trial was handled by the Navy. He was treated very badly but, despite this, was completely exonerated on all major charges. I then restored Eddie’s rank. Likewise, large cost overruns from past administration’s contracting procedures were not addressed to my satisfaction. Therefore, Secretary of the Navy Richard Spencer’s services have been terminated.”
For his part, Spencer claims he resigned voluntarily.
Watch above, via Fox News.
Correction: The headline of this post initially stated that Eddie Gallagher was pardoned. His demotion was reversed by President Trump.