Restore America's reputation

First published in the Brunswick Beacon, 04.16.26

Threats by Secretary of Defense Hegseth and President Trump make us less safe by damaging America’s reputation, the “soft power” that makes other nations want to help us.

The Department of Defense Law of War Manual Sect. 5.4.7 forbids declarations “that no quarter will be given.” Hegseth ridiculed that as a “stupid rule of engagement” and declared, “no quarter, no mercy for our enemies.”

Sen. Mark Kelly, a highly decorated former Navy combat pilot and astronaut, wrote that Hegseth’s declaration “is expressly prohibited under international law, including the Geneva and Hague Conventions, and would be a war crime punishable under the War Crimes Act of 1996 (18 U.S.C. 2441).”

Hegseth’s declaration endangered Americans on April 3, when Iran shot down two U.S. aircraft. Two aviators were quickly rescued. One remained missing. Retired U.S. Army Lt. Gen. Russel Honoré (who saved New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina) warned that “if he’s caught, and the Iranians were to use the Secretary of Defense’s rule, that aviator will end up being treated very badly or even killed on the spot.”

Thanks to the heroic efforts of superb American special operations troops, the missing aviator was later rescued deep in Iranian territory. If any of the hundreds of troops involved had been captured, they could have faced the same grim fate threatened by Hegseth’s “no quarter” declaration.

Trump threatened to bomb Iran “back to the Stone Ages.” On Easter, he posted: “Open the [expletive] straight, ... or you’ll be living in hell.” Two days later, he threatened genocide: “A whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again.”

Trump’s threats are war crimes that have destroyed a reputation we spent generations building — China is now more trusted globally than America.

To rebuild the soft power Trump’s administration squandered and restore America’s reputation as a law-abiding, just and humane country, Hegseth and Trump must be impeached and removed from office.

L. McGann

Leland