President Donald Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth continue to claim that they are revitalizing the U.S. military by restoring its "warrior culture," but some prominent veterans strongly disagree — including retired U.S. Army Lt. Gen. Mark Hertling (who served as commander of U.S. Army Europe), retired U.S. Navy Adm. Adm. William H. McRaven, and retired U.S. Air Force Gen. Charles Q. Brown Jr. (who was fired from his position was chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff). Another is retired U.S. Marine Corps Lt. Col. Richard Westmoreland, who offers a scathing critique of Trump's second presidency in a 4th of July op-ed for MS NOW.
"When I flew over countries like Iraq and the former Yugoslavia as a Marine Corps F/A-18 pilot," Westmoreland writes in MS NOW, "I often wondered how they came to be ruled by authoritarians. During our conflicts with those countries, I read every book I could to help me understand the culture, history and more recent events that led up to the U.S. military darkening their skies…. If you had asked me before I retired in 2005 how I'd feel on July 4, 2026, the 250th anniversary, I would have imagined I'd be feeling every bit of the pride I felt when I was in international skies defending our country. But the creeping authoritarianism of the last decade, and the willingness of so many Americans to accept it, has me worried."
It was 250 years ago, on July 4, 1776, that the United States' Founding Fathers signed the American Declaration of Independence in Philadelphia's Independence Hall, which was called the Pennsylvania State House at the time. And Westmoreland fears that the U.S., because of Trump, could cease to be a democratic republic.
"More than five years ago, after insurrectionists — including some with military training — stormed the Capitol," Westmoreland explains, "I wrote a column expressing my anger, if only to signal the social media group of former Marine Corps fighter pilots I had belonged to. I have found that the overwhelming majority of the Marine fighter pilots I know support President Donald Trump, and while I have priceless memories of my time with those who were as close as brothers in my USMC squadrons, their continuing support for this lawless president has divided me from them."
The veteran continues, "I don't think the average U.S. citizen appreciates the sheer luck involved in our nation's formation. Our Founding Fathers, men of great intellect, morals and courage, were not only alive at one time — at one place in history; they were willing to risk everything to form what would become the world's greatest democracy. But we can't count on luck to get us back to where we need to be. We need a renewed commitment to the American idea."
