Retired admiral who led raid that killed bin Laden cautions Trump on pardoning servicemen
The admiral who led the raid that killed al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden cautioned President Trump Monday about pardoning members of the military accused or convicted of war crimes.
"One of the things the president always has to be cautious of is, within the military we have this thing called undue influence," now-retired four-star Navy Admiral William McRaven said on "CBS This Morning"
"So, if there is an ongoing investigation, as a senior officer you're not authorized, you're not allowed, to imply how you think the outcome of that case ought to be. That's called unduly influencing the man or woman in charge of that investigation. So, the president has to be careful about signaling his intent [to pardon]."
"Again, once the investigation is complete, if the president reads about it and he decides that that individual needs to be pardoned, it's well within his authority to do that," McRaven added. "[But] I think the president just needs to be cautious about signaling what he thinks the appropriate outcome of those investigations should be."
McRaven's comments come after reports that Trump is considering pardoning several military service members either accused of committing war crimes or convicted for them.
One of the men Trump is reportedly seeking to pardon is Navy SEAL Edward Gallagher, who was charged last year for a number of war crimes, including stabbing and murdering a wounded person and shooting at unarmed Iraqi civilians.
McRaven previously served as the commander of all U.S. Special Operations Forces, including Navy SEALs.
https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/444687-retired-admiral-who-led-raid-that-killed-bin-laden-cautions-trump-on