The Pentagon has reportedly communicated to the White House that it will not allow the U.S. military to be politicized, a move that comes amid a controversy involving a directive to keep the USS John S. McCain out of President Trump’s sight during his visit to Japan.
Acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan “directed his chief of staff to speak with the White House military office and reaffirm his mandate that the Department of Defense will not be politicized,” Lt. Col. Joe Buccino, a Pentagon spokesman, said in a statement, according to Reuters. “The chief of staff reported that he did reinforce this message.”
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Shanahan reportedly called on his chief of staff to find out what happened in regard to the request following The Wall Street Journal report.
Shanahan told reporters Sunday that he had no plans of demanding an inspector general investigation, Reuters noted.
“There is no room for politicizing the military,” Shanahan said, according to the news service.
Shanahan added that his chief of staff was unaware of the White House request and that a review had not discovered any emails to his team related to the issue.
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Pentagon tells Trump admin that military "will not be politicized" after USS John McCain directive https://t.co/z7HJiJruU4 pic.twitter.com/lzmTswWX6B
— The Hill (@thehill) June 2, 2019
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