Trump Says Fort Hood Shooter's Execution Will Not Be Livestreamed
President Donald Trump says the execution of Fort Hood shooter Nidal Malik Hasan will not be livestreamed, reversing a Pentagon plan that drew sharp criticism from both Republicans and Democrats.
"He will die, as scheduled, by firing squad, but this event will not be streamed," Trump wrote in a Truth Social post on Thursday, according to Al Jazeera.
Why Trump Changed Course
Trump said that airing the execution "might have been a strong deterrent for the World to witness how America deals with Terrorists and SCUM like Hasan." But he acknowledged that many good people "would rather not watch him die, through streaming, or through any other visual device."
He said immediate family members of the victims will still be allowed to watch in person "if they so choose," KIRO 7 reported.
Trump called Hasan "a former U.S. Army Major turned traitor" and "a very bad and evil man." He also blamed the Obama administration for what he called a "key intelligence failure," pointing to emails between Hasan and radical cleric Anwar al-Awlaki that the FBI intercepted before the attack.
Bipartisan Backlash
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced earlier this month that the execution would be public, and the Pentagon later confirmed it would be livestreamed. "People need to understand that there's serious consequences for these types of things," Hegseth said in an interview with conservative commentator Jack Posobiec.
The plan quickly drew criticism from both parties. Sen. Thom Tillis, a North Carolina Republican, said Hasan should face the death penalty but called streaming it "beyond disgusting." Rep. Austin Scott, a Georgia Republican, said, "Live-streaming executions is what jihadists do. America is better than that."
Sen. Jack Reed of Rhode Island, the top Democrat on the Senate Armed Services Committee, called it "a barbaric spectacle" and "a gift to anti-American terrorist recruiters." Sen. Chris Murphy, a Connecticut Democrat, called public executions "medieval." Not everyone opposed the idea. Rep. Andy Ogles, a Tennessee Republican, called the plan "excellent."
The United Nations human rights office also warned that broadcasting the execution would be "tantamount to a public execution." Some experts also warned that a livestream could violate laws against transmitting graphic material and that it would be impossible to keep minors from seeing it. Vice President JD Vance said he would not watch if it were streamed.
The Fort Hood Attack
Hasan, a former Army psychiatrist who held the rank of major, opened fire inside a medical building at Fort Hood, Texas, on November 5, 2009. Soldiers there were waiting for immunizations and medical clearance before deploying.
The attack killed 13 people and wounded 32. Among the dead was Pvt. Francheska Velez, who was pregnant. Hasan was shot by law enforcement during the attack and left paralyzed from the waist down.
A military jury convicted him of 45 counts of premeditated murder and attempted murder and sentenced him to death in 2013. He said he acted to stop soldiers from deploying to Afghanistan, but a military judge barred him from using that as a defense.
What Happens Next
Hasan is scheduled to be executed by firing squad at Fort Hood on December 3 at 1 p.m. Central time, the same time of day as the 2009 shooting. It would be the first U.S. military execution in more than 65 years, according to Fox 17.
The plan has raised other concerns as well. A Catholic archbishop recently said Catholic soldiers should not take part in the firing squad.
Hasan could still seek intervention in federal court, which could delay the execution. Under current Army rules, victims, family members, the prisoner's lawyer and at least two members of the news media may witness an execution.
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