WASHINGTON (AP) – Gen. Mark Milley has been the target of more political intrigue and debate in two years as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff than any of his recent predecessors were in four. One after another, firestorms have ignited around him – unusual for an officer who by law is a whisperer to presidents and by custom is careful to stay above the fray.
From racial injustice and domestic extremism to nuclear weapons and the fitness of Donald Trump as commander in chief, Milley has become entangled in politically charged issues, regularly thrusting him into the news headlines.
Milley is expected to face tough questioning on those and other issues when he testifies with Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin at a Senate hearing Tuesday and a House panel Wednesday. The hearings originally were meant to focus on the Afghanistan withdrawal and the chaotic evacuation from Kabul airport last month.
But since then, Milley has come under fire from Republicans for his portrayal in a new book as having taken unusual – some say illegal – steps to guard against Trump potentially starting a war with China or Iran or ordering an unprovoked nuclear attack in the final months of his presidency. Milley was reported to have agreed with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s assertion in a January phone call that Trump was “crazy.”
Even during Milley’s swing through Europe last week, headlines dogged him and reporters quizzed him. Mostly he batted questions away or buried them in detailed historical precedent.