Axios reported yesterday, citing unnamed sources, that Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley held an off-the-record briefing with top news anchors of major news networks to tell them that the military would have no role in the election. “The nation’s top military official set up Saturday’s highly unusual call to make clear that the military’s role is apolitical, one of the sources said — and to dispel any notion of a role for the military in adjudicating a disputed election or making any decision around removing a President from the White House,” wrote Axios’ Jonathan Swan. “Milley told the anchors that the U.S. military would have no role whatsoever in a peaceful transfer of power, one source added.”
Axios reports that the call followed speculation about military intervention into a disputed election, including Joe Biden’s fantasizing about the military marching into the White House and escorting Trump out during a talk show appearance this past summer. The video produced by Col. Richard Black (ret.) for the Schiller Institute warning of the efforts to provoke a military coup against the President, which was viewed by over 500,000 people around the world, played a critical role in inducing the statement from the head of the JCS.
On the call, Axios said, in addition to Milley, were Gen. Paul Nakasone, the commander of U.S. Cyber Command, and Gen. Daniel Hokanson, chief of the National Guard Bureau. On the other side of the virtual table were ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos, CBS News’ Norah O’Donnell, NBC News’ Lester Holt, CNN’s Jim Sciutto and Fox’s Martha MacCallum, and perhaps others. Axios was not part of the call and not part of the off-the-record agreement.
A spokesperson for the Joint Staff confirmed the fact of the call to The Hill but would not otherwise comment on it. “We can confirm the off the record meeting took place but we’re not going to confirm the content because … well … it was off the record,” the spokesperson said. Two sources from two separate networks also confirmed to The Hill that the meeting happened.
