James Miller, who served as under secretary of defense for policy during the Obama administration, is resigning from the Defense Science Board and accusing Defense Secretary Mark Esper of violating the oath of office.
Miller took issue with the use of tear gas to move away protesters near the White House on Monday.
In an open letter to Esper, published in The Washington Post on Tuesday, Miller wrote: "When I joined the board in early 2014, after leaving government service as under secretary of defense for policy, I again swore an oath of office, one familiar to you, that includes the commitment to 'support and defend the Constitution of the United States...and to bear true faith and allegiance to the same.'
“You recited that same oath on July 23, 2019, when you were sworn in as Secretary of Defense. On Monday, June 1, 2020, I believe that you violated that oath. Law-abiding protesters just outside the White House were dispersed using tear gas and rubber bullets — not for the sake of safety, but to clear a path for a presidential photo op. You then accompanied President (Donald) Trump in walking from the White House to St. John’s Episcopal Church for that photo.”
And Miller, in resigning from the science board, also claimed Trump’s actions Monday night violated the presidential oath to “take care that the laws be faithfully executed.”
“You may not have been able to stop President Trump from directing this appalling use of force, but you could have chosen to oppose it,” he said.
Jeffrey Rodack ✉
Jeffrey Rodack, who has nearly a half century in news as a senior editor and city editor for national and local publications, has covered politics for Newsmax for nearly seven years.
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