Oklahoma Guard commander defends rejecting vaccine mandate as Pentagon warns troops who refuse

[Zorro]

Source: Washington Post

The Oklahoma National Guard’s commanding general Wednesday defended his directive countermanding federal requirements that all U.S. military personnel be vaccinated against the coronavirus, telling troops in a private town hall event that he was following orders from the state’s Republican governor and meant no disrespect to his superiors at the Pentagon.

Brig. Gen. Thomas Mancino, speaking to several dozen members of the Oklahoma National Guard in Oklahoma City, cast himself as an apolitical leader bound by law to answer to Gov. Kevin Stitt (R), who fired the state’s previous National Guard commander last week and ordered Mancino the next day to issue a policy allowing members to avoid the vaccine.

The extraordinary move by Stitt has prompted interest among multiple governors and National Guard commanders to explore similar policies in their states, Oklahoma officials said, while leaving the Biden administration with little recourse but to hold individual service members accountable for refusing lawful orders that their immediate chain of command has disavowed.

“I did not initiate a civilian-military crisis just because I thought it was cool, right?” Mancino said, according to a recording of his remarks obtained by The Washington Post and later confirmed by the general in an interview.

Mancino said during the town hall that he had consulted with National Guard lawyers and appeared to point out a path for the Pentagon if it wishes to assert its authority, saying that if he is placed on federal orders, he will carry out the vaccination mandate, which is a centerpiece of President Biden’s strategy for bringing the pandemic under control. The general showed deference to Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin in his remarks, noting that the two had served together in Afghanistan and joking that the secretary is “a very big individual who can crush me like a bug with his hands.”

Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2021/11/17/vaccine-mandate-oklahoma-national-guard/

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Prepare to get crushed.

[OAITW r.2.0]

1. Yes man becomes sacrificial state military mouth piece to get steam rolled. As quick as your rise

was, state-wise, your national profile went to zip.

[spooky3]

2. Insubordination. Biden's team must address this forcefully. Nt

[Bev54]

8. Isn't that something military commanders can deal with?

He is defying a lawful order, he should be booted.

[Angleae]

9. Article 92, Uniformed Code of Military Justice (UCMJ)

Failure to obey order or regulation

Any person subject to this chapter on Article 92 who—

(1) violates or fails to obey any lawful general order or regulation;
(2) having knowledge of any other lawful order issued by a member of the armed forces, which it is his duty to obey, fails to obey the order; or
(3) is derelict in the performance of his duties; shall be punished as a court-martial may direct.

[Bev54]

10. That is what I thought so what are they waiting for?

[Kaleva]

24. He is obeying the order of his superior. The governor.

"When Army National Guard units are not under federal control, the governor is the
commander-in-chief of his or her respective state, territory (Guam, Virgin Islands), or
commonwealth (Puerto Rico). "

https://www.nationalguard.mil/About-the-Guard/Army-National-Guard/Resources/News/ARNG-Media/FileId/137011/

[cstanleytech]

3. If Biden has ordered this done then he already has his orders and he needs to follow them or

resign from his position.

[DURHAM D]

4. Who pays them? nt

[TomSlick]

22. That is the point.

If DoD offered to de-certify the OK Guard and cut-off federal funding, the OK Governor and Adjutant General would flip like pancakes at IHOP.

[C_U_L8R]

5. If he doesn't want to obey orders, he can resign

But this self absorbed prick would rather mutiny. Proceed, dumbass.

[monkeyman1]

6. gov. Stitt just bit off more than can chew !

federal mandate - pentagon - mean's gov. stitt has no control over this matter ! a federal military mandate is a direct order ! failing to do so is a court Marshall offence !dishonorably discharge & loss of all benefits . gov. stitt has not one word of say so in this matter.

[canuckledragger]

7. "I did not initiate a civilian-military crisis just because I thought it was cool, right?"

That's exactly what he did though. All for attention, and DEFINITELY right-wing biased.

If these cons never lied, they wouldn't have anything to say at all.

[Baked Potato]

11. Military leadership needs to put down this insubordination shit ASAP.

The one-star go-fer needs to be reigned in. National Security issue.

Putin is clinking some champagne crystal over these numb nuts helping Russia.

[Skittles]

12. so, would he follow the order of a Dem governor

court martial this fucking lunatic

[DVRacer]

13. Hang on I think I understand it

So the Oklahoma National Guard is jointly funded by the federal and state government. It’s commander in chief is the Governor and this General is the equivalent of Oklahoma’s secretary of defense. So his boss said we ain’t mandating vaccine’s and he has to follow that order.

If you read it carefully though he gives the solution. Due to the way the Guards are funded they can be Federalized think about the deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan. When they are Federal they now fall under the President as commander in chief and subject to his orders.

So Federalize them for 60 days to be vaccinated and then release them back to the State. Discharge if any individual refuses same as active duty.

[Kaleva]

21. +1

[aggiesal]

14. Take the Commanding General under arrest for ...

refusing an order and have him replaced and overturn his countermanding order.

[ZonkerHarris]

15. I guess he wants to be in the State Guard, not the National Guard.

[malthaussen]

16. This should be career suicide.

He could weasel by saying the Guard are not yet federalized, but I do believe he is obliged to follow DoD orders anyway.

-- Mal

[toughtony]

17. A Show For Trump

Biden has already given the military soldiers an option out of the vaccine: religion OR some other hardship. But the commanders cannot decide for the whole of their troops to go against and order when an order has been issued. The commanders military-wide got the same email as everyone else, including contractors. The commanders action is just for show to impress trump and his Nazi party.

[Kaleva]

18. The Gen. couldn't carry out the order even if he wanted to because the governor would just fire him

[Zorro]

19. An honorable officer would not have accepted the position

if it meant refusing to carry out a lawful directive from his overarching military chain of command.

The Republicans are promoting insurrection and mutiny within our military ranks.

[Kaleva]

20. So the end result remains the same. The order isn't carried out.

Until the NG is federalized or called to duty by the federal government, it remains under the control of the state governor.

[paleotn]

23. Defending the indefensible...

Good luck with that.

[BlueIdaho]

25. Court Marshal Mancino

Then hollow out the Oklahoma Guard. Remove all military equipment in the state and give every NG member refusing a vaccine a dishonorable discharge.

When political bullshit runs up against the US military chain of command it needs to suffer catastrophically.

[Kaleva]

27. For what cause? Read post # 26

[Kaleva]

26. Looks like many here don't understand the chain of command regarding the National Guard

"When Army National Guard units are not under federal control, the governor is the
commander-in-chief of his or her respective state, territory (Guam, Virgin Islands), or
commonwealth (Puerto Rico). "


https://www.nationalguard.mil/About-the-Guard/Army-National-Guard/Resources/News/ARNG-Media/FileId/137011/