President Donald Trump on Tuesday threatened to veto Congress’ annual defense authorization bill over objections to renaming U.S. military bases honoring Confederate commanders — hardening his rhetoric regarding the preservation of controversial American sites and statues.
“I will Veto the Defense Authorization Bill if the Elizabeth 'Pocahontas' Warren (of all people!) Amendment, which will lead to the renaming (plus other bad things!) of Fort Bragg, Fort Robert E. Lee, and many other Military Bases from which we won Two World Wars, is in the Bill!” Trump wrote on Twitter, reprising his previous criticism of the modified measure.
Trump's press secretary had previously said the president would not sign any legislation that includes provisions to rename U.S. military installations that honor Confederate military men, calling the issue "an absolute nonstarter."
Nonetheless, the Republican-led Senate Armed Services Committee approved an amendment last month to its version of the National Defense Authorization Act proposed by Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) that would force the Pentagon to remove names, monuments and paraphernalia honoring the Confederacy from military bases over the next three years.
Senior military leaders including Defense Secretary Mark Esper and Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy also expressed openness to renaming the 10 Army bases and facilities named after Confederate leaders, but encountered opposition from the president, who tweeted that his administration “will not even consider the renaming of these Magnificent and Fabled Military Installations.”
Trump’s veto threat, if realized, would represent his latest display of presidential power aimed at protecting tributes to the Confederacy and other memorials complicated by the country’s racist past. He issued an executive order last Friday directing the Justice Department to prioritize the prosecution of protesters who damage federal monuments and to limit federal funding for local governments perceived to not be adequately protecting them.
The president has elicited fierce condemnation in recent weeks from critics who have accused him of seeking to exacerbate America’s racial divides ahead of November’s general election. On Sunday morning, he retweeted a video in which an elderly supporter could be heard shouting “white power,” and he cast his reelection bid Tuesday as a “battle to save the Heritage, History, and Greatness of our Country! #MAGA2020.”
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