By JULIE WATSON | Associated Press – 15 hrs ago
SAN DIEGO (AP) — Marine Sgt. Gary Stein first started a Facebook page called Armed Forces Tea Party Patriots
to encourage service members to exercise their free speech rights. Then
he declared that he wouldn't follow orders from the commander in chief,
President Barack Obama.
While Stein softened his statement to say he wouldn't follow "unlawful orders," military observers say he may have gone too far.
The
Marine Corps is now looking into whether he violated the military's
rules prohibiting political statements by those in uniform and broke its
guidelines on what troops can and cannot say on social media. Stein
said his views are constitutionally protected.
While troops have
always expressed their views in private, Stein's case highlights the
potential for their opinions to go global as tech-savvy service members
post personal details, videos and pictures that can hurt the military's
image at home and abroad.
"I think that it's been pretty well
established for a long time that freedom of speech is one area in which
people do surrender some of their basic rights in entering the armed
forces," said former Navy officer David Glazier, a professor at Loyola
Law School in Los Angeles.
"Good order and discipline require the
military maintain respect for the chain of command," Glazier said. "That
includes prohibiting speech critical of the senior officers in that
chain of command — up to and including the commander in chief."
According
to Pentagon directives, military personnel in uniform can't sponsor a
political club; participate in any TV or radio program or group
discussion that advocates for or against a political party, candidate or
cause; or speak at any event promoting a political movement.
Commissioned
officers also may not use contemptuous words against senior officials,
including the defense secretary or the president.
In January, an Army reservist
wearing camouflaged fatigues got into trouble for taking the stage
during a rally in Iowa with Republican presidential candidate and Texas
congressman Ron Paul.
Stein was
first cautioned by his superiors at Camp Pendleton, north of San Diego,
in 2010 after he launched his Facebook page, criticizing Obama's health
care overhaul. Stein volunteered to take down the page while he
reviewed the rules at the request of his superiors.
He
said he determined he was not in violation and relaunched the page
under the shortened account name Armed Forces Tea Party. Last week, he
said his superiors told him he couldn't use social media sites on
government computers after he posted the message stating he would not
follow unlawful orders of the president.
Stein
said his statement was part of an online debate about NATO allowing
U.S. troops to be tried for the Quran burnings in Afghanistan.
In
that context, he said, he was stating that he would not follow orders
from the president if those orders included detaining U.S. citizens,
disarming them or doing anything else that he believes would violate
their constitutional rights.
Another Marine alerted his command about the statement, Stein said.
Stein
said he respects the office of the president, but he does not agree
with Obama's policies. He said he is within his rights to speak up.
"Just
because I'm a Marine doesn't mean I don't have free speech or can't say
my personal opinion about the president or other public official just
like anybody else," Stein said. "The Constitution trumps everything
else."
Stein said it's positive when service members are well-versed on the Constitution and what's going on in government.
"When we know what we're fighting for, we fight harder," he said.
The
Marine Corps said Stein is allowed to express his personal opinions as
long as they do not give the impression he is speaking in his official
capacity as a Marine. Spokesman Maj. Michael Armistead said the Corps is
taking a closer look to ensure Stein has not crossed that line.
"At this time, he has not been asked to take down the statement on his page," he said.
Stein
appears in a dress shirt and tie on his Facebook page but he also
describes himself as "a conservative blogger, speaker, the founder of
the Armed Forces Tea Party and active-duty, eight-year Marine Corps
veteran."
Marine Sgt. Jerret
Wright, who liked Stein's page, said Stein "probably skirted the line a
little bit" with his latest message about not following Obama's orders,
but his boldness in expressing his views has been refreshing in a
community that often feels silenced.
"People assume that we're zombies with an on-and-off switch, and that we listen to orders and do nothing else," Wright said.
Military
observers say it's not that simple. They say it is bad form to lash out
at the commander in chief. Experts also say his Facebook postings
appear to link his professional standing with his political views.
They
also point out that the Pentagon policy is necessary in preventing
political and religious debates that could divide a unit and disrupt the
strong working relationship that is needed to carry out missions,
Glazier said.
"There are plenty
of examples in the world of militaries heavily involved in influencing
political events that have shown that is not conducive to civilian rule
of law," he said.
AP File
