Nancy Pelosi’s Unhinged Phone Call
Just what did the House speaker discuss with Joint Chiefs Chairman Mark Milley on January 8?
The substance of the conversation itself is of great importance, because it bears directly on the powers of a sitting president. What on earth was House Speaker Nancy Pelosi doing on the phone with Joint Chiefs Chairman Mark Milley on January 8, two days after the Capitol riot and nearly two weeks before the end of then-President Donald Trump’s term in office?
Word has it she called Trump “unhinged” and tried to undercut his powers as commander-in-chief. So, again, this is very serious stuff. Deadly serious stuff.
But still, one wonders what the conversation after the conversation sounded like. Because it’s not hard to imagine General Milley concluding his call with Speaker Pelosi, rubbing his temples for a moment, then looking toward a trusted junior staffer and muttering, “That woman is nuttier than a fruitcake.”
Remember: Pelosi is the same sputtering octogenarian who, almost a year earlier, disgraced herself and her office when she tore up President Trump’s State of the Union speech on national television. Adults in control of their faculties simply don’t behave like Pelosi does. The fact that she’s the most powerful person in Congress and is second in line to succeed an ailing president who himself is unfit for office is enough to send thoughtful folks of every stripe straight to the liquor cabinet.
As for the call, there’s no dispute that it took place; only what was discussed. In a written statement and under a subhead titled, “Preventing an Unhinged President From Using the Nuclear Codes,” Pelosi told members of Congress, “This morning, I spoke to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley to discuss available precautions for preventing an unstable president from initiating military hostilities or accessing the launch codes and ordering a nuclear strike. The situation of this unhinged President could not be more dangerous, and we must do everything that we can to protect the American people from his unbalanced assault on our country and our democracy.”
Nor is there any dispute that Pelosi wanted to remove President Trump from office. Her statement to Congress also said, “As you know, there is growing momentum around the invocation of the 25th Amendment, which would allow the Vice President and a majority of the Cabinet to remove the President for his incitement of insurrection and the danger he still poses. Yesterday, Leader Schumer and I placed a call with Vice President Pence, and we still hope to hear from him as soon as possible with a positive answer as to whether he and the Cabinet will honor their oath to the Constitution and the American people.”
It’s rich indeed to hear Nancy Pelosi talk about honoring one’s oath “to the Constitution and the American people” when, among numerous other examples, she hasn’t lift a finger in decades to defend our nation’s southern border against illegal immigration.
We hope Judicial Watch’s Tom Fitton can get to the bottom of all this. Last week, after the Department of Defense failed to respond to his Freedom of Information Act request for “any and all records regarding, concerning, or related to” the phone call between Pelosi and Milley, Fitton filed a FOIA lawsuit against the Pentagon.
“If Speaker Pelosi’s description of her conversation with General Milley is true,” said Fitton, “it sets a dangerous precedent that could undermine the president’s role as commander in chief and the separation of powers. Our new lawsuit aims to uncover truth about the call.”
Last month, Joe Biden visited the Pentagon and promised he’d “never politicize” the military. But whether announcing free sex-change surgery for “transgender” warriors, declaring war on the 19 white supremacists within their ranks, or attacking Fox News’s Tucker Carlson for sharing his opinions, Biden, Pelosi, and their party seem hell-bent on weaponizing the military for political purposes.