Trump Cancels Livestream of Fort Hood Firing Squad Execution Amid Bipartisan Pushback

A U.S.

Army soldier looks at photographs of the 13 people killed in the Fort Hood shooting during a memorial service at the Texas base on Nov.

10, 2009. —Joe Raedle—Getty Images President Donald Trump on Thursday called off plans to livestream the firing squad execution of Fort Hood shooter Nidal Malik Hasan following a wave of fierce bipartisan backlash.

In a post on Truth Social, the President said he thought streaming the execution “might have been a strong deterrent for the World to witness how America deals with Terrorists and SCUM,” but that “many very good and well meaning people would rather not watch him die.” The families of victims may view the execution “if they so choose,” Trump added.

The execution remains scheduled for Dec.

3 and marks the first U.S. military firing squad execution since World War II.

Read More: Are Firing Squad Executions Seeing a Revival in the U.S.? Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced on Oct.

8 that the execution of Hasan would be livestreamed, sparking fierce backlash from both sides of the aisle.

Vice President JD Vance said earlier this month, “I don’t know that that’s actually going to happen,” when asked about the livestream.

He also said that he would not watch the livestream if it took place.

House Speaker Mike Johnson also said he would not watch the execution.

In an interview with CBS News earlier this month, he said he had colleagues "who have concerns,” over the livestream, one of them being “that you would create a video that would be a recruiting tool for future terrorists." In addition to many Democrats in Congress, several Republican lawmakers also expressed their disapproval over the plans..

“I absolutely support the sentence of death, but live-streaming executions is what jihadists do,” said Republican Rep.

Austin Scott of Georgia, a member of the House Armed Services Committee, in a post on X.