[UPDATE] Trump cancels the livestream of Nidal Hasan's Dec. 3 firing-squad execution but keeps the execution
An ABC/Post/Ipsos poll found 80% of Americans opposed streaming it, including 64% of Republicans.
Trump said on Truth Social that Fort Hood shooter Nidal Hasan will still be shot by an Army firing squad on Thursday, Dec. 3, but the event will not be streamed. That reverses a plan Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced last week, after backlash from both parties. Victims' immediate families may attend in person. “He will die, as scheduled, by firing squad, but this event will not be streamed.” — Donald Trump, on Truth Social What next. The execution is set for Thursday, Dec. 3.
PREVIOUSLY
- Oct. 2–6 — Trump approved Hegseth's recommendation to execute Hasan; on Oct. 6, Acting Army Secretary Adam Telle ordered a firing squad for Dec. 3.
- By Oct. 9 — Hegseth said the execution would be public; a Pentagon official said it would stream on a platform not yet named.
- Oct. 9–10 — Vance doubted the stream would happen as GOP senators, Catholic bishops and the UN objected; Trump said the decision was his.
- Oct. 12–13 — A Pentagon official said the stream was still on, while Trump privately said it “might not happen.” As of Tue., Oct. 13, no final call had been made.
Who pushed against the livestream before Trump dropped it:
- 72 retired generals, admirals and senior officers signed a letter urging the stream be canceled.
- Austin Scott (Rep-R Georgia): “I absolutely support the sentence of death, but live-streaming executions is what jihadists do.”
- Alonzo Lunsford, shot seven times at Fort Hood: “It's not a spectacle. It's not a pay-per-view event or a WWE wrestling match.”