According to a former general who spoke with former colleagues at the gathering in Quantico, Virginia, where Donald Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth addressed the military leadership of the U.S., the president was knocked off his stride by the cool response he received.
Appearing on MSNBC, retired Lt. Gen. Mark Hertling, now a military analyst for the network, claimed Trump is used to adoring crowds — and the stoic response from the military professionals “rattled” him.
After labeling Trump’s speech as “meandering,“ he told the “Morning Joe” hosts, “He gave so many things to talk about from that speech. But the ‘war from within,’ as you just mentioned, and putting soldiers on American streets to train how to react to different enemies from within were two of the highlights that I wrote down, and it was just a combination of two things that I believe were leading to what we might see next.”
“And the other thing I'd say is, President Trump thrives on applause and cheering and interactions with an audience,” he continued.
“And when he didn't get that and instead got quiet professionalism from the soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines in the audience, that likely rattled him from the very beginning.”
“And that silence wasn't disrespect,” he elaborated. “It was restraint and discipline and adherence to the oath of office.”
“Yesterday was, to me, a collective reminder of our professional culture that we have in the military that transcends politics. It was on full display, and it was interesting to watch from both sides of the audience,” he observed.