US generals use military resources to wage war on whistleblower

A warrant officer was accused of posting unkind memes about the Biden administration

A three-star US Army general and an associate professor at West Point Military Academy marshaled considerable taxpayer funds in an alleged conspiracy to find and destroy a whistleblower whose only ‘crime’ was dissing President Joe Biden on social media, Breitbart reported on Tuesday.

Conspiring with like-minded officials, Army Training and Doctrine Command deputy commander, Lieutenant-General Maria Gervais, and “information warfare scientist” Major Jessica Dawson attempted to have suspected whistleblower Chief Warrant Officer 2 Samuel Shoemate brought up on charges by the Army Criminal Investigative Division (CID), according to emails and text messages seen by the news outlet. 

Gervais and Dawson reportedly spent a year working with like-minded officials within the chain of command to take down Shoemate, culminating in an official investigation, a letter of reprimand, and ultimately his retirement from the service despite what Breitbart describes as a “flawless” record.

Using the pseudonym Terminal CWO, Shoemate operated several social media accounts that served as a clearinghouse for military whistleblowers. He kept fellow service members informed about incidents such as the leakage of jet fuel into the water supply of the USS Nimitz, which Terminal CWO revealed six hours before the sailors onboard the ship were told by their commanders.

In another instance, he posted about the Pentagon’s inspector general telling Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin he was likely violating federal law by not considering soldiers’ requests to be exempted from Covid-19 vaccine requirements. The accounts also posted satirical content and memes skewering senior military figures, including Gervais. 

The butts of Terminal CWO’s jokes began working to uncover Shoemate’s identity as far back as 2021, according to Breitbart, and Dawson allegedly attempted to smear him as “counterintelligence” or a “potential insider threat” in order to bring down the wrath of the CID.

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An inspector general complaint filed by the aide of one of the generals Shoemate had mocked finally triggered an investigation, which found he had violated Army regulations against “posting derogatory and disrespectful images/memes on multiple social accounts… towards different Senior Officials and Military Leaders,” among other charges that included “contempt towards senior officials,” and “disrespect toward superior commissioned officers.”

“Targeting critics and whistleblowers with the same resources used to defend our constitution and nation is a danger to the freedoms we’re tasked with preserving,” Shoemate told Breitbart, calling on Congress to “intervene and put oversight in place so the American people can have confidence” in the military. 

A recent Gallup poll found fewer Americans were confident in the military than at any point since 1997, with trust having declined by ten points in just two years. All branches of the military have fallen short of recruitment targets, with 2022 representing the worst year for recruitment since the abolition of the draft in 1973.