Trump Cancels Planned Livestream of Fort Hood Shooter's Firing-Squad Execution
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump announced Thursday that the Pentagon will no longer livestream the firing-squad execution of former Army Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, reversing a plan that had drawn bipartisan criticism and international condemnation since it was unveiled earlier this month.
In a social media post Thursday morning, Trump said he had overruled Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, who had announced that Hasan's execution would be broadcast publicly. Hasan, 56, was convicted in a military trial of murdering 13 people and wounding more than 30 in the November 2009 attack at Fort Hood, Texas.
"I think streaming the execution for all to see might have been a strong deterrent for the World to witness how America deals with Terrorists and SCUM like Hasan," Trump wrote. "But, many very good and well meaning people would rather not watch him die, through streaming, or through any other visual device."
The execution will proceed as scheduled on December 3 at Fort Hood, the site of Hasan's 2009 attack, by firing squad. The immediate families of the victims will be permitted to view the execution in person, as is standard practice at U.S. executions. "He will die, as scheduled, by firing squad, but this event will not be streamed," Trump wrote.
Hegseth's announcement that the execution would be made public stunned even many of the president's supporters. No other country is known to televise or livestream judicial executions, and the proposal prompted swift backlash from Republican and Democratic lawmakers alike.
Vice President JD Vance was among those who raised doubts. Asked earlier this month how a public execution comported with his Christian faith, Vance said, "I don't know that that's actually going to happen," adding, "if it's ultimately livestreamed, I'm not going to be watching it."
Religious leaders also weighed in. Archbishop Timothy Broglio, who oversees the spiritual care of Catholic members of the U.S. armed forces, objected to the plan, while Pope Leo condemned capital punishment in all its forms. Critics warned that broadcasting the execution could hand extremist groups potent propaganda material rather than serving as the deterrent Trump envisioned.
Recent polling also showed a majority of Americans opposed livestreaming the execution, putting the plan at odds with public opinion even among many who support the death penalty.
Trump had previously said he would make the final decision himself. On October 10, he told reporters there were arguments both for and against broadcasting the event, suggesting a public showing might deter future attacks — a position he appeared to revisit in his Thursday post before ultimately siding with those urging restraint.
Hasan, a former Army psychiatrist, has been on military death row since his 2013 conviction. The execution would mark the first carried out by the U.S. military since 1961.
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