McCain, Ernst could face court martials

 Dear Editor:

I enjoyed your editorial about the letter from the 47 Senators but you missed a very important point. Any Senator that is retired from the military or is in the National Guard should face a court martial according to the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) and/or the Iowa Code. 

U.S. Senator John McCain is retired Navy and still falls under the UCMJ. Some people will claim since he’s retired he is no longer subject to this code, but according to UCMJ, 802.2, he is.    

UCMJ Article 802.2 lists all who fall under this code, including retired members. UCMJ, Article 88, titled “Contempt Toward Officials” states “any commissioned officer who uses contemptuous words against the President, the Vice President, Congress, the Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of a military department, the Secretary of Transportation, or the Governor or legislature of any State, Territory, Commonwealth, or possession in which he is on duty or present shall be punished as a court-martial may direct.” 

U.S. Senator Joni Ernst, who is still a National Guard member, falls under Iowa Code 29B.1 which states “all members of the State Military Force while not in Federal Service.” Iowa Code 29B.85 “Contempt Toward Officials”  lists the same officials as does UCMJ 888, Article 88. There might be others on the list of the 47 senators that would fall under these laws, but these are the only two I knew of. Being U.S. Senators doesn’t allow them to be above the law, and they still should be held accountable for their actions. I’m retired enlisted and I’m still accountable under the UCMJ, so why wouldn’t any officers or senators also be accountable under the UCMJ or Iowa Code?

Some may argue you can disrespect any officials over you if you first say “this is my opinion or no disrespect to the uniform,” but nowhere in the Iowa Code or the UCMJ does it state that. 

John Childers

Red Oak

U.S. NAVY Retired