DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin on Sunday defended the Pentagon's plan to livestream the firing-squad execution of Fort Hood shooter Nidal Hasan, telling CBS that no one is forced to watch and calling criticism of the broadcast overblown. The interview, aired October 11 on Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan, is the administration's fullest public defense yet of a broadcast that has drawn bipartisan condemnation.
What Mullin Said on Face the Nation
Asked about fears that a public execution would turn Hasan into a martyr, Mullin dismissed the concern outright. "No one has to watch it if they don't choose to," he said, adding that he sees "no elevated risk at this point at all because of this." Brennan pressed him on the optics — Hasan has been paralyzed from the waist down since being shot during his 2009 arrest, and uses a wheelchair — which critics say could make viewers sympathetic. Mullin was unmoved, calling Hasan "a scumbag... a psycho who was supposed to be a psychiatrist."
On deterrence, Mullin said: "I think people need to understand, if you attack America, we will come after you and we will make sure that the punishment fits the crime." And on President Trump, who Mullin said will have the final call on whether the cameras roll: "I follow President Trump. He's the commander in chief of the country, and he does a phenomenal job... He leads this country with a very, very, very direct, forward, straight hand, and he's restoring America values." Of Hasan's death, Mullin added: "I give absolutely zero thought to the way that this man dies."
The December 3 Execution: What the Pentagon Confirmed
Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth announced October 8 that the Pentagon would make the execution public. A Pentagon official confirmed "it will be livestreamed... Details will follow." Acting Army Secretary Adam Telle set the execution for December 3, 2026 at 1 p.m. local time at Fort Hood — the same base, weekday, and hour as the November 2009 attack.
If it proceeds, it would be the first U.S. military execution since 1961 and the first by firing squad since World War II. Hasan, a former Army major and psychiatrist, killed 13 people — 12 soldiers and one civilian — and wounded about 32 others in the November 5, 2009 shooting at Fort Hood's Soldier Readiness Processing Center. A military jury convicted him in 2013 of 13 counts of premeditated murder and 32 counts of attempted murder; he has been on military death row at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, ever since.
Bipartisan Backlash — and Trump's Wavering
The plan has split even Republicans. Senator Lisa Murkowski urged the Pentagon to reverse what she called a "gruesome decision," writing on X: "I would expect this from terrorists and dictators, but not here in America... It would give this individual, who deserves no further notoriety, the martyrdom he seeks." Senator Kevin Cramer also opposed it, while Representative Ayanna Pressley called it "horrifying and barbaric." The UN human rights office said a livestreamed execution would amount to cruel and degrading punishment, and Vice President JD Vance cast doubt on the plan, saying he would not tune in.
Trump himself has wavered. He first said the broadcast would "absolutely" happen, but on October 10 said no final decision had been made: "There are two thoughts: Don't show it and show it." With the execution less than two months away, the livestream remains planned — but not yet final.
The takeaway: the administration frames the broadcast as transparency and deterrence; critics — including Republicans — see a spectacle that hands a convicted killer the notoriety and martyrdom he was denied in court. The final call rests with Trump, and December 3 is approaching fast.
Music in this post's reel: Kevin MacLeod - Hitman (incompetech.com), licensed under CC BY 3.0
Sources: CNN on Hegseth's execution announcement; Washington Examiner on Mullin's Face the Nation interview; Newsmax on Mullin's remarks; QNC News on the bipartisan criticism.