U.S. Marine Corps Lt. Col. Stuart Scheller has been discharged after he posted a video on his Facebook criticizing military leaders’ handling of the Afghanistan withdrawal, a Marine Corps spokesperson confirmed Friday.
“People are upset because their senior leaders let them down and none of them are raising their hands and accepting accountability or saying, ‘we messed this up,'” Scheller said in his video released Thursday that went viral.
https://www.facebook.com/stuart.scheller/videos/561114034931173/
To the American leadership.Very Respectfully,US
Posted by Stuart Scheller on Thursday, August 26, 2021
On Thursday, Scheller released his video shortly after 13 U.S. soldiers and more than 170 others were killed in a terrorist attack outside Kabul’s airport.
After Scheller’s video went viral, Marine Corps spokesperson Maj. Jim Stenger released a statement saying that Scheller will be exiting from the Marines since he no longer has “trust and confidence” of his superiors.
“This is obviously an emotional time for a lot of Marines, and we encourage anyone struggling right now to seek counseling or talk to a fellow Marine. There is a forum in which Marine leaders can address their disagreements with the chain of command, but it’s not social media,” Stenger said.
After his exit was announced, Scheller released another follow-up post on his Facebook, sharing that he will speak again after he completes his exit.
“I will not be making any statements other than what’s on my social platforms until I exit the Marine Corps. America has many issues… but it’s my home,” he wrote Friday.
