Almost one year to the day after President Obama commuted the sentence of admitted traitor Chelsea Manning, the transgender felon has filed papers to run for the United States Senate in Maryland.
In 2010, PFC Bradley Edward Manning illegally leaked nearly 750,000 documents to Wikileaks. The files ranged from those classified as ‘Secret’ to unclassified materials that were deemed sensitive to US national security.
Manning utilized his Top Secret clearance to knowingly download and release these documents, despite being admittedly aware that they could damage US interests and place US citizens and his fellow soldiers at risk. In 2017, Chelsea Elizabeth Manning announced intentions to run for political office.
Manning was arrested on May 27, 2010; he was eventually charged with 22 offenses under the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) and the Espionage Act of 1917. Facing up to 90 years in prison, Manning pleaded guilty to 10 of the 22 charges on February 8, 2013; his court-martial for the remaining charges began on June 3, 2013.
Manning has a long history of mental illness and has physically assaulted female co-workers. In fact, Manning has spent more time incarcerated than she has employed. Is this really the elected representation that the state of Maryland wants?
On June 30th, he was convicted of another seven charges; out of the 17 convictions from the 22 charges, five were for espionage and theft. The prosecution asked for 60 years in prison, but the defense asked for leniency and no more than 25 years in prison. The judge eventually returned a prison sentence of 35 years confinement, in addition to a reduction in rank to E-1, forfeiture of all pay and allowances, and a dishonorable discharge.
Manning, before and after being convicted of espionage.
During his court-martial, Manning’s defense claimed that their client was mentally ill, and experts testified that Manning showed signs of fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) in its most severe form, fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS). According to the US Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), effects of FAS include low intelligence and behavior problems; individuals with FAS are more likely to have legal problems and are more likely to engage in high-risk behaviors, as well as having their own substance abuse problems.
The same forensic psychiatrist stated that Manning also displayed narcissistic traits, as well as showing signs of Asperger syndrome.
The event was so sudden, violent, and accompanied by equally unstable behavior that Private Manning had to be relieved of his weapon…while deployed to a combat zone.
It has been often overlooked that Manning also has a history of violently assaulting females, with one such episode occurring during Manning’s time in the Army. Before being arrested for his crimes, PFC Manning punched a female soldier while deployed to Baghdad, Iraq. The event was so sudden, violent, and accompanied by equally unstable behavior that Private Manning had to be relieved of his weapon…while deployed to a combat zone.
In May of 2010, a few short weeks before being arrested, PFC Manning punched his supervisor ,SPC Jihrleah Showman, in the face during a violent outburst in the intelligence center they both worked in. The incident was not the first violent event Showman witnessed, as she testified at his court-martial about an event in which the mentally unstable Manning flipped a table, broke a government computer, and lunged for a weapon before being restrained. Other fellow soldiers also testified about Manning’s history of violent and mentally unstable behavior.
“He….punched me in the face unprovoked and displayed uncontrollable behavior that was deemed untrustworthy.” -Jihrleah Showman, a female co-worker testifying about her violent assault at the hands of Bradley (now Chelsea) Manning
Flash forward to 2018. Manning has filed to run for the United States Senate as a Democrat, challenging incumbent Senator Ben Cardin. Not only is Cardin also a Democrat, he is considered by many to be one of the most liberal and progressive members of the Senate. However, Manning does have a history of expressing extremist and anarchist views that go far more to the left than any other elected American politician.
He has called for the abolishments of the presidency, the CIA, ICE, and law enforcement in general. Additionally, Senator Cardin has taken a hard-line stance in supporting the US intelligence community. In 2005, he voted to make the PATRIOT Act permanent and has repeatedly voted to restrict civilian oversight of intelligence gathering, while also supporting the need for warrants for FISA surveillance.
His 2011 bill to modernize the Espionage Act that Manning was convicted under did not provide extra protections for whistleblowers, drawing controversy from some advocates. However, Senator Cardin responded that he believed in protection for whistleblowers, but not expanded rights for employees to determine what they should be allowed to release, regardless of classification.
“If a document is classified, there is something wrong with people just believing they can release that information to the public.” – Senator Ben Carding (D-Maryland)
fuck the police 🚫🔫👮♀️🚔 #DisarmThePolice 😁🌈💕 #WeGotThis #LawEnforcementAppreciationDay pic.twitter.com/Ugo0XbkEVW
— Chelsea E. Manning (@xychelsea) January 9, 2018
dont want "reform" 🤔 we can dismantle military/intel/police state instead 😎🌈💕
— Chelsea E. Manning (@xychelsea) October 19, 2017
Since being released from prison, Manning has also been “hired” (and “fired”) from a fellowship at Harvard, and she has been denied entry into Canada as someone who has been convicted of treason in another country. While giving a talk at Pennsylvania University, Manning stated that she had “no regrets” about her actions; this stands in sharp contrast to Bradley Manning’s statements at his court-martial when he was facing almost a century-long prison sentence.
The bottom line is this: Manning was an extremely junior intelligence analyst who was one of the 1.4 million people with a Top Secret clearance. He betrayed this trust and knowingly placed national security and his fellow soldiers and intelligence workers at risk.
Manning’s self-identification as a trans woman seeks to somehow negate past history of violent assaults of women and serious mental illness.
After being released, Chelsea Manning has displayed exploitative and opportunistic behavior while attempting to position herself as some sort of “national security expert.” Not only is this a completely false characterization, Manning’s self-identification as a trans woman seeks to somehow negate past history of violent assaults of women and serious mental illness.
In the age of the #MeToo movement, how is it that some perpetrators are being applauded for their bravery in seeking power in public office?
Chelsea Manning has neither the real-world experience nor the education one would expect from a serious political candidate. She has been out of prison for less than a year after serving less than one-fifth of her sentence. Manning has a long history of mental illness and has physically assaulted female co-workers. In fact, Manning has spent more time incarcerated than she has employed. Is this really the elected representation that the state of Maryland wants?
