On Thursday, October 24, the Pentagon issued a rare and strong rebuttal to a piece of misinformation circulating on social media. The information wrongly suggested that the U.S. military has been authorized to use force against American citizens during the election period.
Various individuals spreading this misinformation online include former presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. The information implied that a policy revision released by the Department of Defense at the end of September was aimed at interfering with the U.S. presidential election on November 5.
In principle, federal military forces are not allowed to engage in law enforcement activities within the United States unless it is in self-defense. The use of force by the military against American civilians would be illegal, as outlined in the Posse Comitatus Act.
Kennedy has announced the end of his presidential campaign and has expressed support for the Republican presidential candidate, Trump.
The information claimed that President Biden and Democratic presidential candidate Harris had pushed through a Department of Defense directive allowing the use of lethal force against Americans protesting government policies.
The policy revision discussed in the information is Directive 5240.01 of the Department of Defense.
Pentagon spokesperson Sue Gough told the Associated Press that the directive does not authorize the military to use force against American citizens, and its release is unrelated to the election.
Gough stated in a press release, “The Department of Defense 5240.01 directive on the use of force policy is not new, and contrary to the rumors and claims circulating on social media, the directive does not authorize the Department of Defense to use lethal force against American citizens or residents within the United States.”
Gough mentioned that the Pentagon regularly updates directives. This particular update was aimed at consolidating language regarding the use of force from other policies into Directive 5240.01, but it only applies to defense intelligence personnel.
The directive outlines that in situations where conflicts may arise, or lethal force is considered, defense intelligence personnel can provide support to civil authorities in the form of information, analysis, training, equipment, and even weapons.
However, even in these circumstances, federal military forces are still prohibited from using force.