According to Fox News, President Trump is now considering "imminent" action on the cases of 3 U.S. military service members accused of war crimes, reported Monday.
Speaking on "Fox & Friends," spokesperson Hegseth said Trump - who ordered the review of the charges against Army 1st Lt. Clint Lorance and Army Green Beret Maj. Matt Golsteyn - will be meeting with Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy about the cases and an announcement could come within a week.
"It doesn't have to be a pardon or a commutation," Hegseth said. "It could be, but pardons and commutations imply guilt, that you've done something wrong and you need to be forgiven for that. The president, as the commander-in-chief, has a lot of latitude under the Uniform Code of Military Justice to dismiss a case or change a sentence. From what I understand, that is likely what will happen here shortly."
Hegseth, who said he spoke with Trump over the weekend, reported that the president is keen to act before Veterans Day, which is on November 11.
Additional action is also pending from Trump in the case of former Navy SEAL Eddie Gallagher, who was acquitted in July in the killing of an ISIS fighter in Iraq. Hegseth said Trump wants to restore Gallagher's rank, which was reduced as part of his conviction on a lesser charge.
A jury found Gallagher not guilty in July on almost all charges he was facing, including murder and attempted murder, in the killing of a teenage Islamic State member in Iraq. Gallagher was accused of stabbing to death a 15-year-old ISIS fighter in 2017 and posing with the corpse for photos.
Gallagher's sentence stipulated his rank be reduced to a 1st class petty officer from chief petty officer, a reduction which will cost him up to $200,000 in retirement funds.
