Trump reverses course on Fort Hood shooter livestream after 80% of Americans rejected the plan
Nidal Hasan (left), who killed 13 soldiers at Fort Hood in 2009, faces a firing squad execution on 3 December — the first US military execution in more than 60 years.Donald Trump speaks at a rally in Clarksville, Tennessee, in October 2026. Trump has since overruled Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth's plan to livestream Hasan's execution, saying many well-meaning people "would rather…
President Donald Trump has scrapped plans to broadcast Nidal Hasan's firing squad execution online, reversing his own position after a Washington Post-ABC-Ipsos poll found 80 per cent of US adults opposed the move. Hasan, who killed 13 soldiers including a pregnant woman and her unborn son at Fort Hood, Texas, in 2009, will still be executed on 3 December — the first US military execution in more than 60 years. Trump said 'many very good and well-meaning people would rather not watch him die'. Victims' families will be allowed to attend in person.
Trump had previously backed the livestream as a terrorism deterrent, saying he 'absolutely' approved it just last Friday.
Seventy-two retired US generals and admirals had written to Trump warning the broadcast would be 'barbaric', unconstitutional, and would turn Hasan into a 'martyr'.
Pope Leo and the United Nations also condemned the plan, while JD Vance said he would not watch — adding to the rare cross-party and global pressure that reportedly forced Trump's hand.
