Trump Touts Pastor’s Support for Nidal Hasan Execution Livestream as Pope Leo Objects

President Trump reposted a pastor's biblical argument for livestreaming the execution of Fort Hood shooter Nidal Hasan, even while telling reporters he personally would decide whether the broadcast happens. That statement came a day after Trump had said he'd already approved the Pentagon's plan, a reversal he did not address directly.

Pastor Robert Jeffress told the Dallas Morning News that capital punishment is a biblical command and that wider viewing of an execution serves its purpose. Pope Leo XIV countered on X that the death penalty is inadmissible as an attack on human dignity, and the head of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops separately condemned the livestream plan.

Hasan killed 13 people and wounded more than 30 at Fort Hood in 2009, was convicted by a military jury, and was sentenced to death in 2013; his execution by firing squad is scheduled for December 3. Opposition to the livestream itself, as distinct from the execution, has spread among Democrats and some Republicans, while Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has said making it public would demonstrate serious consequences.

The full dispatch is available from the source below.