Bad Optics: Streaming of Firing Squad May Be Canceled

President Donald Trump is considering canceling a planned livestream of the firing squad execution of Fort Hood shooter Nidal Hasan after learning that Hasan is paralyzed from the waist down and uses a wheelchair, two sources familiar with the discussions told CNN.

Trump and his advisers have been debating whether to call off the public broadcast, the sources said. The president was not initially aware that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had announced last week that the administration intended to let the public watch the execution, and he was unsure what to make of the idea at first. Trump has firmly supported executing Hasan by firing squad, multiple officials told CNN, and has often defended that decision publicly.

Even after Hegseth posted on X on Thursday confirming the Pentagon’s livestream plans, Trump continued to poll several advisers and allies about how to proceed. During those conversations, he learned that Hasan was shot in the back by law enforcement during the 2009 Fort Hood shooting and has been paralyzed since, the sources said. That detail made a public execution less palatable to the president.

One source pointed to Trump’s deep understanding of imagery as a key reason he may abandon the livestream. The president has also heard arguments that a public firing-squad execution could provide propaganda for foreign adversaries and terrorists seeking to portray Hasan as a martyr, a Trump adviser told CNN.