Trump approved the execution by Army firing squad of Nidal Hasan, who killed 13 people at Fort Hood in 2009, the Pentagon announced on October 5, 2026; federal law requires presidential approval before anyone sentenced to death by court-martial can be executed. It would be the first execution after a U.S. court-martial since 1961, CNBC reported, and experts put the last military firing-squad execution in 1945.
Hegseth then said the execution, set for December 3 at Fort Hood, would be open to the public. “We'll make sure that people are able to watch it, that it's public,” he said in an interview reported by the AP, and Pentagon officials said on October 8 that it will be livestreamed, which Reuters described as “an unprecedented move.” No legal execution has ever been broadcast live in the U.S., and the country's last public execution was in 1936, The New Republic noted. Asked whether Hasan had made any final requests, Hegseth said, “Don't care. We'll see him on December 3rd.”
Hasan's guilt is not in dispute; the issue here is how the execution is to be carried out and shown. John Galligan, a retired colonel and former military judge who represented Hasan in civil matters, called the rush “horrific” and said required notification steps were skipped, the AP reported. Yale's Eugene Fidell said a civilian court challenge “might outlast the current administration.” The AP noted that Trump has criticized Iran's executions (see The Justice Department Formally Brings Back Firing Squads, Electrocution, and Gas Asphyxiation as Federal Execution Methods).
Update (October 12, 2026): an execution order signed October 5 by Acting Army Secretary Adam Telle, after Trump approved the death sentence on October 2, set the execution for December 3 at 1 p.m. Central, the Washington Sun reported. Trump first said on October 9, “I wasn't involved in that decision, but I understand the decision,” and on October 10 told reporters, “So I'll make a decision ultimately. I know what the military would like to do,” NBC News and Fox News reported. Vice President Vance said, “I see these announcements. I don't know that that's actually going to happen.”
Republicans split. Sen. Thom Tillis called the plan “beyond disgusting,” Sen. Lisa Murkowski wrote, “There is no need to livestream any execution, including this one,” and Rep. Austin Scott wrote, “I absolutely support the sentence of death, but live-streaming executions is what jihadists do.” Retired Lt. Gen. Sean MacFarland, the Fort Hood commander who approved the sentence, said a livestream “surrenders a piece of the moral high ground,” Politico reported. Sen. Mark Kelly called for Hegseth's removal. DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin defended it on CBS: “First of all, no one has to watch it,” and, “I give absolutely zero thought to the way that this man dies.” No legal challenge has been filed; experts told AP that only Hasan likely has standing to bring one.
Update (October 13, 2026): Trump's own account of his role has shifted. Asked on October 9 whether he authorized or approved the livestream, he said, “Absolutely, I did,” then told a Syracuse station later that day that he “wasn't involved in that decision,” CBS News reported. On October 10 he posted that “Robert Jeffress, senior pastor of First Baptist Dallas, says he supports public execution announced by the Pentagon.” Jeffress, a longtime informal adviser, said, “The more people that can see that truth illustrated through a public execution, the better.” Axios reported, citing four people who have spoken with him, that Trump has privately shared misgivings; a Pentagon official said on October 13 that the execution would be livestreamed.
House Speaker Mike Johnson said the footage could be “a recruiting tool for future terrorists” and that “I wouldn't be watching it if it was aired.” Sen. Kevin Cramer said, “The death penalty is not entertainment.” Archbishop Timothy Broglio, who leads the Catholic archdiocese for the U.S. military, asked, “Is there really a value to throwing them in the same boat with terrorists by broadcasting the image of the execution of a man in a wheelchair to the whole world?” and said Catholic soldiers selected for the squad should ask to be excused, Politico and UPI reported. Archbishop Paul Coakley, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, called it “a barbaric promotion of a culture of death.”
Asked on October 13 whether he had decided, Trump said, “We're looking at it,” and Vance said that if it were broadcast, “I'm not going to be watching it,” CBS News reported, citing officials who said the administration is leaning against a livestream. CNN, citing two sources, reported that Trump said privately he had not initially known Hasan is paralyzed. Keely Cahill Vanacker, whose father Michael Cahill was killed at Fort Hood, said the plan has “nothing to do with justice,” the New York Post reported.