The Department of War has sparked a heated national debate by confirming plans to livestream the execution of Nidal Hasan, the former Army major sentenced to death for the deadliest mass shooting on an American military base.
On November 5, 2009, Hasan opened fire at the soldier readiness processing center at Fort Hood, Texas, killing 13 people and wounding more than 30 others. A military jury convicted him in 2013 on 13 counts of premeditated murder and 32 counts of attempted premeditated murder, imposing a death sentence that has endured years of military appellate review. He now resides on death row at the U.S. Disciplinary Barracks in Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.
The federal military has not performed an execution since 1961, and broadcasting a capital‑punishment event would be a first in modern American history.
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth confirmed on Thursday that the Dec. 3 execution will be carried out by an Army firing squad and streamed live to the public. Speaking on Real America’s Voice, Hegseth said the execution will be broadcast “because people need to understand that there are serious consequences for these types of things.”
Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell added that Hegseth recommended a firing squad, a method President Donald Trump approved.
“Death penalty through firing squad, and he deserves it,” Trump said during an unrelated White House event on Friday.
The announcement prompted swift, sharp pushback from lawmakers across the aisle, especially from conservative officials who support Hasan’s death sentence but balk at turning it into a public spectacle.
Republican Sen. Thom Tillis expressed regret over the decision while condemning the broadcast directive. “Hasan should face the death penalty, but making his execution public and streaming it? Beyond disgusting,” Tillis wrote on X. “Public executions are what oppressive dictatorships like Iran and Afghanistan do. It should not be happening in America.”
Georgia Republican Rep. Austin Scott echoed similar concerns online: “I absolutely support the sentence of death, but live‑streaming executions is what jihadists do. America is better than that.”
Democratic lawmakers also denounced the plan. Speaking on CNN, Sen. Chris Murphy argued that public executions clash with democratic norms. “That’s disgusting. What, is he mimicking ISIS executions?” Murphy said. “I mean, I understand that in this country we have the death penalty, but public executions is medieval. It’s frankly one of the things that we abhor about terrorist groups. And the fact that the United States is doing it , I just learned this, that is just absolutely extraordinary, galling. No matter whether you support or oppose the death penalty, public hangings and executions? That’s what America has become?”
Critics warn that broadcasting the execution could give Hasan a larger platform and potentially inspire copycat attacks or extremist retaliation, while administration officials argue that public visibility reinforces deterrence and accountability.
The execution remains scheduled for Dec. 3.
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