Talk:Richard V. Spencer

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Disambiguation[edit]

There is currently a discussion at Talk:Richard B. Spencer#Requested move 2 November 2017 regarding whether Richard B. Spencer should be moved to Richard Spencer per WP:PRIMARYTOPIC. (I am not watching this page, so please ping me if you want my attention.) --Dr. Fleischman (talk) 00:30, 3 November 2017 (UTC)[reply]

Is this statement based on reliable & undisputed sources?[edit]

Article says: "Spencer served as Secretary of the Navy from August 3, 2017, to November 24, 2019, when he submitted his resignation to Secretary of Defense Mark Esper over President Trump's handling of the Eddie Gallagher case." This statement seems to say that Spencer took the initiative and that the cause of the separation from the government was Spencer's disapproval of Trump, instead of Trump initiating the separation because Trump disapproved of Spencer. Does the statement represent the preponderance of the evidence? This is what the Wall Street Journal says:

"WASHINGTON—Defense Secretary Mark Esper fired Navy Secretary Richard Spencer on Sunday over the controversial case of a Navy SEAL that has created high-level friction between the president and the Pentagon."

"Mr. Spencer was fired after Mr. Esper learned that the Navy secretary was negotiating a deal with the White House to find a solution to a military and political crisis that had pitted President Trump against top leaders of the Pentagon who believed the good order and discipline of the military was at stake."

I would have changed the text deeming WSJ a more reliable source that what the article followed, but I realize this is possibly BLP situation. But BLP cuts both ways; if the article puts president Trump in a bad light that is BLP violation re Donald Trump.

Should this article be revised to delete the glorify Spencer & demonize Trump rhetoric, so that it says something like: "After a conflict with the president over a pardon the president issued, Spencer was no longer Secretary of the Navy"? (PeacePeace (talk) 05:27, 26 November 2019 (UTC))[reply]

No. The conflict was not over a pardon. And Spencer was fired by his superior, the Defense Secretary, for bargaining directly with the White House and bypassing the chain of command. A few sources are saying that Spencer resigned, possibly to refuse an order from the President he disagreed with (his letter hints at that). But most sources are accepting the Pentagon's narrative that Esper fired him for that secret negotiation with the White House. -- MelanieN (talk) 16:04, 26 November 2019 (UTC)[reply]

The Defense secretary asked for him to submit his resignation. That is different. 70.114.85.243 (talk) 00:12, 28 November 2019 (UTC)[reply]

And that's what I have now put in the lead. Yes, in effect Esper fired him, but that's how they fire people at his level. -- MelanieN (talk) 03:40, 28 November 2019 (UTC)[reply]