A US Air Force major who was arrested last month after calling for President Donald Trump’s impeachment has been detained again, days after criticising the president.Major Jason Watson was ordered into pretrial confinement on Tuesday, an Air Force spokesperson told CNN. He is being held at a county facility in Maryland on a military hold and has not been formally charged. The case remains under investigation.Watson’s attorney Chris Mutimer said the major was arrested while on duty, a day after his news interview, after he informed his chain of command that he would no longer wear his uniform.“While he was at work he, through counsel, informed his chain of command that he would no longer be wearing his uniform,” Mutimer said. He said Watson was subsequently told to put his uniform back on and was arrested about 20 minutes later.Mutimer said Watson could face charges under Article 88 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice, which covers contemptuous words against certain senior officials, or Article 92, relating to failure to obey an order.“He expected this,” the attorney said. “He expected to be arrested.”The Air Force said Watson was placed in pretrial confinement based on probable cause supporting allegations of continued misconduct. It added that he is presumed innocent and will be afforded his rights during the review of his confinement.The latest detention comes after Watson told CNN earlier this week that Trump had failed in office and continued to call for his impeachment and removal.“What is happening with President Trump is not normal. He has failed us,” Watson said. “And not only is he a failure as president, he is flagrantly violating the Constitution, breaking the law, engaged in rampant corruption and is killing Americans. And that is unacceptable to me and it should be unacceptable to all of us.”
Previous arrest
Watson was arrested on July 1 on the steps of the US Capitol after giving a speech calling for the impeachment and removal of Trump and Vice President JD Vance.He was in uniform during the demonstration. Military regulations prohibit service members from wearing their uniforms while participating in political activities, while the Capitol Police said demonstrations on the House steps are prohibited unless participants are accompanied by a member of Congress.Watson had not been charged at the time with an offence related to the July demonstration.Active-duty military personnel rarely publicly dissent against the president, in part because Article 88 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice criminalises contemptuous words against the president, vice president, Congress and certain other senior officials.Watson said he understood that speaking out could carry consequences.“We just have to be willing to accept that we can change what is happening in our country if we’re just willing to pay a price for it,” he said. “So all that I could do was ask myself what’s the highest price that I’m willing to pay. And this is what I ultimately came up with.”
