Navy SEAL Eddie Gallagher will support President Trump’s 2020 presidential campaign should he be asked, according to his lawyer.
The Navy announced Monday that it would allow Gallagher, who was accused of war crimes, to retire with his rank and coveted SEAL Trident intact. That decision followed Trump’s intervention on Gallagher’s behalf.
“If asked, of course, Eddie would endorse the president,” Tim Parlatore told the Washington Examiner. “There can be no stronger testimonial for an elected official than one of their constituents whose life has been helped significantly by that elected official.”
Gallagher, 40, who was found not guilty of most charges in July, has been a controversial figure in the military community. When asked if he would be beneficial to the Trump campaign, Parlatore said that was for the president and his campaign team to decide. “I personally do, but I recognize that these cases have become pretty divisive.”
In addition to Gallagher, Trump pardoned 1st Lt. Clint Lorance, who was convicted of murder in 2013 for ordering his men to shoot at unarmed Afghans. He also pardoned Maj. Mathew Golsteyn, a soldier who was going to stand trial next month for murdering a suspected Taliban bomb-maker.
On Monday, the Daily Beast reported that two people had said they’d heard Trump say that would like to have Gallagher, Clint Lorance, or Matthew Golsteyn appear at his 2020 rallies,
Trump intervened on Gallagher’s behalf several times throughout his case. The first instance occurred in March when Trump ordered Gallagher released from the Navy brig. Following the trial, Trump stripped the medals given to the Navy prosecution team that had lost the case. Earlier this month, he restored Gallagher’s rank and ensured he would not be stripped of his SEAL Trident.
[Read more: ‘Not going to survive this’: Top Navy SEAL under threat after Trump’s Eddie Gallagher intervention]
