President Donald Trump speaks about the investigation by Special Counsel Robert Mueller in the Rose Garden at the White House in Washington,DC, on May 22, 2019. Leah Millis/Reuters

Former Navy Secretary Richard Spencer says President Donald Trump „has very little understanding of what it means to be in the military.“

In a stunning opinion article published in The Washington Post on Wednesday, three days after his ouster as the Navy’s top leader, Spencer wrote that it was „shocking and unprecedented“ for Trump to interfere in the case of US Navy Chief Petty Officer Edward Gallagher.

Spencer served in the US Marine Corps as a helicopter pilot in the late 1970s. Trump received multiple deferments from serving in the Vietnam War.

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Former Navy Secretary Richard Spencer says President Donald Trump „has very little understanding of what it means to be in the military.“

In a stunning opinion article published in The Washington Post on Wednesday, three days after his ouster as the Navy’s top leader, Spencer wrote that it was „shocking and unprecedented“ for Trump to interfere in the case of US Navy Chief Petty Officer Edward Gallagher, the Navy SEAL who was convicted of posing for a photograph with the corpse of an Islamic State militant.

Gallagher had faced seven charges, including premeditated murder in the death of the ISIS detainee, but he was acquitted of all but the one charge.

Gallagher was demoted a rank as part of his punishment, but Trump soon after ordered his rank to be restored. Trump also ordered Defense Secretary Mark Esper to allow Gallagher to retain his status as a Navy SEAL before retirement, preempting a review board that was expected to determine whether he would be allowed to keep his title.

Esper has said he asked for Spencer’s resignation after learning that Spencer had tried to negotiate a side deal from the White House in which Gallagher would maintain his SEAL title as long as the review board was allowed to run its course. Spencer had already publicly broken with Trump on the issue.

„This was a shocking and unprecedented intervention in a low-level review,“ Spencer wrote. „It was also a reminder that the president has very little understanding of what it means to be in the military, to fight ethically or to be governed by a uniform set of rules and practices.“

Richard spencer trump Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post via Getty Images

Trump was of age but did not serve in the military during the Vietnam War. He received four military deferments for college and one for a bone-spur diagnosis.

Spencer served in the US Marine Corps as a helicopter pilot in the late 1970s.

In his article, Spencer scrutinized Trump’s influence during Gallagher’s trial. Spencer, who was contacted twice by Trump during Gallagher’s trial, said he sent him a note „not to get involved.“

The White House counsel, Pat Cipollone, then called Spencer to say „the president would remain involved,“ according to Spencer.

Spencer’s comments were similar to ones he made in a CBS News interview on Monday. „I don’t think he really understands the full definition of a warfighter,“ Spencer said of Trump. „A warfighter is a profession of arms. And a profession of arms has standards that they have to be held to, and they hold themselves to.“

Trump, who has argued that Gallagher and a handful of other Americans convicted or accused of war crimes were mistreated by military leaders, characterized his actions as broadly supporting the troops.

„I think what I’m doing is sticking up for our armed forces,“ Trump told reporters on Monday. „And there’s never been a president that’s going to stick up for them, and has, like I have.“

Spencer, however, described Trump’s intervention as „command influence,“ a term that refers to military leaders abusing their position to influence the outcome of legal proceedings. „President Trump involved himself in the case almost from the start,“ he wrote.

„Americans need to know that 99.9% of our uniformed members always have, always are, and always will make the right decision,“ Spencer added. „Our allies need to know that we remain a force for good, and to please bear with us as we move through this moment in time.“