Army Starts Recoupment Action against Atheist Former Cadet
According to NBC News, the US Army is starting the process to recoup the cost of atheist former Cadet Blake Page’s West Point education:
In a memorandum dated Dec. 12, the superintendent of West Point Academy, Lt. Gen. David Huntoon, did recommend to Army headquarters that Page be honorably discharged and that recoupment — in the form of money or service as an enlisted soldier — be waived.
The response, signed by Thomas R. Lamont, assistant Army secretary, approves Page for an honorable discharge, but disapproves the waivers. In the Jan. 28 memorandum, he orders the West Point superintendent “to conduct a recoupment investigation.”
The Army could demand up to $250,000 or order Page back to active duty, where he previously served enlisted before attending West Point.
As noted in December, Page quit West Point in an act he admitted was a publicity stunt — knowing full well recoupment was one possible outcome.
Michael Weinstein, who originally helped shop Page’s story to the media, said of the Pentagon’s decision:
This may be the clearest example I’ve ever seen of reprisal and retribution. It sends an extremely dangerous message to anyone who wants to stand for their constitutional rights.
Weinstein fails to say retribution for what. To the point, Page resigned voluntarily and he admitted recoupment was one possible outcome of his decision. He even used the potential magnitude as a sympathy line. To now say it was never supposed to happen undermines the original pity plea and ignores the key point: Cadets who resign after their second year are liable for recoupment, regardless of their politics.
For the third time in about a week, Weinstein made the empty threat of filing a lawsuit against the military. Because that’s what Weinstein does when he wants publicity but he’s out of ideas.
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So sad. I feel really bad for this guy because he’s going to have to fork over all that money, the army isn’t going to reinstate him after what he pulled. And he even admitted it was done on the advice of his “lawyer” Mr. Weinstein. This guy is dangerous and hope the military follows through on their investigation of this guy and his “organization.” If I were Blake’s parents, I’d be furious.
@Priscilla Parker
In the end, it’s unlikely he’ll pay anything. Assuming reports are true, he was going to leave in 6 months with no obligation anyway.
Mikey Weinstein did NOT advise Blake to resign from West Point. That was Blake’s idea and Blake’s decision. Why don’t you give us a source for your assertion, Ms. Parker? Or are you just making crap up?
@Chris Rodda
Page said he made the decision to quit, but it was the MRFF who “encouraged him to go even further,” as one article put it, and make a spectacle of it.
http://www.military.com/daily-news/2012/12/04/west-pointer-quits-over-proselytizing.html
“I’m a pretty bold person, but there’s no way in hell I would have done any of this if I didn’t have the support of a good lawyer at my back. [Weinstein] makes it possible that there’s someone out there to defend me,” he said.”
There’s a fine line here. Even if Mr. Weinstein didn’t ‘technically’ advice Page to quit, ‘there’s no way in hell he ever would have done any of it’ without Weinstein influencing, aka. advising him to do so. Mr. Weinstein is a lawyer, therefore his advise on this matter should be construed as such, advise. If Page did so based on his confidence that Weinstein would ‘have his back’ as an ‘attorney’ one could and should conclude he made his decision based on Weinstein’s advise.
And I’m sure Ms. Rodda you had no hand in assisting Page get his ‘boo-hoo, I want my 15 minutes of fame’ post in the Huffington, right?
@JD: I don’t go by reports and that very well may be the case but I doubt it. Either way, he still had a potential career ruined by Weinstein. Yes, it was his decision to do what he did but I highly doubt any of these soldiers (Jeremy Hall, Dustin Chalker, Victoria Gettman, Kertok boy, and Blake Page, just to name a few) would have proceeded the way they did if it hadn’t been for Weinstein’s ‘I’m a former JAG Officer, blah blah blah.’ It’s their own fault for being duped by him and his ‘titles’ but I just think he should be held accountable as well. He deliberately misguides soldiers and actively uses his ‘watchdog’ organization as a guise to harass members and organizations in the military.