Vance expresses doubts about Pentagon plan to livestream Fort Hood shooter's execution

HEBRON, Ky. (AP) — Vice President JD Vance cast doubt on Friday whether the Pentagon will livestream the execution of Fort Hood shooter Nidal Malik Hasan in December but told reporters that if it is livestreamed, “I’m not going to be watching it.”

The Republican vice president said, “I don’t know that that’s actually going to happen,” when asked about the plans that the Pentagon confirmed on Thursday. But Vance then tried to set aside the controversy over the shocking plans for a public execution and said Hasan’s crimes should not be forgotten.

Hasan was convicted of killing 13 people and injuring 32 others in a shooting spree at the military base in 2009.

“So whatever the controversy is about the method of the execution, I hope that people don’t forget that this is a guy who brutally murdered a lot of innocent people,” the Republican said.

“Now, that said, I mean, look, if it’s ultimately livestreamed, I’m not going to be watching it,” he said.

Earlier, President Donald Trump told a White House event that Hasan will be getting “the death penalty through firing squad. And he deserves it.”

Trump, who approved Hasan's execution, called him “a maniac.”

Trump, who has long been a vocal supporter of capital punishment, didn’t mention the plans that the Pentagon has announced to livestream the execution so that the broader public can see it.

This story has been corrected to show the military base's name is Fort Hood, not Ford Hood.

Associated Press writer Will Weissert in Washington contributed to this report.