Trump debates calling off livestream of firing squad execution after learning Fort Hood shooter was paralyzed

By Alayna Treene, CNN

(CNN) — President Donald Trump and his advisers are debating whether to call off plans to livestream the firing squad execution of the Fort Hood shooter, with Trump having remarked privately that he did not initially know that Nidal Hasan was paralyzed from the waist down, two sources familiar with the discussions told CNN.

The president was not aware that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth was announcing last week that the administration planned to let the public watch the execution, the sources said, and was not sure what to make of it at first. Trump was, however, firmly behind the decision to execute Hasan via firing squad, multiple officials told CNN, and he’s often defended it in public.

And even after Hegseth posted on X on Thursday confirming that the Pentagon planned to livestream the execution, Trump polled several of his advisers and allies about how to proceed.

It was during the those conversations that Trump learned Hasan was paralyzed from the waist down — he was shot in the back by law enforcement during the 2009 shooting at Ford Hood — and that he now uses a wheelchair, the sources said, which made showing the execution publicly less palatable to the president.

One of the sources familiar with the discussions pointed to Trump’s deep understanding of imagery as a key reason why he may decide to ditch plans for the livestream. The president has also listened to the argument that a public execution by firing squad could serve as propaganda for foreign adversaries and terrorists to try to paint Hasan as a martyr, a Trump adviser told CNN.

The White House on Tuesday referred CNN to the president’s comments on Saturday in which he acknowledged “two thoughts” about what to do and said he’d make the ultimate decision.

“He was vicious. He was violent,” Trump told reporters about Hasan over the weekend. “There are two thoughts: Don’t show it and show it. Because, you know, by showing it, maybe other people won’t be doing what he did. So, I’ll make a decision ultimately. I know what the military would like to do, but we’ll make a decision.”

The Pentagon is also reevaluating plans to fully livestream the execution, according to a source familiar with the discussions. Even if there is a broadcast of the event, the source said, it will likely be cut before shots are fired, in part, due to concerns that the moment could offer a propaganda opportunity for terrorist groups.

Hegseth’s office has not responded to additional requests for comment about whether plans to livestream the execution have changed.

The plan to livestream the execution has faced bipartisan backlash, and people across the Pentagon and the Army were caught off guard, CNN has previously reported.

Trump told reporters on Friday that he was not involved but said, “I understand the decision,” adding that some people “want to set an example” by livestreaming the execution.

Hegseth had initially recommended death by firing squad for Hasan — who was convicted of killing 13 people and wounding dozens of others — and Trump approved it.

The execution, which is scheduled for December 3 at Fort Hood, would be the US Army’s first such execution of a soldier since World War II and its first imposition of any death penalty on an armed service member in 65 years.

A US-born citizen of Palestinian descent, Hasan said he was targeting soldiers he was set to deploy with to Afghanistan and wanted to protect the Taliban and its leaders from the US military.

The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2026 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.

CNN’s Zachary Cohen contributed to this report.