The guys that took this one will be the ones shooting
True, but the officers giving them their orders will have taken the other version, the one that hasn't been changed since 1868.
I, A.B., do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter. So help me God.
The Enlisted Oath was changed in 1950 to add the UCMJ referance (UCMJ only existed after the creation of the Defense Department) and again in 1962 to make it more nearly conform to the officers oath, adding the oath to support and defend the Constitution.
“according to regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice”
That’s the part that provides for refusal to obey an unlawful order. You disobey an order at your peril, but an unlawful order violates the UCMJ and need not be obeyed - in fact, the recipient of the order is under an affirmative duty to disobey it.
Unfortunately, sometimes the line between lawful and unlawful isn’t a bright one.
Colonel, USAFR
That is a contradicting oath, no? What if the domestic “is” the President?
I, myself, took that very oath, but you have the emphasis in the wrong place. The first duty to which you are sworn is to the United States Constitution, which represents We, the People. The rest of the oath, including whose orders you obey, is secondary to the preservation of our nation and our freedoms. If the guys who took this oath are doing the shooting, then they have been poorly schooled in their duty to their oath. When I was in the military, the possibility of firing on the American people was discussed, and it was unanimously rejected everytime. If ordered to do so, then the military personnel had a higher duty to shoot those who gave the order, not We, the People.
The guys that will be doing the leading- and flying the air support- took this one:
"I, [name and ss number], having been appointed an officer in the Army of the United States, as indicated above in the grade of Major, do solemnly swear [or affirm] that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign or domestic, that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservations or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office upon which I am about to enter; So help me God."
DA Form 71, 1 August 1959, for officers.