The offense of military insubordination has always demanded a harsh punishment. It's considered a cardinal sin in all militaries. But the new Politically Correct military of 2019 seems to ignore thousands of years of tradition.

I'm thinking of two particular incidents. The first should have merited a court martial and immediate removal from command.

It occurred in 2017, shortly after President Trump announced that “transgender” individuals would be banned from serving in the military: "Admiral Paul Zukunft, commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard, said that he would defy the decision of his commander in chief rather than “break faith” with [13] cross-dressing members of his service branch." "Zukunft indicated that the Coast Guard's “investment” in its handful of transgender members was more important than following orders from the President." And he retired with honors, to join The Center for Climate and Security.

This was an unbelievable, almost unheard of act of insubordination, a public refusal to obey a direct order by the President of the United States - our Commander in Chief, broadcast around the world. This extraordinary act should have landed the Admiral in jail, not simply removal from service. But the President was new in office and Zukunft escaped judicial punishment, which set a precedent for all future members of the Coast Guard.

I just have to ask how Zukunft ever reached flag level. This sort of political correctness has become epidemic in our military. We will pay a terrible price when we are once again thrust into widespread warfare. “...break faith” with cross-dressing members of his service branch." Really? He broke faith with his oath of command. He demonstrated his untrustworthiness.

The second incident happened recently, concerning Special Operations Chief Edward Gallagher, a highly decorated SEAL, who was convicted of battlefield misconduct in Iraq. He was sentenced to a demotion in rank and pay, though no prison time. But last Friday President Trump restored Gallagher's rank and pay, allowing him to retire on a full pension, also keeping his coveted SEAL Trident pin.

However, the Navy's top SEAL, Rear Admiral Collin Green, then convened a special five-member panel to review the case and recommend whether Gallagher should be stripped of the 'Trident pin' designating him a SEAL.

President Trump responded immediately in a tweet: "The Navy will NOT be taking away Warfighter and Navy Seal Eddie Gallagher's Trident Pin. This case was handled very badly from the beginning. Get back to business!"

Navy Secretary Richard Spencer was fired by Defense Secretary Mark Esper over the Gallagher case. Esper said he asked Spencer to resign because he had lost "trust and confidence in him regarding his lack of candor," according to a Pentagon spokesman.

After combing through various stories about the Gallagher prosecution and its aftermath, it seems clear to me serious pockets of anti-Trump sentiment exist at the highest levels of our Navy. That surprises me because I have always thought our military men strongly support the President.

However, the farther up the ranks we go the more ballooning vainglory we always see. Sometimes it's just a part of genius (Generals MacArthur and Patton) which comes with strong character and extraordinary success. More often though, it's petty self-obsession, into delusion.

The military, like all hierarchical organizations, produces as many bad members as good. It's the competitive structure where one corrupt member can promote another. So, maybe that's what happened to SEAL Rear Admiral Collin Green in Seal Eddie Gallagher's case. In any event, too many in the military hierarchy failed to respect the Commander in Chief's authority - without question.

Without obedience to lawful authority the military has nothing. Tradition is everything - and for 240 years, Judeo-Christian authority was the accepted basis of our American law, civil and military - which prohibited, for example, “transgender” individuals. To "break faith" with this fact, as in the Admiral Paul Zukunft matter, shatters military tradition and dissolves the ties which bind the ranks together.