Army officer who quit over Covid vaccine mandate tells Hannity he has had ‘all the other vaccines’

A US Army officer has explained on Fox News why he resigned over the Department of Defense vaccine mandate, but admitted he had agreed to all his other Army shots.

“First, and foremost, I am incapable of subjecting myself to the unlawful, unethical, immoral, and tyrannical to sit still and allow a serum to be injected into my flesh against my will and better judgment,” former Officer Paul Douglas Hague wrote in his resignation letter, which his wife posted on Twitter at the beginning of September.

He also cited a “complete lack of confidence in the presidential administration,” as a reason for quitting and forfeiting his pension after 18 years in the military.

“I’ve got two years until I’m eligible to pull my retirement,” said Hague to Fox News host Sean Hannity.

“But I don’t want the Covid vaccine and I don’t plan on getting it. But I’ve had all the other army vaccines. I’ve had eight anthrax shots. I’ve had the smallpox vaccination. I’ve had ’em all. So it’s really not about whether or not I’ll get the shot ... it’s about principle.”

The Pentagon said that coronavirus vaccinations are mandatory for the US’s 1.3 million active-duty troops, and all must take the shot before  15 December or face suspension or dismissal.

“While soldiers who refuse the vaccine will first be counseled by their chain of command and medical providers,” the official Army guidelines explain, “continued failure to comply could result in administrative or nonjudicial punishment – to include relief of duties or discharge from the service.”

Despite agreeing to a number of other vaccinations required by the US Army, Mr Hague alleged in his resignation letter that he thought the recent Covid-19 vaccine mandate was part of a “Marxist takeover of the military and United States government at their upper echelons”.

This is not the first military personnel to speak out against the Biden Administration on social media in recent weeks. In late August, Marine Lt Col Stuart Scheller posted videos on social media criticising the government in its handling of the US military withdrawal from Afghanistan. He knew one of the 13 US service members killed in the Kabul suicide bomb attack. Scheller demanded accountability from those who were overseeing decisions in Afghanistan.

“I’m not saying we’ve got to be in Afghanistan forever, but I am saying: Did any of you throw your rank on the table and say ‘Hey, it’s a bad idea to evacuate Bagram Airfield, a strategic airbase, before we evacuate everyone.’”

After 17 years of service, and three years until he gets a pension, the US marine was relieved of command following the release of his video due to a “loss of trust and confidence in his ability to command”.

Mr Scheller stated on screen that he was “resigning my commission as a United States Marine, effective now … “I am forfeiting retirement, all entitlements,” Mr Scheller said.