Good morning, it's Wednesday, Oct. 7. The Army plans its first execution in 65 years, by firing squad, for the man who killed 13 people at Fort Hood.

Also in today's issue: Who pays for Trump's TV ads, A shipyard for Baltimore, Two fights over TV news, An FBI whistleblower speaks.

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For 17 years, the families of the 13 people killed at Fort Hood have waited for this case to end. Now, according to an email sent to the victims' families, they have a date: Dec. 3.

Late Monday, the Pentagon said President Trump approved the execution of Nidal Hasan by an Army firing squad. Hasan, a former Army psychiatrist, opened fire on unarmed soldiers preparing to deploy in 2009. He killed 13 people and wounded 32. The families were told before the public and asked whether they want to attend. It is set for Fort Hood itself, where the shooting happened.

That date is not locked in. One legal step could push it back by years, and the choice to take it belongs to Hasan, not the Army.

Here's why this moment is so rare. Under Army rules, only the president can approve a military execution. Military trials, called courts-martial, can hand down death sentences. But the U.S. military has not put anyone to death since 1961, when the Army hanged Pvt. John Bennett. It has not used a firing squad since World War II.

So why a firing squad now? A 2019 change to Army Regulation 190-55 removed lethal injection from the rules and left the method to the Army secretary. In April, the Justice Department added the firing squad to its approved methods for federal executions. Trump's approval also came days after Tennessee failed to execute Christa Pike by lethal injection. That failure led Gov. Bill Lee to halt executions there for the rest of the year. Asked about it, Trump said lethal injections "shouldn't be very difficult."

Supporters see this as justice long overdue. Hasan admitted the shooting at trial and described himself as a soldier who had "switched sides." He lost his final appeal in April 2025. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth recommended the firing squad and has said Hasan deserves the harshest lawful punishment. Critics of the death penalty question a return to a method the military set aside eight decades ago.

Back to that date. The president's approval starts a chain of steps, but Hasan can pause it with a habeas corpus appeal. It asks a civilian federal court to review whether he is being held lawfully. An article in the Army's own legal journal said such an appeal could delay an execution for years.

It has happened before. President George W. Bush approved the execution of Army Spc. Ronald Gray in 2008. A judge put it on hold, and Gray is still on death row at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, one of four men there.

For the country, this case tests two things at once: how the government carries out its harshest punishment, and how long justice can take.

In the coming weeks, watch whether the Army formally confirms the Dec. 3 date and whether Hasan's lawyers go to federal court. If they don't, the military's first execution in 65 years happens this winter. If they do, the families' long wait may stretch on.

Taxpayers will stop paying for the pro-Trump TV ads that have aired nationwide, the president said Monday night. His super PAC, MAGA Inc., will cover the cost going forward. A super PAC is a political group that can raise unlimited money. The ads ran on federal money, with $20 million set aside in the Homeland Security budget. One was a direct copy of a 2024 Trump campaign spot. On Tuesday, a White House official said the switch does not mean repaying what was already spent. Asked directly, Trump said, "We'll decide." The White House says presidents of both parties have run public service announcements. Ethics watchdogs, Democrats and some Republicans say these crossed into campaigning. Spending estimates from the ad tracker AdImpact run from $2.5 million to nearly $10 million.

A former steel mill site near Baltimore will build parts for Navy submarines, President Trump announced Tuesday. Defense company Anduril is investing $3.7 billion. The Navy will commit $2.9 billion by buying what the plant makes. Sparrows Point housed a Bethlehem Steel mill until it closed in 2012. The new plant is expected to bring 3,100 direct jobs, plus thousands more at suppliers. It will make parts for Virginia-class nuclear submarines, and the Navy has 26 of them today. Trump also said taxpayers will own a 40% stake, though no details were released. Maryland Gov. Wes Moore, a Democrat, praised the project but skipped the event, saying he was blocked from speaking. The White House says he was invited.

ABC is fighting the government in court, calling an early review of its licenses punishment for its coverage. On Tuesday, its lawyers asked a federal judge to stop the Federal Communications Commission from reviewing eight ABC stations years ahead of schedule. The FCC licenses TV stations. Government lawyers said the court has no power to hear the case. The judge did not rule, and filings are due by Oct. 14. The same day, Paramount closed its $81 billion takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery, putting CNN and CBS News under one owner, David Ellison. He is the son of Oracle founder and Trump ally Larry Ellison. Ellison has pledged both newsrooms will stay independent, and a board will watch over that. Company leaders will pick its members.

A former FBI supervisor says the White House pushed agents to investigate protesters for their speech. In a whistleblower complaint to Senate Judiciary Committee leaders, Jill Fields says Trump saw a video of Los Angeles residents using megaphones during immigration raids. They told neighbors their legal rights and urged them not to open doors without a judge-signed warrant. FBI agents had already looked into it and declined to open a case. Fields says the White House then told FBI Director Kash Patel to open one anyway. She says supervisors were told not to put such orders in writing. She resigned after losing her duties and says the effort violated the First Amendment. The FBI and Justice Department did not respond.

That's how many years it has been since the U.S. military last executed anyone. Army Pvt. John Bennett was hanged in 1961. Four men sit on military death row today, and the last one a president approved, in 2008, is still waiting after a judge stepped in.

P.S. Should firing squads be an option for executions? Hit Reply — one word is enough.