WASHINGTON (AP) — The nation's top military officer is adding to the already extraordinary tension between the Pentagon and President Donald Trump.

Gen. Mark Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said Thursday he was wrong to stride across Lafayette Square in his Army fatigues with Trump last week after the park was forcefully cleared of protesters.

Milley said his presence “created a perception of the military involved in domestic politics.”

It's just the latest pushback from the military.

Defense Secretary Mark Esper knocked down Trump's threat to deploy active-duty soldiers if there was more violence in demonstrations following the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis.

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