What happened yesterday profoundly changed the relationship the American people have with its government. Over the course of a 70-minute speech Donald Trump gave to our 800 highest ranking military leaders, he laid out a vision for the military and the country that involves the government of the United States waging war on American citizens.
In his speech, Trump referred to American citizens as “the enemy within” and accused them of conducting an “invasion.” Who are these people he’s talking about? In a nutshell, they are people who disagree with him politically. They are Democrats, liberals, “radical leftists,” and anyone that exercises their right to protest government policy or action. In other words, according to Trump, the “enemy within” that is leading this alleged “invasion” is your neighbor, your friends, and your family members. Maybe it’s you.
Trump wants to send the military into U.S. cities to carry out domestic law enforcement operations. That is not the purpose of the military, and doing so violates the Posse Comitatus Act. Trump doesn’t care. In his speech, he told military leaders that they would play a big role in his plan, and he suggested that American military troops could use occupation of U.S. cities, such as Chicago, as “training grounds.”
The question that hangs out in the ether waiting to be answered is, what will these military leaders do? How will they react to Trump’s unhinged authoritarian rant? Will they mindlessly carry out orders originating from the Commander in Chief or will they resist Trump’s illegal, unethical, and immoral use of the military to wage war on Americans?
I’d like to say that I trust our military leaders to refuse illegal orders, but in the past couple of weeks, we’ve seen them bow to Trump’s worst urges. Twice, Trump has ordered or approved orders to fire on unarmed boats in international waters, killing several people. Trump claimed the boats were carrying illegal drugs and that the occupants—who he claimed were members of the Venezuelan street gang, Tren da Aragua—were heading to the United States. He offered no proof of this claim, but even if it was true, the United States military has no legal authority to fire on boats in international waters without provocation. By any authority—whether United States Federal Law, International Law, or the Code of Military Justice—what Trump authorized and members of the Navy carried out, was murder. Trump issued an illegal order (or authorized Sec. of Defense Pete Hegseth to issue the order), and rather than resist it, the military capitulated. That does not bode well for the future.
A line has been crossed. Never in our country’s nearly 250-year history has a president asked the military to wage war against American citizens. That is, until now. And although I don’t know how the military will respond to Trump’s suggestion (suggestion now, order later?), I do know that every patriotic American must resist and oppose Trump’s illegal, unconstitutional rhetoric and behavior; we must speak out against his authoritarian regime; and we must start taking names and documenting crimes and un-American acts being taking by his administration and enablers.
What do I mean when I say take names and document crimes and un-American behavior? Let’s break this down.
The Supreme Court, in its infinite wisdom, gave the president near absolute immunity for actions he takes in the course of his duties as president. That includes illegal actions. But that immunity does not extend to his cabinet members or other members of the government. If they do anything illegal or unconstitutional, they should be prosecuted. And if the current Department of Justice won’t carry out the prosecution, a future DOJ should.
For instance, if Pete Hegseth gave an illegal order to blow those Venezuelan boats out of the water, he should be prosecuted. But he’s not the only one. Anyone within the chain of command of the Navy that failed to refuse that illegal order—from an admiral to an ensign all the way down to a seaman recruit—should be held accountable. And don’t forget, the defense of “I was just carrying out orders” didn’t work at Nuremburg, and it shouldn’t work here either.
How about the illegal ICE operations taking place around the country? Should Sec. of Homeland Security Kristi Noem be held to account for the illegal behavior she has ordered or allowed to happen by people under her control? Absolutely. Everyone from Noem down to the lowest level ICE agent that commits a crime should be held accountable. Tom Homan, the so-called Border Czar (not a real position) should be held to account for the illegal things he has done, including taking a $50,000 bribe to direct ICE contracts to his friends.
But it’s not just crimes that should be remembered. There are people in Trump’s orbit who have said and done un-American things that deserve scrutiny. For instance, FCC Chairman Brendan Carr didn’t do anything illegal when he threatened ABC, saying they could deal with Jimmy Kimmel “the easy way or the hard way,” but that doesn’t mean he should get off scot-free. He used the power of the government to coerce a private business. Whether you love Jimmy Kimmel or hate him, any Constitution-loving American should be opposed to anyone in the government threatening private companies, including holding up business mergers unless the companies involved agree to bend the knee to the Great Leader. Brendan Carr should never again be allowed to hold a position of authority, and no American business should ever hire him to work for them. He has proven himself to be an enemy of the state (a real enemy, not like what Trump calls the media), and he should be treated as such.
In addition, many of the people carrying out Trump’s un-American agenda are lawyers who are required to follow a strict code of ethics. Bar Associations should investigate and, if appropriate, suspend the license of anyone who violated Bar ethics rules. For instance, Trump lackeys in the DOJ have violated not just Justice Department rules, but also legal ethics. Off the top of my head, I can think of Alina Habba, Lindsey Halligan, Todd Blanche, and Ed Martin. I’m sure there are many others. They should not be allowed to get away with illegal or unethical behavior simply because they are working for the government.
We should also never forget the cowards, who all too willingly bent the knee to Trump, many times when it was completely unnecessary. For instance, CBS/Paramount settled a completely frivolous lawsuit with Trump for $16 million to make sure a merger would get approved. Disney, owner of ABC, settled another frivolous lawsuit with the President for $12 million. YouTube just did the same thing.
Several large law firms capitulated to Trump, selling out their clients, their morals, and their values in the process. Apple CEO Tim Cook, with virtually no prompting, presented Trump with a custom glass plaque with a 24-karat base, in an effort to appease the President and exclude Apple from tariffs. There are several others as well, but the point is that as a nation, we should never forget the cowardice of these people and businesses, and their willingness to sell out democracy to improve their bottom line or be exempted from Trump’s wrath.
We also should hold the media accountable. With few exceptions, they have been wholly unwilling to call Trump’s behavior what it is, always searching for a way to normalize his rhetoric and behavior or “both sides” an issue. I’m not suggesting that anyone in the media should be punished, but we should never forget that for most of them, when their country needed them most to fully exercise the Constitutionally protected freedom of the press, they failed spectacularly to show up, shrinking in the biggest moment.
I want to make it clear that what I am proposing is not a reign of retribution, which is exactly what Trump is currently doing. This is not simply a call to punish people I disagree with politically. What I’m suggesting is that no democracy can long survive if it allows those who undermine it to not be held accountable for their actions. I’m not talking about prosecuting people who disagree with the rules and norms of our democracy. People should be allowed to have any opinion they choose, whether it is good for the country or bad. Opinions and speech should not be punished. But taking affirmative action to undermine democracy is a different thing. Using government power for anti-democratic purposes must never be allowed. Democracy does not stand on its own. It must be defended. The work of defending democracy is constant and unending. We can not afford to simply ignore those who would see our democracy, rule of law, and constitutional government destroyed.
Never in my wildest dreams did I think I would ever write anything like this. By the same token, never in my wildest dreams did I ever think I’d hear a United States president try to sell military leaders on the idea that they should be deployed and wage war against American citizens on the streets of U.S. cities. We are at an inflection point in our nation’s history, and if we find a way to survive it, the people who tried to destroy our democracy or were only too willing to abandon it either out of cowardice or personal gain, must be held to account. It’s time to start taking names.
