Tag: National Guard

Creeping Normalcy: America’s Long Slide to Autocracy?

Using alleged claims of ‘blood thirsty criminals’ running rampant as a pretext, in an extraordinary move Daddy Trump virtually seized the Federal District this week.  Is it another deliberative act of incrementally normalizing authoritarian behavior and a conspicuous display of white supremacy.

It is a symbolic military occupation of the nation’s capital.  Deploying 800 (maybe a 1000) guardsmen and taking control of the Metropolitan Police Department is more symbol than practical, but a dangerous one, nonetheless.   The capital is the heart of our democracy and conspicuous displays of military power at checkpoints and patrols smacks of authoritarianism.  But in a week or two, it will be normalized, like the deployment of National Guard troops and Marines in the heart of Los Angeles.  

In addition to the deployment of DC national guardsmen, the Pentagon announced plans today to increase the readiness of National Guard units to deploy forces to contain civil unrest. They call them Quick Reaction forces, which you normally find in combat zones.  Why I ask, when there is no civil unrest, does the pentagon need to stand up National Guard quick reaction forces?  Is this foreshadowing? Perhaps Trump plans some actions that would provoke civil unrest.  Like declaring martial law in blue states.

It is also a conspicuous display of white supremacy.  Last week the White House announced that two statues of confederates removed several years ago will be reinstalled in the district.  It is not coincidental, I believe, that he juxtaposed announcements of the return of symbols of white supremacy with an out-of-control criminal element in a District ruled primarily by elected African Americans.   Weekly it seems, the Trump administration continues to normalize white governance and supremacy.

The takeover of the capital must be understood in the context to other incremental actions by the president and his regime.  These recent actions follow weeks of an agitated Trump going on rants about treasonous presidents and former cabinet officials.  Histrionics that seem more likely to come out the mouth of a tweaked-out meth head than a president.   

Aiding him is a Justice Department that no longer pretends to wear the mantle of independence, creeping ever closer to Stasi-like policing:  purges, investigating political opponents, grand jury inquests against state’s attorneys and independent counsels that investigated Trumps varied criminal acts, and flipping civil rights investigations on their heads.  Even the Department of Labor is not immune from purges as the head of Bureau of Labor Statistics was fired by Trump after a jobs report that showed dismal growth.    

Three in the morning tweets from Daddy Trump alleging criminal mischief by his political enemies are now normalized behavior – endless fodder for late night comedy no doubt– when in fact they are disturbing displays of Trump’s unstable state of mind.   They invariable result in leaders at the Justice Department and FBI to order criminal inquiry’s days later.  This is how authoritarians do business and it’s become normal.  That the Justice Department, FBI, and Department of Homeland Security are morphing into Trump’s personal praetorian guard should scare the crap out of Americans.  They are loyal to him, not us. I am surprised at how easy it was to do.  

In an earlier piece, I cautioned my fellow federal law enforcement officers that they have a choice when the president orders them to do immoral and illegal things, that they will have a decision to make.  Sadly, too many in the Department of Homeland Security have already made their decision it seems.  They went to the dark side…. apparently succumbing to promises of bonuses that run in the thousands of dollars.    More 19thcentury slave catcher than 21st century federal agent.

Our much-cherished separation of powers is gone, it appears.  Congress?  Absent as usual.  Speaker Johnson basically prorogued the House of Representatives to prevent hearings regarding Trump’s deep involvement in a sex trafficking pedophilia scandal.  A bit later the Senate left the Capital like a lover slips out of a lovers window as a spouse arrives home.  When they return, they will be returning a different Washington, one militarily occupied, at least symbolically, and controlled by Trump. So much for the conservative mantras ‘liberty or die’ or ‘don’t tread on me.’

And where is the Supreme Court?  Oh, never mind.

There’s a term of art for what is happening in America: creeping normalcy.  The incremental normalization of the abnormal through gradual shifts in behavior.   It is plain and clear what is happening, but it feels like most Americans, clutching their myth of American Exceptionalism like a security blanket, are in denial, unwilling to acknowledge the incremental normalization of authoritarian behavior as we slip and slide toward the demise of our democracy.  

At this point in time, I fear, momentum alone will take us to that place we don’t want to go.  The enablers – Republicans in Congress and the Supreme Court – keep handing Trump increased power, acting like there will never ever be another elected Democratic President to use those new powers.  Perhaps that’s the plan, starting with normalizing National Guard deployments to quell so-called civil unrest.

Tom’s Report on the State of America’s Democratic Health: Into the Crucible or Just Crazy Bat Shit?

As of June 7, 2025

Benchmarks of Democratic Backsliding and Erosion

Coup 2.0.  Trump continues the January 6 coup attempt.  In an unprecedented memorandum to the U.S. Attorney General, Trump directed the Department of Justice to investigate an alleged criminal conspiracy by former President Biden and his aides to cover up his mental decline.  The memorandum also claims that Biden was not mentally competent to sign legislation into law, appoint federal judges, issue executive orders, etc.  In effect, Trump is attempting to complete the January 6 insurrection and coup, by erasing the Biden Administration.   I suspect the results of the investigation will be used to attempt to discredit and remove all federal judges appointed by Biden, to include Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown, and declare all laws signed by Biden are null and void.

In another act of calculated revenge and cruelty, the wrongfully detained and deported man from Maryland, Abrego Garcia, was returned to the U.S. this week from El Salvador, after weeks of delays and claims he couldn’t be repatriated to America.  Garcia was flown to Tennessee where a federal multi-count indictment awaited him.  Nine counts of driving undocumented immigrants across the country and one count of conspiracy.  Garcia is paying the price for Trump’s illegal deportation program being halted by the federal courts.  

On June 4, the White House issued a proclamation targeting citizens of 12 countries from entering the United States.  National security reasons were listed for the travel ban, but they disproportionately targeted African countries, confirming suspicions that Trump is engaged in a campaign to dehumanize and criminalize blackness.

The Department of Defense announced plans to rename the supply ship Harvey Milk.  The renaming is part of a supposed DoD initiate to reinvigorate the military’s warrior spirit.  Milk was a veteran and was assassinated while holding political office.  He was also gay.  Does Hegseth know that one of the most feared ancient Greek fighting units was known as the Sacred Band of Thebes.  It was composed of 300 fighting men, basically 150 partnered lovers.  Also, up for consideration by DoD is to rename ships named after Ruth Bader Ginsberg and anti-slavery warrior and freedom fighter Harriet Tubman.  What is it with Hegseth and Trump and their hatred of powerful women and gay leaders? Anyway, it has long been considered taboo to rename ships. Bring bad luck they say.

The battle between Harvard and Trump continues with the administration issuing a proclamation banning foreign students issued visas to attend Harvard from entering the country.  That ban was halted temporarily by a federal Judge’s injunction on Thursday.  

Meanwhile, the Department of Homeland Security requested that the Defense Department activate 20,000 national guard troops to assist their law enforcement efforts to remove migrants from the country.  The National Guard units would be used for a host of duties, to include helping track down migrants, assignment to detention facilities, transporting migrants, providing other logistical support.  Apparently, in order to skirt Posse Comitatus restrictions, the guard units aren’t being ‘federalized’ so that they can participate in law enforcement operations.  That Act prohibits the military from engaging in law enforcement directly.  Such as making arrests like police officers or directly pursuing suspects. 

In a developing story, Trump activated 2000 California national guardsmen for deployment to Los Angeles following protests and clashes with ICE agents conducting roundups in heavily Latino city districts.  Tensions are high and are exacerbated by self-inflicted stupidity. For instance, earlier in the week in Torrance, a coastal city within the Los Angeles area, a 4th grade boy at his elementary school was detained along with his father.  They were separated at an immigration hearing, sent to Texas, to await deportation to Honduras. 

These provocative actions and others – such as arriving in neighborhoods in military-like uniforms, long guns, body armor, and armored vehicles – are counterproductive and lead to backlashes.  What the hell did they think would happen?  Defense Secretary Hegseth chimed that Marines at a nearby base were on high alert and ready to deploy if needed.  Hegseth, “ARE YOU FUCKING BAT SHIT CRAZY?”  That’s a rhetorical question of course. It seems Trump and his minions are itching to kill Americans in American streets.