Brian Tyler Cohen: The real reason Trump is deploying the military into US cities

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https://plus.briantylercohen.com/p/the-real-reason-trump-is-deploying

A lot of ink has been spilled about Trump’s decision to deploy the US military into Los Angeles. Yes, it was a well-timed distraction to shift our attention away from his feud with Elon Musk and his deeply unpopular budget bill that will strip healthcare away from 14 million Americans, gut $300 billion worth of food assistance, and explode the deficit to the tune of trillions. Yes, it was an authoritarian power grab at the hands of a man who never misses an opportunity to defy the law and consolidate more control for himself. And yes, it was just one more occasion for Trump to see how far he could push his party to comply, push Democrats to fight back, and push the courts to rein him in.

But there’s a far more insidious plan that Trump has long wanted to effectuate. Back in 2020, Trump engaged in discussions to seize voting machines as part of his effort to overturn the election results. Draft executive orders were prepared that would have directed either the Department of Defense or the Department of Homeland Security to execute that plan with the help of sycophants like Rudy Giuliani, Sidney Powell, and Michael Flynn. To Trump’s dismay, the effort was ultimately abandoned after officials including Bill Barr, Chad Wolf, and Ken Cuccinelli reportedly told him and his allies that the government lacked the authority to seize the machines.

But Trump’s second term is about correcting the errors of his first. Never again will he empower people like Mike Pence and Mark Esper who refused to enact his illegal edicts. Never again will he be restrained from using the US military as his own personal police force. And never again will he miss his opportunity to entrench Republican control for the foreseeable future. Five years ago, Trump’s plan to seize voting machines and overturn the election was blocked from within the government, but what few responsible officials remained have been replaced by loyalists. And now, with Trump deploying the military into American cities, he will have boots on the ground to execute his plans.

In a recent episode of Democracy Watch, Marc Elias explained:

After the 2020 election, [Trump] mused about whether he could send the military to interfere with the counting of votes. He wanted the Department of Justice and the FBI to potentially seize voting equipment. This is serious stuff. And this is Donald Trump's way of using the immigration issue as not just a way to trample on civil liberties, not just as a way to trample on federalism, not just as a way to flex his dictator and authoritarian-wannabe streak, but also to put in place the next steps - if he wants to and feels like he needs to - to prevent free and fair elections.

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