Retribution, One-Man Rule and Fabrication Have Produced an American Police State

Retribution, One-Man Rule and Fabrication Have Produced an American Police State

“Pam: I have reviewed over 30 statements and posts saying that, essentially, ‘same old story as last time, all talk, no action. Nothing is being done. What about Comey, Adam ‘Shifty’ Schiff, Leticia??? They’re all guilty as hell, but nothing is going to be done… [referring the AG to former FBI Director James Comey, Sen. Adam Schiff of California, and New York Attorney General Letitia James]…We can’t delay any longer, it’s killing our reputation and credibility.”

Trump social media post, September 20th.

“[Charlie Krik] did not hate his opponents; he wanted the best for them… That’s where I disagreed with Charlie. I hate my opponents, and I don’t want the best for them. I’m sorry.” 

Trump at Kirk Memorial in Phoenix, September 20th.

“I have read someplace that the networks were 97% against me, again, 97% negative… They give me only bad publicity, press. I mean, they’re getting a license… I would think maybe their license should be taken away.” 

Trump, September 18th.

“President Trump ran directly at the legacy mainstream åmedia, and he smashed a facade that they’re the gatekeepers of truth… [The FCC is now] fully aligned with the agenda… Broadcast licenses are not sacred cows.” 

 Trump’s FCC Chair, Brendan Carr in several public statements.

“Where has all the leadership gone? If not for university presidents, law firm managing partners, and corporate chief executives standing up against bullies, who then will step up for the first amendment?” Ex-Disney CEO Michael Eisner at the removal of Jimmy Kimmel from ABC’s late-night schedule.

“President Trump has not convinced most Americans that there is an emergency in this country that requires greatly expanded presidential power to address” 

Boston College Political Scientist David Hopkins, September 21st

“Even if citizens have concerns about urban crime or economic performance, they don’t view either issue as currently in a state of unprecedented crisis requiring unprecedented measures [like troops in cities] to resolve.” 

Veteran Democratic Strategist Jesse Ferguson

It’s odd how China and the United States seem to be reversing their goals and political systems. Officially, the US government does not recognize “climate change” as relevant. Half the EV vehicles on earth are now made in China, as the Trump administration has halted the major alternative energy job growth market – an inane “drill, baby drill” mantra as even oil companies are scaling back – just as China is now leading the field. “The value of electric-vehicle, battery, solar, wind and other renewables projects that were delayed or canceled in the first half of the year, according to advocacy group E2. It’s one of the signs of how America has given up its effort to challenge China in the renewable-energy industries that increasingly power the global economy.” Wall Street Journal, News Fee, September 22nd.

In China, the Communist Party directly controls the military (not the government itself) and can overrule and mandate judicial outcomes and outcomes. Trump has admired the quickness, lack of due process guardrails, of the Chinese judicial system. Slowly, he has ended the notion of an independent judiciary, from his personal control of the Department of Justice, which he is now demanding prosecuted his political foes, to his strategic appointment of federal judges, from top to bottom, who have been vetted primarily on their loyalty to Trump and his political goals, vs their competency and neutrality. Federal prosecutors who do not deliver indictments against Trump declared political enemies are terminated, even where they simply cannot find the necessary evidence need to support that indictment.

For example, Trump fired (did he quit?) his nominee and acting US Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, Erik Siebert, who had informed the Department of Justice that he had insufficient evidence to pursue charges against NY State AG, Letticia James, and also raised concerns about a separate case against former FBI Director James Comey. He was immediately replaced with a White House insider with no prosecutorial experience, an insurance attorney, Lindsey Halligan. Trump’s appointment of ex-Fox News host, Jeanine Pirro, as US Attorney for the District of Columbia, following Trump’s directives to secure felony indictments against arrested anti-ICE protestors, has repeatedly failed to convince the necessary grand jury panels that a felony had been committed.

It is now well beyond a reasonable doubt that Trump has brought AG Pam Bondi and the entire DOJ under his direct control, evaporating the tradition of DOJ neutrality and separation from direct political control since it was established. The President has consistently slammed the Biden administration against censorship and “witch hunts,” and even in his inaugural speech, he pledged to “immediately stop all government censorship and bring back free speech to America.” No President in American history has imposed more consequences against those who have spoken against him or more weaponized the justice system than Trump. He went so far as to turn his purported eulogy of Charlie Kirk into a vitriolic hate speech that seemed to cross the line towards inciting and justifying political violence against all who opposed him. Even more directly than his January 6, 2021, speech at the Ellipse preceding the assault on the Capitol.

Trump’s war against media has exploded into the open, from frivolous lawsuits to hinting that unless they tow the line, the kinds of government approvals they seek from the SEC, FTC, FCC, etc. just might not happen. He’s taken down two late night network talk show hosts, CBS’ Stephen Colbert and ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel (but is ABC pushing back now?) and is aiming for more. Remember, a bully rarely stops after a success. Odd, but it’s straight from the autocrat’s playbook, to take out political comedy first as you assault free speech, as both Vladimir Putin and Hungary’s Viktor Orbán did at the inception of their transition to dictatorship. Trump has become that master of fabricating mythical numbers or gas lighting to convince his supporters?

Trump’s polling on the economy and on his tariffs shows his disapproval level rising way over 50%. “Reuters/Ipsos polling shows most Americans favor stricter limits on executive authority and oppose both military patrols in urban areas and direct control over corporate decisions. After taking control of the D.C. police and deploying National Guard troops, Trump has considered sending troops to other cities… A Reuters/Ipsos poll found only 32% of Americans support armed soldiers patrolling major cities. The backing is strongest among Republicans.” Kansas City Star, September 21st. His ICE recruitment for an additional 10,000 officers is creating a personal police force that eschews warrants (and probable cause) or even identifying themselves when they effect an arrest.

Because of that unpopularity, Trump depends on his rubber-stamp GOP control of Congress, with a majority very likely slipping to a distinct minority in the midterms, unless he can rig the vote. So, limiting likely Democratic voters from a meaningful voice at the polls is his major focus now, and his efforts seem to have the likely support of his right-wing Supreme Court. We are already under an autocratic form of government that the voters never approved. But the passion of that roughly 30% of MAGA Christian nationalists is a force to be reckoned with… facing the rest, a complacent electorate focused more on kitchen table issues than the loss of personal freedom or the rise of Trump’s selected billionaire power brokers who have been wildly successful in securing lucrative deals and exemptions under Trump’s direct efforts to benefit them.

Criminal standards for corrupt officials and corporate acts, protection of civil and worker rights and of the general public from environmental and greed-driven financial harm are gone. Tax cuts for the rich and an overall slash of federal benefits for everyone else have become the norm. And still, most of the general public seems unaware that their house is on fire. Oh, and what has happened to the Epstein debacle? Has the unforgiveable assassination of Charlie Trump finally given Trump the distraction he so desperately wanted?

I’m Peter Dekom, and as their nation burns its most sacred traditions, too many Americans are just playing their virtual “fiddles,” either from fear, misunderstanding or simply a habit of non-involvement.