Setting up an American Reichstag fire
The Department of Homeland Security was created in the wake of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, ostensibly to consolidate and coordinate anti-terrorist activities previously housed in several different federal agencies. We can debate whether DHS has been an unalloyed good, but it at least paid lip service to the notion that the federal government has an important role to play in national security.
“The federal government used to prioritize domestic terrorism, and now it’s like domestic terrorism just went away overnight,” Nessel told the audience. “I don’t think that we’re going to get much in the way of cooperation anymore.”
“Across the country, other state-level security officials and violence prevention advocates have reached the same conclusion. In interviews with ProPublica, they described the federal government as retreating from the fight against extremist violence, which for years the FBI has deemed the most lethal and active domestic concern. States say they are now largely on their own to confront the kind of hate-fueled threats that had turned Temple Israel into a fortress.
“The White House is redirecting counterterrorism personnel and funds toward President Donald Trump’s sweeping deportation campaign, saying the southern border is the greatest domestic security threat facing the country. Millions in budget cuts have gutted terrorism-related law enforcement training and shut down studies tracking the frequency of attacks. Trump and his deputies have signaled that the Justice Department’s focus on violent extremism is over, starting with the president’s clemency order for militants charged in the storming of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.”
One doesn’t have to be paranoid or conspiracy-minded to see where this can lead. Redirecting counterterrorism activities to states and shifting DHS efforts away from terrorism and to deportation makes the US more vulnerable to another 9/11. Next time, it won’t be weaponized commercial airlines, but attacks on energy infrastructure, water supplies or release of a pandemic agent. That would provide the Trump Administration with the excuse to invoke martial law, just as Hitler used the Reichstag fire to pass new laws curtailing civil liberties in Germany. And we know where that led.
Anti-terrorism is left to the states
“The federal government used to prioritize domestic terrorism, and now it’s like domestic terrorism just went away overnight,” Nessel told the audience. “I don’t think that we’re going to get much in the way of cooperation anymore.”
“Across the country, other state-level security officials and violence prevention advocates have reached the same conclusion. In interviews with ProPublica, they described the federal government as retreating from the fight against extremist violence, which for years the FBI has deemed the most lethal and active domestic concern. States say they are now largely on their own to confront the kind of hate-fueled threats that had turned Temple Israel into a fortress.
“The White House is redirecting counterterrorism personnel and funds toward President Donald Trump’s sweeping deportation campaign, saying the southern border is the greatest domestic security threat facing the country. Millions in budget cuts have gutted terrorism-related law enforcement training and shut down studies tracking the frequency of attacks. Trump and his deputies have signaled that the Justice Department’s focus on violent extremism is over, starting with the president’s clemency order for militants charged in the storming of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.”
One doesn’t have to be paranoid or conspiracy-minded to see where this can lead. Redirecting counterterrorism activities to states and shifting DHS efforts away from terrorism and to deportation makes the US more vulnerable to another 9/11. Next time, it won’t be weaponized commercial airlines, but attacks on energy infrastructure, water supplies or release of a pandemic agent. That would provide the Trump Administration with the excuse to invoke martial law, just as Hitler used the Reichstag fire to pass new laws curtailing civil liberties in Germany. And we know where that led.
Anti-terrorism is left to the states
“9/11” was our Reichstag Fire, led to the creation of DHS
It’s like everything is running twenty years behind times
It could be the only thing that saves us is it was so easy the first time Cheney and Company got scared, backed off, waited for public sentiment to die down a bit and a more suitable puppet. Trump is trying to do what Cheney started to do, laid the groundwork for, but Cheney’s vehicle for total control DHS is stopping him. Silver linings of dark clouds
Interesting times, we have all been here before …
@Ten,
I’m not following. How does stripping DHS of a federal role in counter-terrorism stop Trump from declaring martial law when a preventable 9/11 terrorist event happens?
I agree, 9/11 was our Reichstag fire. In the aftermath we had a war in Afghanistan and Iraq with Libya and Syria following closely after. The intent was to go to war with 7 Muslim countries. US ‘plans to attack seven Muslim states’ | News | Al Jazeera
The 4th amendment was quietly annulled and replaced with warrantless wiretapping featuring a sophistication that would have made the Stasi drool. And virulent Islamophobia became commonplace with hate crimes against Muslims. 20 years after 9/11, Islamophobia continues to haunt Muslims – ABC News Local police forces were increasing militarized and integrated into federal law enforcement systems.
A key missing ingredient was the actual implementation of martial law, primarily because propaganda was effective enough for Bush/Cheney to manufacture enough public support to implement much of their agenda without it.
As a result of 9/11 the foundation and infrastructure were built for future presidents to declare martial law if they chose. Democrats and Republicans blithely supported the gestapo structure in waiting, curiously oblivious to the real possibility that someone like Trump could emerge. Even worse, Democrats and Republicans alike subsequently did absolutely nothing to dismantle it, even after Trump’s first term.
What’s still worse is that Democrats spent years warning the electorate of Trump’s authoritarian bent, all the while doing nothing to roll back the gestapo-like powers or limit his freedom of action in the event he did win.
Democrats impeached Trump twice in his first term, but Republicans blocked conviction in the Senate both times. What’s worse is that Republicans spent years bleating about government tyranny, all the while doing nothing to roll back the gestapo-like powers or limit presidential freedom of action in the event Trump did win. What’s still worse is that Republicans currently control both the House and Senate, and are still doing nothing to roll back the gestapo-like powers or limit his freedom of action; indeed, they are facilitating him.
Sure, Republicans didn’t resist Trump or roll back potentially dictatorial presidential powers.
But it was Democrats who constantly hectored us about Trump’s authoritarian tendencies and then did nothing to limit powers of the executive branch, even though they controlled all three branches of government during the 117th Congress. Some of these powers required renewal by Congress, so Democrats clearly had the power to limit them.
Apart from Democrats’ total hypocrisy, they are fully complicit in enabling Trump by being fully cognizant of the danger and then doing nothing to limit his potential power. Sure, Republicans enabled Trump, too. But at least they never made a big show of being oh-so-alarmed and then proceeding to do absolutely nothing about it. And now that it’s happening, the Democratic leadership playing dead according to the Carville strategy of making a “strategic political retreat.”
@John,
So in other words, if Democrats don’t pass laws to prevent Trump’s abuses then Democrats are to blame for Trump’s abuses?
LOL!
Democrats saw a clear and present danger…and punted.
While Democrats are not solely to blame for Trump’s abuses, they share responsibility for doing nothing legislatively to preempt it–in other words accessories to Trump’s criminal behavior. In case you didn’t know this, “An accessory in criminal law is a person who assists in the commission of a crime without actually participating in it. They may help before or after the crime, often with knowledge of the criminal act, and can be charged with a crime themselves for their involvement.”
Please post the evidence that during the Biden Administration, Democrats possessed the clairvoyance to foresee the second Trump Administration, its subservient GOP Congress and its efforts to dismantle national security. Take all the time you need.
Republicans, who are in power, are seeing a clear and present danger and support it. So you believe Democrats, who are out of power, are responsible for bad Republican decisions? Seriously?
Which crimes are you accusing Trump of having committed that the Democratic Party assisted him in committing? Just to be clear, I’ll be fine with Democrats being investigated as accessories for any and all crimes that Donald Trump is convicted of. So far, Trump has been convicted of 34 felonies. Which of those crimes were Democrats accessories to?
Here is a start: Richard Hasen, Slate Magazine, July 10, 2024: Biden vs. Trump: Democrats not acting as if democracy is on the ballot.
It’s very curious that you criticize Trump’s plans to cut the national security state. In fact, it is the national security state that is the tool that Trump will use to implement his dictatorship. If Democrats had cared a whit about Trump’s dictatorial tendencies, they should have parried the threat by limiting the reach and power of these unaccountable, secretive agencies and slashed their budgets. Instead, they handed the agencies and their draconian powers to Trump–totally intact– on a silver platter.
“It’s very curious that you criticize Trump’s plans to cut the national security state.”
It’s very curious that you defend Trump’s plan to cut anti-terrorism.
“In fact, it is the national security state that is the tool that Trump will use to implement his dictatorship.”
In fact, that was my point. By cutting anti-terrorist activities, Trump is hoping for a Reichstag fire event that he will use to implement his dictatorship.
“If Democrats had cared a whit about Trump’s dictatorial tendencies, they should have parried the threat by limiting the reach and power of these unaccountable, secretive agencies and slashed their budgets.”
LOL! There you go again, blaming Democrats for having imaginary clairvoyant superpowers and failing to anticipate the future.
Please post the evidence that during the Biden Administration, Democrats possessed the clairvoyance to foresee the second Trump Administration, its subservient GOP Congress and its efforts to dismantle national security. Take all the time you need.