Concerns are growing among far-left national security “experts” and Pentagon insiders about the possibility that former President Donald Trump will leverage the US military to impose his political will if he returns to the Oval Office.
In a detailed report, NBC News inadvertently acknowledged the existence of the “deep state,” which was allegedly working to facilitate a military coup against former President Trump if he were freely and fairly elected by Americans.
The NBC article paints a picture of a left-wing conspiracy to disrupt military loyalty to civilian control.
“Civilian control of the military is part of the bedrock of American democracy. The democratic project is not threatened by a strong standing military as long as civilian and military leaders—and the bases they command—embrace and implement effective civilian control,” according to War on the Rocks.
“Civilian control within the executive branch over operational orders is exercised through the chain of command, extending from the President to the Minister of Civil Defense to combatant commanders.”
Now, there is a concerted effort by a coalition of public interest groups and lawmakers to anticipate and thwart any attempts to “abuse” presidential powers.
This includes closely monitoring Trump's policy statements and interviews with his allies to gauge the direction a potential second Trump administration might take.
Key players in this preventative effort include Democracy Forward and Protect Democracy, two far-left organizations with a history of challenging the Trump administration in court.
They are preparing for legal battles and seeking to build coalitions to confront any abuse of power from day one.
NBC News reports:
Donald Trump is stoking fears among those who understand the inner workings of the Pentagon that he will turn the nonpartisan U.S. military into the muscle arm of his political agenda when he makes comments about dictatorship and devalues the checks and balances that underpin the country's two-century-old system. -Old democracy.
A circle of appointees independent of Trump's political process steered him away from ideas that would have further limited presidential power in his final term, according to books they wrote and testimony to Congress. Most of them eventually went away. In his new term, many former officials worry that Trump will instead surround himself with loyalists unwilling to say no.
Trump has raised new questions about his intentions if he regains power by advancing a legal theory that the president would be free to do almost anything with impunity — including assassinating political rivals — as long as Congress cannot muster the votes to impeach and remove him. He was expelled from his position.
Now, in preparation for Trump's potential return, a loose network of public interest groups and lawmakers is quietly developing plans to try to thwart any efforts to expand presidential power, which could include pressuring the military to meet his political needs.
Those involved in the effort told NBC News they are studying Trump's past actions and policy positions for 2024 so they can be prepared if he wins in November. This includes preparing to take legal action and sending letters to Trump appointees explaining the consequences they could face if they undermine constitutional rules.
Critics argue that preemptive measures to limit such use amount to unconstitutional acts and could pave the way for a “military coup” to undermine the will of the American people.
The crux of the argument by critics of the NBC report is that there is a coordinated effort by the deep state to undermine Trump's authority, which would be legally and democratically granted to him should he win future elections.
Americans fear that the actions described in the NBC report are not guarantees of democracy, but rather steps to dismantle it.
