Matt Rothschild is the executive director of the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign. 20.īut the risk of a future tyrant will remain. In all likelihood (but not 100 percent guaranteed), Trump will be gone on Jan. Chief among these are repealing the Insurrection Act, which lets the President put federal troops in our streets repealing the National Emergencies Act, which gives the President enormous powers when he or she unilaterally declares an emergency and overturning National Security and Homeland Security Presidential Directive 51, which gives the President even more powers after he or she unilaterally declares a “catastrophic emergency.” General Michael Flynn, President Trump's first national security advisor and a recently pardoned felon, publicly broached the subject of martial law on the conservative channel Newsmax. One would be to require approval of Congress before the President could issue such a declaration. 20, Congress will need to pass laws, on the double, that would prevent a future President from even considering martial law. Trump has exposed the weaknesses of our much-ballyhooed system of checks and balances.Īssuming that Trump does leave office by Jan. His chief of staff reportedly argued strenuously against it, and military leaders have shown no inclination to go along – quite the contrary.īut the very idea that he is considering doing this should put all of us on our guard.Īnd even if he fails, he is setting the table for the next narcissist or Fascist who would ride into the Oval Office.

Trump probably won’t be able to pull it off. When democracy is under all-out threat, minimizing the risk is a dangerous course of action. Republican officials again have remained cravenly quiet.Īnd with the exception of CNN, most of the media have given it only faint coverage. Outrageous as it is, Trump’s consideration of martial law hasn’t received the attention and denunciation it deserves and demands. It was originally passed in 1807 by Congress. But rather, in the time-honored way that authoritarian-fascists do. No, not suddenly, all at once, in a kind of sweeping and obvious way. To even consider imposing martial law should be anathema to anyone who respects democracy and is sworn to uphold the Constitution.Īnd to consider it for the sole and selfish purpose of holding on to power marks a new low, one that even Richard Nixon didn’t stoop to.Īnd let’s remember, Trump did this after his defeat was upheld in every state court and every federal court, including the U.S. President Trump has considered bringing in the military multiple times during 2020, according to reports What is the Insurrection Act The Insurrection Act gives the President the power to deploy the military and federal forces across the US. That is what sending a secret police of shock troops across America is. This will leave the ultimate stain on Trump’s reputation, along with the blood of the hundreds of thousands of Americans who died of COVID due to his negligence and narcissism. Michael Flynn was in the Oval Office urging Trump to engage in this grotesquely unconstitutional and anti-constitutional maneuver.

Donald trump martial law