Chaos and cruelty on Day 140 of Trump, Part 2
Homeland Security agents wrestle US senator to the ground in embarrassing display
Day 140 of the Trump administration:
Homeland Secretary Kristi Noem’s staff members dragged a sitting United States senator from California out of a press conference, pushed him to the ground, handcuffed and detained him.
At the same press conference, Noem announced that the goal of the administration’s deployment of military in California is to “liberate Los Angeles.” She did not say from whom. Noem also said the contingent of Marines would swell from the current 400 to 700 by the end of the week. This would bring the total number of military personnel on Los Angeles’ streets to almost 5,000.
An image, courtesy of the New York Public Library, of Italian immigrants arriving at Ellis Island. In America not too long ago, our history as an “immigrant nation” was a source of pride. Today it is a wedge issue that is at the center of growing public protest against the Trump administration’s deportation policies.
A steady stream of Democratic senators took to the floor of their chamber to condemn the rough handling of Padilla and the increasing violence accompanying ICE raids in California and elsewhere around the country.
But Republican senators had mixed reviews. Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski, who a few months ago said she was afraid of Trump, said the actions of Homeland Security agents and staffers did not represent “the America that I know.” But some of her colleagues put the blame on Padilla. Wisconsin Republican Sen. John Barrasso said Padilla was “trying to make a spectacle of himself.” The press conference was being held in the Los Angeles federal building, where Noem had traveled. Padilla said he was conducting oversight on behalf of his constituents.
Meanwhile, Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents grabbed people who appeared for their immigration hearings in a San Francisco court, forced them into cars, and drove away with them. It is a scene that is repeated across the nation as ICE targets immigrants in the midst of the legal processes required of them once they arrive in the U.S.
The occupation of a section of Los Angeles by National Guard and Marines continued for a third day. The military remained guarding an ICE detention center downtown, despite the protests moving to a different area, so they basically stood guard over empty streets.
And while one of his Senate colleagues was being manhandled by Homeland Security and immigrants following the rules set forth in their legal journey were grabbed and taken God knows where, Rand Paul, the US senator from Kentucky, was crying over his dis-invitation to the White House Congressional Picnic, calling Trump “petty” for the alleged slight. Apparently shaming the president worked, because he was back on the invite list in time for dinner.
This is the snapshot of life under the Trump regime as evening falls on Thursday, June 12.
Tomorrow, Americans disenchanted by or downright furious with Trump’s increasingly authoritarian words and actions will take to the streets in big cities and small towns all across the U.S. More than 1,800 protests, expected to be the largest demonstrations of the Trump presidency, will coincide with a military parade in Washington, D.C., billed as a birthday salute to the president and the celebration of the Army’s 250th anniversary.
The No Kings rallies were planned to protest a litany of actions big and small that organizers say amount to a U.S. president declaring himself above the Constitution with the goal of usurping the powers of all three branches of government and consolidating them unto himself.
From the day he took office, Trump’s mission has been to eliminate as many federal agencies as possible, privatizing the services once provided by the government into money-making enterprises for friends and supporters.
He has issued dozens of executive orders that called for the elimination of job protections for federal workers and the abolition of references to diversity of race and sexual orientation in the federal workforce, the military, and in government documents.
He has threatened legal action against private lawfirms that have defended those he considers enemies, has threatened to withhold funding from universities that don’t bend to his will, and has threatened media companies with rejections of needed broadcasting licenses if they don’t change their hiring practices and the content of their news and entertainment products.
He has turned his Justice Department into a personal revenge and vengeance machine, setting Attorney General Pam Bondi and state attorneys general loose on judges, sitting members of Congress, mayors, and has even threatened to arrest California Gov. Gavin Newsom. Asked by a journalist what crime Newsom committed that he deserved to be arrested, Trump said, “He ran for governor.”
He has usurped powers normally held by Congress, though to be fair the Republican majority in the House did acquiesce without a fight, such as the setting of tariffs.
And he has run a campaign against sitting judges, some his own appointees, who have been holding the line against his unconstitutional policies regarding deportation or attempted deportation of foreign graduate students, or alleged criminal migrants allowed no due process before their removal to foreign prison camps. Despite numerous orders to return or release these detainees, so far only one has been brought back to the U.S., but has been jailed on specious criminal charges. So specious, in fact, that the prosecutor assigned to the case resigned rather than bringing it to trial.
This is not an exhaustive list, but it is ample evidence that Donald Trump meant it when he said he wanted to be a dictator on Day 1. Many took it as a joke, but it was nothing to laugh at then and it’s nothing to laugh at now.
He has threatened “heavy force,” his words not ours, against those who protest against him on Saturday, proving the very point of the No Kings movement. Peaceful protest, the right to assemble and air grievances regarding our government, is among the most cherished rights afforded to every single person in this country, regardless of citizenship status, age, gender, religion, national origin, political persuasion, sexual orientation, skin color, physical or psychological disability, even criminal history.
Our founding documents protect everyone in the United States of America from government overreach. Our laws are meant to protect us from government harm for our words and our beliefs. But the Trump administration is clear and unambiguous about its intent to punish speech, punish assembly, punish opposition.
These are the hallmarks of a tyrannical ruler. The events of the last 24 hours are an alarming escalation in Trump’s attempts to fulfill his ambition to be king. But America has no kings. And on Saturday, it looks like America will be making that point loud and clear.
There is a video on social media of a man purporting to be a Marine who is no longer in active service. (Actually, there are several.) There is no reason to think he is anything other than what he says he is. He reminds today’s active-duty military that their oath is to the Constitution and their loyalty is to the people of America, not its president. Their mission is to protect Americans, not to target them for violence on their home soil. His closing words to his comrades are these: “Go out there and ruin the mad king’s birthday.”
Donald Trump thinks he owns the military. He does not. He and the department’s secretary think ICE works for him. They don’t. The military is ours, not his. ICE works for us, not him.
Americans on Saturday will let the president know this one thing: He also works for us. He is no king. He is a servant of the people. And that message will, without a doubt, ruin his birthday.
We’re more than OK with that.
No Kings Countdown
30 days: Colonists’ breakup letter to King George defines our rights
29 days: Tyranny masquerades as immigration reform
28 days: “No kings, just men.” Labor Party member’s TikTok video
27 days: The Boss says ‘You’re not the boss of me’
26 days: America is not a theocracy
23 days: Labor unions despise tyranny
22 days: Does Donald Trump even know it’s Memorial Day?
21 days: Labor Party members and thoughts about No Kings, Part 1 and Part 2
11 days: Trump fashions himself a king; we all know better
7 days: As tanks roll into DC, ICE wages war on our cities
6 days: Labor stands with a real president to his people, David Huerta
3 days: Authoritarian math: Count the lawsuits from Labor against Trump
2 days (today): Day 140 in the Trump administration, chaos on full display
(Until June 14, the day of Donald Trump’s planned authoritarian military parade and (not coincidentally) nationwide protests against tyranny, The Labor Party plans to talk about how un-American it is to aspire to be a king. The Labor Party is built by and for working people. We fight for policies that put people over profits. Ours is a grassroots movement fighting for real change. Today’s post was written by an independent journalist who is also a member of The Labor Party. For inquiries, contact Labor Party Media Secretary Neel Sawicky at media@votelabor.org.)