Trump's Brownshirts

Source: here

Following his dress rehearsal deployment of 700 Marines and 4,000 National Guard troops to Los Angeles in June, US President Donald Trump has now taken over the police and deployed the National Guard to Washington DC, the seat of the Federal Government of the United States of America.

Trump says this unprecedented step was required to stop “violent gangs and bloodthirsty criminals, roving mobs of wild youth, drugged out maniacs and homeless people” from taking over the city. Yet, statistics show that the level of crime in Washington DC is at a 30-year low:

Soruce: here

So why is Trump lying about crime in Washington DC? His unfounded claims of out-of-control crime are a fig leaf, a Tonkin Bay-type exercise - alleging that a trespass has taken place, when in fact no such trespass has even taken place - which Trump will use to justify taking control of DC. In other words, this is Trump's second stab at January 6th, only this time he is leading it from inside – and with the full backing of – the sitting US government.

Granted, Trump's hand may to some extent have been spurred into action by two recent events. The clamour for release of the so-called Epstein files grows louder by the day. The Epstein files will reveal that Trump is a full-on pedophile, possibly even that he has trafficked in minors for purposes of sexual exploitation. Also, the economy has recently begun to tank judging by the disastrous July payroll print.

Trump wants to draw attention away from these developments. He knows his time is running out unless he can change the narrative: he is trying to escape his demise by staging a blatant power grab. After all, what is a crises if not an opportunity?

Trump is not done. Far from it. Today, the Washington Post, citing papers from the Pentagon, reported that:

“the Trump administration is evaluating plans that would establish a “Domestic Civil Disturbance Quick Reaction Force” composed of hundreds of National Guard troops tasked with rapidly deploying into American cities facing protests or other unrest”.

This ought to raise a few eyebrows. Alongside Trump’s henchmen in ICE, this new force has been modelled on Hitler’s Sturmabteilung, or Brownshirts. The troops will be handpicked by Trump to be his personal army, loyal only to him, to be deployed whenever someone threatens his grip on power. For example, Trump could deploy his Brownshirts to quell mass popular protests, say, if he loses the next election and refuses to leave office. Which must surely, at this stage, be everyone's base-case assumption.

The latest developments in Washington DC are tangible steps towards full dictatorial powers for Trump. The script follows the one used by Adolf Hitler to a tee, which is probably no coincidence, since many of Trump’s closest advisors, such as Stephen Miller, are dyed-in-the-wool Nazis.

Source: here

Despite the seriousness of the situation, America is fast asleep. The Democrats are nowhere to be seen. There are almost no popular protests, none of any significance anyway. Nor does the prospect of effective opposition to Trump look great at this time for three reasons:

First, complacency. The United States, unlike the Europe, has never experienced a fully-fledged homegrown fascist dictatorship on its own soil, so many Americans will have no clue what is happening.

Second, the United States is institutionally vulnerable to a top-down led dictatorship on account of the enormous powers vested in the presidency. This risk is particularly elevated right now, because Trump enjoys cult-like status in the Republican Party and controls the Supreme Court.

Third, the United States is an intensely selfish nation, whose culture encourages individuality over cooperation. Many Americans will find it challenging, if not impossible, to rise above their own narrow self-interest to see the bigger picture. Americans are simply not capable to organising into a movement large and comprehensive enough to counter a determined and ruthless fascist like Trump.

The End