[LegalInsurrection] This week, the New York Times published a guest essay in their opinion section by Steven Simon and Jonathan Stevenson, two former members of the Obama administration. It must be seen to be believed.
In their effort to bash Trump’s decision to send federal forces into Washington, DC to help fight crime, the writers let the mask slip in astonishing fashion.
From the New York Times:
We Used to Think the Military Would Stand Up to Trump. We Were Wrong.
By ordering 800 National Guard troops to Washington, on the pretext of an illusory crime wave, President Trump has further dragged the U.S. military into domestic law enforcement, in a move credibly perceived as an ominous “test case.” This continues what the administration started in California in June as part of the its deportation efforts.
Unfortunately, though we (and others) had hoped that the military would only respond to calls to action in American cities and states kicking and screaming, we no longer expect resistance from that institution. Once, perhaps, traditionalist officers might have leaned on protocol and refused to heed a lawless order, taking inspiration from the generals — Mark Milley and James Mattis — who resisted the uprooting of established military standards in the first Trump term.
But today, general officers no longer seem to see themselves as guardians of the constitutional order.
It now seems clear to us that the military will not rescue Americans from Mr. Trump’s misuse of the nation’s military capabilities. Recent changes to the terms of the military’s employment by the Pentagon and its members’ incentives to career advancement will ultimately overcome any constitutional and moral qualms about their conduct.
Simply amazing.
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