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| Ye olde Paper Tiger |
The events taking place in the US government over the past couple of months indicate that it is a paper tiger when it comes to protecting itself from domestic enemies (Trump Nixed Enforcement Actions Against Nearly 100 Favored Corporate Lawbreakers).
The old song by BB King ("Thrill is Gone") comes to mind:
"In 1970, Walt Kelly’s beloved cartoon character Pogo famously uttered the phrase, “We have met the enemy and he is us.” At that time, the little possum’s observation could be categorized as humor or satire. Today it has been elevated into the realm of prophecy."
(Topping Americans’ new enemies list: The other political party). When one person in one political party can dismantle a government containing the most powerful military on Earth that government is a paper tiger.
Because there are no serious expectations of any internal threat anymore, the paper tiger is plain to see.
Nevertheless, the oath of office indicates that domestic enemies are real, and even requires that all government personnel must be totally aware of that reality:
"I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter. So help me God."
(Oath of Office, emphasis added). Many government officials who took that oath are not doing what eventually led to the Civil War in the USA.
That became a time when many domestic enemies waged literal war against other Americans.
So, it remains for the courts to do the job congress and other government officials should be doing (Tracking Lawsuits Against Trump And Musk; A Guide To The Many, Many Lawsuits Against Donald Trump And Elon Musk; Doggett).
The trillions of dollars spent on the military does nothing to change a domestic paper tiger which presents no barrier to an internal demise of US governmental strictures:
"The more challenging question is; how does the military defend the literal Constitution from domestic enemies? In his farewell address, President Washington raised the possibility of constitutional enemies rising from within the federal government: '… ambitious and unprincipled men will be enabled to subvert the Power of the People, & to usurp for themselves the reins of Government; destroying afterwards the very engines which have lifted them to unjust dominion.'
He also presented a dilemma by stating earlier in the same address: 'The very idea of the power and the right of the People to establish Government presupposes the duty of every Individual to obey the established Government.' Members of the military are subordinate to the federal government and are required to obey the laws and orders established by these agencies. There could be a circumstance where an order or law is unconstitutional, in which circumstance the military member could, and perhaps should, refuse to obey the order/law. However, such disobedience puts them at substantial risk if their assessment of the order/law is wrong."
(Military vs Domestic Enemies?, emphasis added). The dangers of the military not being sufficiently aware of how to protect against domestic enemies led to the Posse Comitatus Act:
"Whoever, except in cases and under circumstances expressly authorized by the Constitution or Act of Congress, willfully uses any part of the Army, the Navy, the Marine Corps, the Air Force, or the Space Force as a posse comitatus or otherwise to execute the laws shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than two years, or both."
(Wikipedia; cf. Will The Military Become The Police? - 13). A coup or insurrection using the military is a crime that should not be improperly pardoned.
Closing Comments
Some citizens are concerned that the current government is in fact a paper tiger in terms of being able to protect against a domestic enemy tiger.
The Trump administration is asking the Supreme Court to allow restrictions on birthright citizenship to partly take effect while legal fights play out.
ReplyDeleteIn emergency applications filed at the high court on Thursday, the administration asked the justices to narrow court orders entered by district judges in Maryland, Massachusetts and Washington that blocked the order President Donald Trump signed shortly after beginning his second term.
The order currently is blocked nationwide. Three federal appeals courts have rejected the administration’s pleas, including one in Massachusetts on Tuesday.
The order would deny citizenship to those born after Feb. 19 whose parents are in the country illegally. It also forbids U.S. agencies from issuing any document or accepting any state document recognizing citizenship for such children. (Link)