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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsTrump Finally Has His Stormtroopers
Trump needs chaos and violence in the streets and since its not happening on its own, hes going to create it.https://thebanter.substack.com/p/trump-finally-has-his-stormtroopers
A few weeks ago, I wrote about how Trump had attempted a military coup and failed on every conceivable level. I also wrote that he had given up on the idea of dominating the streets of American cities because the military refused to be his cudgel against the people of the United States. I really should have known better. Once he and his regime of literal fascists realized the military as it is currently configured was not going to follow unconstitutional orders, they went with Plan B: Organize Americas very own Gestapo. For the last several days, heavily armed federal agents with no discernible identification have been roaming the streets of Portland, Oregon, randomly snatching people, throwing them into unmarked cars, and driving off.
Link to tweet
There is literally nothing about this that is legal. And thats the point.
State Sponsored Terrorism
Even though the media got bored of them, the BLM protests over the murder of George Floyd have not stopped. Theyve morphed into a larger protest against both police brutality and displays of white supremacy in the form of Confederate statues but theyre still going strong. They are not, however, marked with the ongoing violence seen in the first few days of the protests and there has been relatively minor amounts of vandalism. This is essentially why the media got bored and left. No violence, no news. Left wing protests are so very, very boring. Mostly because the protesters dont carry guns and threaten to murder elected officials. But non-violent confrontations do not serve Donald Trumps Orwellian LAW AND ORDER!!! narrative. For that, you need protesters clashing with the police. You need tear gas flooding the streets. You need people running from lines of militarized law enforcement to show how strong and tough and macho the government is. If the protesters are no longer angry enough to throw things at the local police and the local police are no longer angry enough to antagonize the protesters, whats a fascist regime to do? Send in the feds to instigate violence and literally terrorize the community, of course.
Via OPB.org:
Federal law enforcement officers have been using unmarked vehicles to drive around downtown Portland and detain protesters since at least July 14. Personal accounts and multiple videos posted online show the officers driving up to people, detaining individuals with no explanation of why they are being arrested, and driving off. The tactic appears to be another escalation in federal force deployed on Portland city streets, as federal officials and President Donald Trump have said they plan to quell nightly protests outside the federal courthouse and Multnomah County Justice Center that have lasted for more than six weeks.
As was pointed out on Twitter, this is some Pinochet type bullshit.
Link to tweet
Just to be super clear: Trump is having federal law enforcement drive around in unmarked, non-government vehicles, while wearing no identification, grabbing people without telling them why they are being detained, and whisking them away. They are also not coordinating with the local police.
Lets look at the different reasons to do this:
1. Its straight up terrorism. You dont do this unless youre looking to scare the shit out of people. Half the work of a police state is done when the populace is too terrified to resist. See: Gestapo and KGB.
2. Unaccountability. With no visible names or agencies and the officers being shipped in from all over the country, it becomes nearly impossible to identify who is doing what in the name of the federal government.
Dont be surprised when Trumps secret police force becomes a formalized group and adopts a face mask as part of their official uniform.
3. The anonymous nature of the kidnappings (lets call them what they are) leave a massive opening for white nationalist militias to show up in their own military uniforms and unmarked cars and grab people. Dont expect the Trump regime to care too much about this possibility.
4. Deniability. American law enforcement has a history, some of it quite recent, of targeting movement leaders. With a secret police force, they can disappear troublemakers and who do we go to for answers? No one. And, again, thats the point. If you think thats a stretch, consider the announcement that Trumps secret police force will now be collecting data on protesters beforehand. It helps to know who to target while also sending a clear message: We are watching you and you may be one of the people we grab. (Please refer back to the section concerning terrorism)
5. Escalation. People are going to get angry about this. The longer it goes on, the angrier theyre going to get. That, more than anything else, is the bottom line to these kidnappings. Trump needs chaos and violence in the streets and since its not happening on its own, hes going to create it.
Creating Red Meat For The Base Or Laying The Groundwork?...........
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Trump Finally Has His Stormtroopers (Original Post)
Celerity
Jul 2020
OP
mitch96
(13,935 posts)1. Eric Prince old blackwater gang??? nt
lark
(23,182 posts)2. Practicing to steal the election.
That's why they are only being sent to blue cities so repugs don't fight it and become an even bigger part of destroying this country and it's constitution. Plus, they will already be in place to stop the election. This could all be a pretense to prestage the SS to commit violence to provide drumpf with the excuse to declare a national emergency, martial law and stop the elections. It's the thing that makes sense of this, IMO.
uponit7771
(90,370 posts)3. +1, there's no reason to believe Trump will not cheat in a big deciding way.