“I think the American people voted for dramatic change,” Sen. Dan Sullivan said after the election last November, “and President Trump was really transparent, probably the most transparent candidate ever on the campaign trail talking about what he wanted to do.”
Yes, he was. And given Trump’s frequent reference to retribution, it shouldn’t surprise Sullivan or anyone else that he’s more prepared to do that than stand up to foreign adversaries like Vladimir Putin.
During a Fox News interview less than a month before the election, Trump was asked about his allegations that other countries were sending thousands of murderers and rapists to America. The “the bigger problem is the enemy from within,” he replied, describing them as “some sick people” and “radical left lunatics” who could “be very easily handled by, if necessary, by National Guard, or if really necessary, by the military.”
A few days later, he said they were “more dangerous” than China and Russia.
That wasn’t idle campaign talk.
When Sullivan defended Trump’s nominee for secretary of defense last fall, I argued that Pete Hegseth shared Trump’s disdain for anyone opposed to their vision for the country. In one of his books, he wrote “Modern leftists who represent the soul of the modern Democrat Party … literally hate the foundational ideas of America” and “seek to destroy it.”
On Monday, Trump directed Hegseth to ensure National Guard members “are resourced, trained, organized, and available to assist Federal, State, and local law enforcement in quelling civil disturbances and ensuring the public safety and order whenever the circumstances necessitate, as appropriate under law.”
It’s already happened in Los Angeles and Washington, D.C. And the administration is reportedly planning for Chicago to be next.
On Monday night, White House Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy Stephen Miller justified those deployments during a Fox News interview with Sean Hannity. He called the Democratic Party “an entity devoted exclusively to the defense of hardened criminals, gangbangers, and illegal alien killers and terrorists.”
Hannity, who claims to be a journalist until the profession’s ethics become inconvenient, didn’t push back on any of Miller’s garbage filled rant.
Then there’s Kash Patel, who Sullivan voted to confirm as the director of the FBI. In his book “Government Gangsters,” Patel published an enemy list that includes prominent Republicans who had aimed harsh but objective criticism at Trump.
Like former National Security Advisor John Bolton. Last Friday the FBI raided his home. The New York Post reported it involved allegations that he sent “classified documents to his family from a private email server while working in the White House.”
During an interview Sunday morning, former New Jersey governor Chris Christie pointed out that Trump himself had been indicted for illegally possessing classified documents two years after he left the White House.
Later that day, Trump suggested Christie should be investigated for “criminal acts” related to lane closures on the George Washington Bridge 12 years ago.
Trump kicked off this retribution agenda in April with an executive order to investigate Chris Krebs and Miles Taylor, two officials from his first administration. Others being investigated include Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., New York Attorney General Letitia James, former FBI Director James Comey, and former Special Counsel Jack Smith.
On Wednesday, Trump called for Democratic donor George Soros and his son to face racketeering charges, claiming without evidence that they support “Violent Protests, and much more, all throughout the United States of America.”
This is what Sen. Lisa Murkowski was talking about in April when she said she’s “oftentimes very anxious myself about using my voice. Because retaliation is real.”
Sullivan, however, seems completely at ease using silence to practice his double standards.
In 2022, he argued the FBI search of Mara Lago created “the appearance of the justice system being weaponized against political opponents.” When Trump was charged with obstructing justice for falsely certifying that all classified documents had been returned, Sullivan still contended it was causing “lasting damage to our polarized nation.”
It’s even worse now.
There’s no guarantee American democracy will survive Trump’s presidency. But if it does, every Republican and conservative commentator who knew better but didn’t speak out will be judged by history as collaborators in his war against it.
• Rich Moniak is a Juneau resident and retired civil engineer with more than 25 years of experience working in the public sector. Columns, My Turns and Letters to the Editor represent the view of the author, not the view of the Juneau Empire. Have something to say? Here’s how to submit a My Turn or letter.
