Trump's authoritarianism and American democracy
Use of force is not going to solve anything
America is
experiencing large-scale civil unrest following the death of George Floyd. 40
US cities are under night curfew. The protests have spread to more than 75
cities across USA. Protests, curfews and unrest have taken over the United
States of America.Thousands of demonstrators were arrested over the weekend after clashing with police and defying curfews in numerous major U.S. cities, including Los Angeles, New York City, Miami, Chicago, Seattle and Salt Lake City. The killing of an unarmed black man George Floyd by a
policeman in Minneapolis has sent shockwaves through the country.
The American people are showing their anger against police brutality and repression. But this is not the only issue. There is also anger against president Trump's handling of COVID-19 pandemic. 40 million Americans already lost jobs. The unemployment and poverty is on the rise in USA.
The footages showing that police in different cities are using brutal force and tactics against protests mostly peaceful.Police is brutally beating up arrested protestors who are not resisting arrest.
But still president Trump is not happy with many Democratic Mayors and Governors for not brutalising the protestors.
Trump wants to dominate the protestors. He wants to show the military muscle to his own people. He wants to stop people protesting on American streets. He wants to criminalise the protests. Instead healing the wounds of angry people, he is rubbing salt on their wounds. He is further dividing the society on racial lines to make political gains.
President Trump behaving like an authoritarian leader instead of a president of a free democracy. Democratic leaders listen to their people and try to address their grievances. They don't threaten their own citizens. He is promoting his image as "president of law of order" to win the support of right wing voters.
The media and administration is concentrating hard on the issue of violence and lootings. Yes it happened in some cities. The frustrated youth and anarchists used violent means. But these violent elements are not in the majority. Hundreds of thousands of people across America are involved in peaceful protests.
The liberal democracy is in danger not because of massive protesats on the streets or some violent actions of protestors but because of president Trump and his increased authoritarianism.
US President Trump announced to deploy the military to stop the unrest in
Washington DC, and said he would intervene anywhere local authorities fail to
restore order after days of riots.
“If a city
or state refuses to take the actions necessary to defend the life and property
of the residents, I will deploy the United States military and quickly solve
the problem for them,” he said.
Although
Trump did deploy troops in and around Washington, where the federal government
has direct authority, his ability to use troops more widely over the objections
of state officials would raise a host of legal and practical questions that he
ignored in his short, aggressive, remarks.
Pentagon
officials noted that Trump had not actually invoked the 19th century
Insurrection Act, which allows a president in some circumstances to deploy
military personnel for domestic law enforcement.
The last
time that was done was in Los Angeles during the 1992 civil unrest that
followed the acquittal of police officers on charges of beating motorist Rodney
King. In that case, the federal government acted at the request of then-Gov.
Pete Wilson.
Without a
state’s approval, the president’s ability to use troops domestically is sharply
limited by law, although the prohibitions do have exceptions Trump might try to
exploit.
Trump’s new
posture came after 48 hours in which he had been mostly silent in public,
except for his angry Twitter finger.
In private,
however, during a call with governors Monday, a few hours before his
announcement, the president repeatedly pushed for a harsher crackdown.
“Most of you
are weak,” Trump said, berating the governors and urging them to “dominate” the
protesters, according to a person on the call. He urged state officials to
track down lawbreakers and send them to prison for five to 10 years.
A second
person with knowledge of the call described the president as “bellicose,”
raising the possibility of military action and describing the situation as a
war. The message was echoed by Esper, who described the need to “dominate the
battle space,” language normally used to describe far-flung conflict zones
instead of American streets.
Trump then
stood in front of the church holding a Bible as photographers snapped pictures
and the president summoned top officials — including Atty. Gen. William Barr,
Defense Secretary Mark Esper and Chief of Staff Mark Meadows — to pose with
him.
The posed
photo and the official violence that preceded them drew outrage from the
church’s bishop and from Democratic officials.
“They used the American military to push back
a peaceful protest ... just so he could have a photo op,” New York Gov. Andrew
Cuomo said on CNN. “When was the last time you saw the American military called
out against American citizens?”
The Right
Rev. Mariann Budde, bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Washington, called the
walk to the church “an outrage.”
“An
incendiary moment,” said Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker. Another Democrat.Oregon Sen.
Ron Wyden went a step further, posting a message on Twitter in which he called
Trump’s remarks a “fascist speech” that “verged on a declaration of war against
American citizens.” Senator Ron Wyden has brilliantly summed up the actions of president Trump.
The Editor
Post a Comment