military – R&R – Reachout and Rebuild

The Trump/Bannon plan

David Posnett — Sun, 26 Feb 2017 20:54:50 +0000

Two seminal pieces were just published in the NYT. (1) A factual description of today’s growing and aggressive ICE. (2) An annotated and explained version of Bannon’s CPAC presentation.

These stories should be an eye opener for everyone.

Trump’s transition is far from chaotic. In fact, Executive Orders have been issued that address each and every one of Bannon’s priorities:

1) National security and sovereignty: the wall, the travel ban, revised immigration rules, pipeline, deregulation to strengthen big business; disruption of all trade agreements; legalizing the Church’s involvement in politics; nomination of a young, brilliant candidate for SCOTUS, who believes strongly in the Church’s role at the centre of national identity and law.

2) Deconstruction of the state: appointment of heads of each department that have long argued that their new departments should be defanged and in some cases eliminated; leaving some 2000+ positions vacant to allow heads of departments (Secretaries) room to eliminate positions and shrink the Federal Government.

3) Reinforcement of the power of the White House: a co-opted Congress; relentless campaign to delegitimize and sideline the free press as the sole remaining opposition of note; dissemination of propaganda “alternative facts” to justify their most outlandish policy measures and decisions; appointment of generals to key positions (National Security Adviser, Head of Homeland Security, Head of ICE, Defense Secretary) thus increasing ties between the military and the White House; strengthening of the role and expansion of ICE, border patrols, internal memos alluding to the option of deploying the reserves to patrol the streets and enforce new laws against migrants and foreigners; laying the foundations for a massive expansion of largely outdated and unnecessary military hardware that nevertheless are symbols of strength against the marauding hordes that are waiting to swoop on this weak and hitherto fore, defenseless country.

We do indeed have the seeds of a fascist state already in place.

This makes a lot of the wooly discussion of the Democrats vaguely tangential. We need to keep the eye on the ball if one is to nip this in the bud. We now need to be highly focused and disciplined. We need to prioritize.

It certainly does not bode well for an independent Congress. And whether SCOTUS will remain an independent branch of government remains to be seen. However, if one puts the above argument to the Republicans, some will see the light.

One way that Congress can reclaim their independence, and their constitutional role, is to investigate the Russian connection to the Trump campaign. Where there is smoke, look for the fire. One needs to collect evidence regarding violations of the emoluments clause. One needs to examine those tax returns. These are tools for Congress to fight back and save their very existence. Hitler dissolved the Reichstag (equivalent to the Congress) only 3 months after coming into power claiming emergency powers.

Our congressman in New York’s CD-1 is Lee Zeldin, and he is a jew. He is young, but I am sure he has some grasp of history. Keep reminding him that he can stand up to fascism and if he does, he will go down in the history books as having saved America. These times demand brave men and women.

Fascist regime or not?

David Posnett — Thu, 09 Feb 2017 06:28:49 +0000

Interesting comparison of present day America with Germany in the 1930s. Format is an interview with Isabel Virginia Hull, professor of history at Cornell University and one of the foremost scholars on modern Germany. Full article here:

http://gothamist.com/2017/02/06/trump_bannon_german_history.php

Some quotes:

Steve Bannon, is the closest thing to a genuine fascist that I’ve seen ever in American government—and the removal in the National Security Council of the military leaders. That’s extraordinary and unprecedented.

Bannon is not a security expert. He’s not an expert in government at all. That’s one thing. The second thing is the fact that the Trump Administration didn’t engage in a transition. They were uninterested in both the documents prepared by the Obama administration and in meeting with the heads of the various divisions of government. The third thing is the purge of the senior-most officials in the State Department. The fourth thing is the order banning Muslims—and that’s what it is—the manner in which that happened, the process, which is to say a small group of advisers with no government experience keeping it secret and then launching it. That’s also unprecedented.

… these people want to remove the normal functioning of government and to replace the adepts at government—the people with experience and knowledge—with toadies who will do whatever they tell them to do.

…I have a very high bar to call somebody that and my bar is a pretty well-formed ideology, a really fanatical attachment to it, and a rigidity in not modifying it. I don’t think Trump fits that bill. I think Steve Bannon might fit that bill. And the question then is: Who’s running the government? Is it Steve Bannon or is it Donald Trump? And Donald Trump’s inability to keep his mind on anything for more than 15 seconds would suggest that he’s a character much more like Kaiser Wilhelm II than Adolf Hitler. These are the thoughts that a German historian has….

No Support for Struggling Veterans

David Posnett — Thu, 26 Jan 2017 16:57:22 +0000

http://occupydemocrats.com/2017/01/24/trump-just-took-away-lifeline-struggling-veterans/

Trump has sworn allegiance and devotion to veterans but has never actually shown it. Now he has eliminated the Joining Forces page. Joining Forces was a program developed by Michelle Obama and Jill Biden that sought to help veterans find careers, help their spouses more easily move their careers between states, and expand wellness services.

Our congressman Zeldin also claims devotion to veterans. Where is his outrage at Trumps actions?