REPRISE: June 6, 2020--Trump's coup d'état: A Framework of Inquiry
Today we reprise (republish) a column from June 6, 2020 originally published in The Trenchant Observer blog, before it was hacked. It is also reproduced in The Rape of American Democracy: Republican Actions and Democratic Failures, 2016-2021 (2024), Chapter 55 at pp. 198-201. The chapter may be directly accessed on the Kindle edition which is available on Amazon.
Keen observers will note that a coup d’état is currently underway in the United States. This is what is known in Latin America and other parts as a “self-coup” or an “auto-coup”, that is, an unconstitutional seizure of power by the leaders of an elected government.
We face a situation that is similar in many ways to the state of affairs that would have existed if Donald Trump’s attempted coup on January 6, 2021 had been successful.
A major difference is the fact that Trump and his co-conspirators are much better prepared this time. They have a hgihly developed plan for taking over the government in violation of the Constitution and the laws, and are executing it with stuunnig speed.
Trump's coup d'état: A Framework of Inquiry
Elements of a Successful Coup d'état
To succeed, you have to control or "dominate":
1. Guns
a.Interference in Military Chain of Command
See Jon Bateman, "The Guardrails Are Off the U.S. Military; It’s no longer guaranteed that the Pentagon will resist unlawful orders from the president;And the rot is deeper than you think," Politico, June 6, 2020 (07:00 AM EDT).
Jon Bateman is a fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. He previously was special assistant to then-Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Joseph Dunford.
b. Police
1) Trump sends his "little green men" to police Layette Square and Washington, D.C.
c. Armed militia
1) Michigan State House
2) armed men along March
3) armed men at demonstrations
2. Information
a . Attacks on Press, Lies, and Propaganda
b. Assumptions
1) The Leader can control news and flow of information.
2) Independent news media can be discredited or silenced.
3) State propaganda (or Trump propaganda) will dominate the media and other news sources.
aa .Fox News
bb. One America News
c. Social media.
1) Why Twitter is such a big deal
2 ) Russian help
3. Direct Control of Executive Branch
a. Assumption: Justice Department and Intelligence agencies can be subordinated to the Leader's will, both defensively and offensively.
1) E.g., Russian interference will not be reported.
b. Attack on the Post Office
1) Can be used to block voting by mail during coronavirus pandemic
4. Neutralization or Control of Congress
a. Unconstitutional Defiance of Congressional Oversight Authority
b. Political neutralization of Impeachment Power
c. Judicial review blocked or neutralized
5. Control or Neutralization of the Judiciary
a. Assumption: The Supreme Court and Federal Judiciary will not block Trump's federal government actions.
b. Assumption: Supreme Court will uphold President and Executive if Challenged by State or Local officials, or private parties.
6. Subservience or Neutralization of State and Local Leaders
a. Assumption: State and local leaders can be coerced (bludgeoned) into subservience or acquiescence.
1). Use of budget
2) Use of Federal law, Executive decrees, and Supreme Court
7. Big Business and Financial Sector Will Acquiesce, and Help
a. Assumption: Big business and Wall Street will go along.
1) Benefits to companies
aa) Tax breaks, subsidies, bail-outs, regulatory changes
2) Benefits to key business decision-makers, (e.g., key officers)
aa) Salaries, bonuses, separation packages
See also,
Elie Mystal,"The Question Isn’t Whether Trump Will Go Full Authoritarian—It’s How We’ll Respond; We know that no one is coming to save us from Trump; So how will we save ourselves?" The Nation, June 2, 2020.
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James Rowles is a former Lecturer on Law at Harvard Law School and professor of international law at other universities.
He studied the history of Nazi Germany at Stanford, and has studied and worked on human rights, judicial reform, and access to justice projects in many countries in Latin America, Africa, the Middle East, and in Afghanistan and Russia. At Harvard Law School, he taught a course on “Law, Human Rights, and the Struggle for Democracy in Latin America”.
At the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) of the OAS, he worked on human rights cases involving forced disappearances, executions, and torture in a number of authoritarian countries in Latin America and the Caribbean.
Recent Books by the Author
James P. Rowles, The Rape of American Democracy: Republican Actions and Democratic Failures, 2016-2021 (2024). Available on Amazon, and from IngramSpark by clicking on a link here.
James P. Rowles, Don’t Be Stupid. Pay Attention, Damn It! Advice for Undecided Voters and Voters Leaning Toward Trump (2024). Available on Amazon,and from IngramSpark by clicking on a link here.
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