A group of private, tax-exempt Democratic policy groups and politicians are working to ensure that the US military does not report to Donald Trump under a hypothetical second term. The US President, designated by the Constitution as the Commander-in-Chief of the country’s armed forces, would no longer have the final say on the military’s duties. Instead, a group of faceless bureaucrats would “foil” his orders at every turn.
This is according to a report by NBC News, which spoke to the “loose-knit network” that includes Mary McCord, the executive director of the Institution for Constitutional Advocacy and Protection at Georgetown Law, a litigation entity that brings cases to federal and state courts. McCord previously worked in various assistant attorney general roles in the Obama administration and federal courts.
“We’re already starting to put together a team to think through the most damaging types of things that he [Trump] might do so that we’re ready to bring lawsuits if we have to,” McCord said.
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Other organizations involved in the effort include Democracy Forward, which brought the Trump administration to court over 100 times, and Protect Democracy, a similar litigation group. Protect Democracy has received funding from the left-of-center Hewlett Foundation, and Democracy Forward has John Podesta as a board member and Marc Elias as the board’s chair. Elias was also the general counsel for Hillary Clinton’s 2016 presidential campaign.
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“We are preparing for litigation and preparing to use every tool in the toolbox that our democracy provides to provide the American people an ability to fight back,” said Democracy Forward President Skye Perryman. “We believe this is an existential moment for American democracy and it’s incumbent on everybody to do their part.”
Politicians like Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) express concerns that Trump could invoke the Insurrection Act to crack down on domestic protestors or shut down election offices during the midterm elections. Blumenthal is working on a bill that would limit such presidential powers.
NBC reports the left is plotting ways to have military not be under civilian control. This dangerous and unconstitutional usurpation of power is being framed by NBC as good because it will undermine Trump if he is freely and fairly elected by Americans. https://t.co/HtmYhy3l5u
— Mollie (@MZHemingway) January 14, 2024
“There are an array of horrors that could result from Donald Trump’s unrestricted use of the Insurrection Act,” he said. “A malignantly motivated president could use it in a vast variety of dictatorial ways unless at some point the military itself resisted what they deemed to be an unlawful order. But that places a very heavy burden on the military.”
The network explains that their resistance efforts will involve legal action against the future Trump administration and written threats to his appointees, warning that grave consequences will follow any attempts to “undermine constitutional norms.” The network wants to expand and form a coalition with other groups that share the same mission, to create a united front in the event Trump that returns to office.
In its report, NBC cited previous statements from Trump to justify the network’s plans. One such statement was a post on Truth Social where Trump called for the suspension of constitutional protections of elections due to what he perceives as the magnitude of “fraud” in the 2020 election.
Shane Devine is a writer covering politics, economics, and culture for Valuetainment. Follow Shane on X (Twitter).
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