Donald Trump, the man who deliberately sparked an insurrection four years ago, gave an oath last week to defend and uphold the American Constitution. Within days he was issuing Executive Orders that tried to undermine that same constitution. I don’t know why anyone is surprised by this, but some people are. He tried to dismiss the Birthright Act, the 14th amendment passed in 1866, with the stroke of a pen. Then he summarily fired 17 Inspectors General appointed by The Senate. These men and women carry out independent audits and investigations of DHS (Dept of Homeland Security) programmes and work. They are there to prevent waste and fraud which you would think Trump would approve of
Their council head then pointed out he can't do that without providing "substantive rationale, including case-specific reasons" and giving the Senate 30 days notice:
NEW: Inspectors general say Trump's removals may be illegal since they fail to comply with 2022 law requiring 30 days notice to Congress WH will likely argue this is unconstitutional, but it will be a fight w/ @meganmesserly.bsky.social @joshgerstein.bsky.social www.politico.com/news/2025/01...— Kyle Cheney (@kyledcheney.bsky.social) 25 January 2025 at 14:09
I suspect he wants to keep what the DHS under him is doing secret, The IGs also look out for abuse and I wouldn't be surprised to learn this is what he is trying to hide. The chief of the DHS is Kristi Noem, governor of South Dakota and recently confirmed by Senators. We'll soon find out what she has in mind.
One of the violent groups that stormed the Capitol four years ago are the Oath Keepers, a far-right anti-government militia that supports Donald Trump who is clearly not an oath keeper by any stretch of the imagination.
The Church
Trump has lashed out at the bishop who presided over a prayer service at the National Cathedral in Washington during the inauguration. Bishop Mariann Budde simply asked him to "have mercy" on those in the country who are scared, including LGBTQ, kids and undocumented immigrants. Any normal president would have said he would or kept silent. Not Trump.
This is what he later tweeted:
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Not only has he subverted the rule of law, the Constitution, the legislature, and the press, it seems he has succeeded in doing the same to the Church. He is now attempting to weaponise the Department of Justice and the FBI against his perceived enemies.
Who is going to stop this madman?
Greenland
Trump is said to have been involved in a "fiery" call with Denmark's PM Mette Frederiksen last week where he again raised the question of US control over Greenland, according to reliable sources in the FT. The Danes are apparently in a state of shock about how serious he is.
In the last few days he has talked publicly of America 'expanding its territory' and has told reporters aboard Air Force One that he thinks the US will "get Greenland"
Knowing how transactional Trump is, I fully expect he will demand Greenland as the price Europe must pay to keep the US in NATO or to continue support for Ukraine, which will create a full-blown diplomatic crisis. Even his sending US troops to 'occupy' Greenland wouldn't shock me at all.
Simon Case
The former cabinet secretary Simon Case has written a short article for The Telegraph: If Trump succeeds in reinventing government, expect his plans to be the global blueprint
If you ever wondered why we are so poorly governed, now you know.
