Dictatorships require the elimination of four things: the government, the press, the courts, and the people.
The regime currently hunkered down at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. has got the Republican-majority House and Senate completely cowed. Republican lawmakers, state and federal, have abdicated their commitment to the oaths they took for fear of MAGA brown shirts doxing them and their families, attacking their homes, or... heaven forbid... primarying them, which may result in them losing their seats like former reps Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger, who both lost their re-elections to MAGA sycophants.
So the government is gone.
Last week's arrest of federal judge Hannah Dugan for allegedly "misdirecting federal agents away from the subject to be arrested in her courthouse, allowing the subject... an illegal alien... to evade arrest" is attempting to send the message to other judges and lawyers they dare not even think about following this thing called the "rule of law" if it in any way flies in the face of political ideology.
While Hannah Dugan is the first, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt warned the press that arresting Supreme Court justices is not off the table.
And speaking of the press...
We knew it was only a matter of time until arresting journalists would be on the menu.
Just in time for World Press Freedom Day (coincidence?), Attorney General Pam Bondi said in an internal memo Friday the Department of (In)Justice is rescinding the Biden-era "news media guidelines" rule that limits the methods by which Justice Department (DOJ) attorneys can subpoena journalists' records or testimony, even in cases involving leaks.
That means the federal government can now compel journalists to give up their sources, emails, and phone contacts.
This is not normal.
Repeat: THIS IS NOT NORMAL!It is an all-out assault on the fourth estate, the only industry explicitly mentioned in the Constitution.
As Gabe Rottman, vice president of policy at the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, explaine d:
The Bondi memo appears to have rescinded a specific provision protecting journalists from Justice Department subpoenas, court orders and search warrants based on the "receipt, possession, or publication" of classified information. This change would make it easier for Justice Department attorneys to pursue journalists to identify confidential sources in reporting that involves leaks... like the Pentagon Papers or Watergate. And that could chill news reporting in the public interest.
Progressive writer Thom Hartmann added:
Bondi's justification? The Justice Department "will not tolerate unauthorized disclosures that undermine President Trump's policies, victimize government agencies, and cause harm to the American people."
Did you catch that? Not disclosures that threaten national security, but those that "undermine President Trump's policies." Since when did the President's policies become sacred and beyond scrutiny? Since when did exposing wrongdoing by our government become a crime against "the American people"?
(Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher).
Post Article Comment and Rate This Article
