By Bertha Cooper
I started worrying the first time President Trump sent troops into a city — Los Angeles. Since then, he has sent troops to several other cities.
The troop deployment appears to be in response to plans to hold protests, public rallies and/or demonstrations against Trump’s policies.
Readers will recall that protests have been held regularly across the nation for at least the last six months in response to the current administration’s policies from treatment of migrants, loss of guaranteed rights, tariffs, deportations and fear of rising authoritarianism.
I have not read about or heard of those instances here or elsewhere that required support beyond local police, an indication they are for the most part peaceful.
Our recent rally in Sequim was “supervised” by yellow-vested citizens who kept people off the grass, kept sidewalks open, and crosswalks controlled.
Trump claims the troops are brought in to fight crime. Impacted cities are saying they do not want or need the guard. Cities such as Washington D.C. are reporting crime has recently gone down.
Trump also took over control of the Washington D.C. police. Today, as I write, he is considering sending troops to Chicago.
It is disturbing that there seems to be no recourse for the cities to remove the federally mandated military presence except through the courts.
Last week, a federal court in California ruled against Trump’s use of the National Guard in L.A. However, the ruling only applies to L.A., which means each area must get it own court ruling.
Think about it: a city must go to court to stop the president from occupying it with troops.
Right to protest
Can or will the injustice of usurping local control make Americans angry enough to fight back? I am sure some feel like it but know that if they do they will become part of Trump’s justification for more troops.
And justification for less freedoms.
Americans have the right for peaceful protest. The American military should not be used to break up peaceful demonstrations or intimidate the people into silence.
At the moment, I see no mechanism to effectively diminish the president’s use of the military to control public free speech. Congress seems struck by a terrible apathy. I always cheer when a congressperson recognizes the threat of autocracy and speaks up for democracy.
I feel pride in our town of Sequim and its willingness to demonstrate for what they believe in. Many have organized around “Indivisible.” If you are interested in learning more, I suggest you google Indivisible Sequim which will direct you to their website.
Keep observing what our president is doing that could, if it continues, seriously damage — perhaps irreparably — democracy as we know it.
