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Wall Street Journal
19 hours ago
- Politics
- Wall Street Journal
Trump Advisers Once Opposed Using Active-Duty Troops at Protests. Not Anymore.
When unrest erupted around the country in 2020, President Trump's then-Defense Secretary Mark Esper drew a line in the sand: active-duty military troops should rarely be deployed on American streets to quell protests. 'The option to use active duty forces in a law enforcement role should only be used as a matter of last resort, and only in the most urgent and dire of situations,' Esper said, publicly breaking with Trump, who had floated deploying troops to respond to protests against the killing of George Floyd.
Yahoo
24-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Trump Addresses a Military He's Remaking in His Image
The last time President Donald Trump addressed Army cadets at West Point, he was locked in a dramatic conflict with America's military establishment. Two days before Trump spoke to the academy's graduates in June 2020, Army General Mark Milley, the nation's top military officer, had made an extraordinary televised apology for having appeared in uniform with the president outside the White House, after security personnel used force to clear peaceful protesters from the scene. Two weeks before Trump's commencement address, Defense Secretary Mark Esper had made what turned out to be an irreparable break with the president when he pushed back on Trump's desire to use active-duty troops to put down unrest triggered by the killing of George Floyd. Trump had mused about shooting protesters in the legs, according to Esper, who later wrote, 'What transpired that day would leave me deeply troubled about the leader of our country and the decisions he was making.' Trump, who denied suggesting that protesters be shot, fired Esper five months later. [From the November 2023 issue: The patriot] Trump's impulse to enlist the military to respond to nationwide protests generated an outcry from some retired officers, who denounced what they saw as presidential overreach. Most notably, James Mattis, who as Trump's first defense secretary had tried to steer the president away from decisions he feared would endanger allies or undermine U.S. security, decried Trump's effort to politicize the military and divide Americans. That now feels like a different era. As he returns to West Point to speak at the academy's commencement today, Trump faces little resistance from the Defense Department. Instead, in selecting civilian leaders at the Pentagon, the president has prioritized perceived loyalty rather than experience. In doing so, he has brought the Defense Department much closer in line with his MAGA political agenda than it was in his first term, and raised questions about who, if anyone, will attempt to stop him if he tries to use the military in unconstitutional ways. Unlike Mattis, Milley, and Esper, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth—a former Fox News host and National Guard soldier with little management background—has acted as an accelerant for Trump's political priorities. He has moved swiftly to root out military diversity programs, overturned Joe Biden–era decisions on transgender troops and the COVID-19 vaccine, and altered combat standards in ways that might push women out of certain jobs. Hegseth has also expanded U.S. forces' involvement in repelling illegal migration, augmenting troops' power to detain migrants at the southern border, ordering military deportation flights, and expanding camps to house migrants at the U.S. base at Guantánamo Bay. Although the military has long been one of the country's most respected institutions, its standing has fallen dramatically in recent years, and pulling U.S. troops more deeply into polarizing activities such as policing the border could further erode Americans' trust in the armed forces. Like Trump himself, Hegseth has brought a combative, norm-busting approach to his leadership of the Pentagon, attacking enemies online, deriding the 'fake news' media, and flouting government security rules. On Wednesday, he led a Christian prayer service in the Pentagon auditorium, a highly unusual move for the leader of a workforce comprising more than 3 million people who come from a wide range of backgrounds and faiths. The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Air Force General Dan Caine, was nominated by Trump after the president abruptly fired General Charles Q. Brown, the second Black officer to serve in that role, and other top officers in February. A respected former National Guard officer with less command experience than most previous JCS chairmen, Caine has maintained a low profile so far and has said little about his views. In his confirmation hearing, Caine—who denied a story Trump has told about him wearing a MAGA hat when they met on a military base in Iraq—said he would be willing to be fired for following the Constitution. (Other top brass, anticipating moves by Hegseth to slim down the military's uppermost ranks, have sought to keep their head down and avoid contentious issues.) [Tom Nichols: A Friday-night massacre at the Pentagon] The service academies, including West Point and the Naval Academy, are now at the center of the administration's push to remake military culture. In response to a White House order that bans the teaching of 'divisive concepts' and references to racism in American history at the academies, leaders at the schools have removed books from library shelves and are altering curricula. Sometimes acting in anticipation of the administration's preferences, they have also shut down student groups related to race, gender, and ethnicity, and canceled speakers and events they feared could violate the new rules. It's difficult to know how West Point cadets feel about all this. The academy has no independent student newspaper and few venues for students to voice their views on such issues. Cadets, like most service members, usually keep their political beliefs to themselves. Kori Schake, a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, told me that Trump is undermining core tenets of U.S. military culture, including the institution's apolitical nature and service members' sworn allegiance to the Constitution rather than to any one person. While the checks from Trump's first term are long gone, Schake said, 'what I see as continuity from 2020 is President Trump trying to corrode the good order and discipline of the American military to establish a much more personalistic kind of loyalty.' In his 2020 remarks at West Point, Trump largely stuck to a typical presidential script, congratulating troops on making it through the rigors of academy life and eulogizing Army leaders including Douglas MacArthur and George Patton. Perhaps his speech today will take a similar tone. If it does, it will mark a departure from his more recent appearances at troop events. When he addressed service members at Al Udeid Air Base, in Qatar, this month, Trump sounded like no other president has in a military setting. He criticized 'fake generals' who fail to adhere to his worldview, belittled the role of allies such as France in winning World War II, and suggested that he might run for a third term. Trump praised the service members assembled around him for 'defending our interests, supporting our allies, securing our homeland.' 'And you know what? Making America great again,' he continued. 'That's what's happened. It's happened very fast.' Article originally published at The Atlantic
Yahoo
25-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Army closes in on its elusive goal of a gender-neutral fitness test
Happy Friday! The Army announced this week that male and female soldiers in 21 combat military occupational specialties will have to meet the same standards on the new Army Fitness Test, which also eliminates the standing power throw event, which soldiers dubbed the 'overhead yeet.' Both men and women between 17 and 21 years old who serve in combat arms military occupational specialties will have to deadlift at least 140 pounds under the new changes — women previously had to lift 120 pounds. Women in that age group will also have to complete the sprint-drag-carry event in less than 2 minutes and 28 seconds, nearly a minute faster than the current requirement. The new standards will go into effect on Jan. 1, 2026, for active-duty soldiers and June 1, 2026, for the National Guard and Reserve. Any soldiers who do not score 350 on the test after their second attempt will have to be reclassified into a new job based on the 'needs of the Army at that time,' said Regimental Sgt. Maj. Stephanie Carl, the senior enlisted leader for Army public affairs. The test partially fulfills the Army's longstanding — and elusive — goal of requiring men and women to be held to the same physical standards. In 2018, then-Army Secretary Mark Esper told reporters that the service was trying to create a PT test that was both gender- and age-neutral, 'because the enemy does not specify who they're going to shoot and not shoot — combat is combat.' The Army eventually abandoned the age- and gender-neutral standards after initial testing showed that 84% of women who took the tests failed. The service also dropped the leg tuck from the test — which 72% of women failed during testing — following a RAND report that determined the event did not accurately measure women's core strength. But in March, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth directed the military services to develop 'sex neutral' physical standards for service members who directly participate in ground combat. The new changes to the Army's PT test 'fall in line' with Hegseth's instructions but are 'not a result of that,' said Command Sgt. Maj. JoAnn Naumann, the senior enlisted leader for U.S. Army Special Operations Command. While the Marine Corps currently has no plans to change its Physical and Combat Fitness Tests, 'All human performance standards are continually analyzed, assessed, and updated as needed,' said Maj. Hector Infante, a spokesman for Training and Education Command. 'All Marines in ground combat arms specialties are held to the same sex-neutral, occupation-specific, and operationally relevant physical standards,' Infante said in a statement to Task & Purpose. 'Regardless of military occupational specialty, all Marines must also complete age- and sex-normed general fitness tests: the Physical Fitness Test and the Combat Fitness Test.' Now that we've worked up a sweat, here's your weekly Rundown: U.S. struck 'hundreds of targets' in Yemen. The U.S. military has 'struck hundreds of targets' since resuming air and missile strikes against Houthi targets in Yemen in March, Hegseth said during his visit on Wednesday to the Army War College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. His comments mark the first time in more than a month that a U.S. official has provided a public update on the number of U.S. strikes against the Houthis. More than 30 targets were hit on March 15 as part of the first wave of strikes, Air Force Lt. Gen. Alex Grynkewich, director of operations for the Joint Staff, told reporters last month. Troops can detain 'trespassers' on the southern border. As part of the U.S. military's ongoing mission on the border, troops can now apprehend people within the New Mexico National Defense Area, a strip of land 170 miles long and 60 feet wide that was recently transferred from the Department of the Interior to the Defense Department, according to U.S. Northern Command. Troops conducting 'installation security support operations' within the defense area, which is now part of Fort Huachuca, are authorized to temporarily detain trespassers until they can be handed off to U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents or other law enforcement officials. 'Little Crappy Ships' no more. USS Minneapolis-Saint Paul recently intercepted two shipments of drugs within 72 hours, underscoring that the Littoral Combat Ship, or LCS, has found its niche with counternarcotics operations. Although the LCS has had its share of problems over the years, the ships are 'almost perfectly made' to stop drug smugglers. Other Navy warships, such as destroyers and cruisers, are better suited for high-end combat. Elbe Day anniversary. Friday marks 80 years since U.S. and Soviet troops met at the Elbe River near Torgau, Germany, shortly before the end of World War II. Pictures taken around that time show troops from both countries shaking hands and greeting each other warmly. In April 2020, President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin issued a joint statement to mark the 75th anniversary of the event: 'The 'Spirit of the Elbe' is an example of how our countries can put aside differences, build trust, and cooperate in pursuit of a greater cause.' Trump returned to office this year, vowing to end the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine. Email storm. When you get an email that was accidentally sent to a large distribution list, for the love of God, please don't 'reply all.' Case in point, on April 15, a Marine's certificate for completing the corporal's course was accidentally emailed to the wrong distro list, so responses to the message went to 'a larger audience than intended,' said Capt. Jonathan Coronel, a spokesman for II Marine Expeditionary Force. Although it took about 20 minutes to fix the issue, some kept receiving responses for longer than that, said Coronel, who added that steps are being taken to avoid such SNAFUs in the future. He also said the email storm was an opportunity for small unit leaders to review 'basic email etiquette.' Subsequently, the email blast misfire led to a petition to have Marine Corps Commandant Gen. Eric Smith attend the corporal's graduation ceremony — and it garnered nearly 1,700 signatures before being closed. Promote ahead of peers, indeed. Wishing you all a happy weekend! Jeff Schogol
Yahoo
14-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Opinion - Trump is pushing America to its limits — who will push back?
Imagine a man with an insatiable appetite for real estate. He has devised an ingenious way to acquire it. In each building he visits, he pulls the fire alarm. There is no fire, but when the occupants evacuate, he takes control of the building and claims ownership. If the actual owners object, his high-priced lawyers argue that possession is nine-tenths of the law. He threatens to use violence to defend his occupancy. In case after case, the legitimate owners concede. With this tactic, the man builds and rules an empire. This analogy illustrates President Trump's strategy for amassing unprecedented powers over federal and state governments, cherished cultural institutions, law firms, universities and other parts of American society. He repeatedly declares crises where there are none, to give himself the extraordinary authorities that Congress, the courts and the Constitution allow a president to exercise during crises. He is using the tactic to continue his Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection by other means. Now, social media sites are filled with rumors that Trump will utilize a 'nuclear option' on Apr. 20 by invoking the Insurrection Act of 1807, a law the Brennan Center for Justice notes is 'dangerously vague.' The act would allow Trump to use the military to suppress 'rebellion,' curtail free speech and assembly, and enforce his orders. Why April 20? In January, Trump directed the Homeland Security and Defense secretaries to study the situation on America's border and recommend whether he should invoke the act. April 20 is the due date. The rumor has not triggered significant alarm because conspiracy theories are rife online. However, Trump has alluded several times that he might deploy the military inside the country. He has suggested using active and National Guard troops to fight urban crime, 'the enemy from within,' and 'radical left lunatics.' His former Defense secretary, Mark Esper, has warned that we should take Trump seriously. In addition, Trump has nearly normalized the use of executive orders by 'flooding the zone'with them. Many are being reviewed by the courts. They include a variation we can call the 'executive extortion order,' where he cuts off federal funds, rescinds contracts and security clearances, sanctions clients of some of America's most prestigious law firms, and even forbids them access to government buildings. Several firms have capitulated by offering Trump millions of dollars in free services, promising not to act against him or, in the case of universities, discouraging protests on campus. Each capitulation emboldens Trump to push the envelope further. Some lawsuits have reached the U.S. Supreme Court. It has ruled in his favor, a signal that the nation's highest legal authority is capitulating to totalitarianism, too. Another troubling sign is that Trump's moves to suppress dissent are metastasizing through the states. According to The Guardian, officials have introduced 41 bills across 22 states since the start of the year to expand criminal punishments against peaceful protests. Five federal bills would create harsh prison sentences and fines for college students, anti-war protesters and climate activists. The fingerprints on these anti-democratic bills are often evident, like one that would send protesters to prison for up to 20 years if they 'disrupt' planned or existing gas pipelines. Finally, thousands of Americans have taken to the streets to protest Trump's actions. As welcome as these demonstrations are, Trump can use them as a pretext for claiming that a rebellion is underway. In case Trump's fire-alarm tactic is not obvious, there are examples. By the end of the Biden administration, the U.S. economy was the envy of the world. Nevertheless, Trump claimed falsely that President Biden had handed him an 'economic catastrophe and an inflation nightmare.' Trump invoked the International Emergency Economic Powers Act of 1977 and imposed worldwide trade tariffs that crashed the stock market and the retirement savings of millions of Americans. He claimed tariffs would 'increase our competitive edge, protect our sovereignty, and strengthen our national and economic security.' Instead, most economists say Trump's tariffs will raise consumer prices and trigger a global economic recession. Meanwhile, Trump's DOGE exercise is cutting the social programs that could help lower-income families cope with the financial security he is causing. Trump claims that foreign rapists, criminals, mental patients, drugs, cartels and gangs are invading America. Yet when Congress and the Biden administration reached a rare bipartisan agreement to improve border security last year, Trump instructed Republicans in Congress to kill it so immigration would remain an issue he could use against Biden. Since taking office, Trump has issued orders to revoke birthright citizenship and 'repel, repatriate, or remove migrants' from the country. He invoked the Alien Enemies Act, an 18th-century law used rarely and only during wartime. The Supreme Court has affirmed his right to use it. Citing the act, the administration deported 238 immigrants to an infamous Salvadoran prison without due process. A CBS News investigation found an 'overwhelming majority' of the deportees have no apparent criminal convictions or charges. On Feb. 14, Trump declared a national energy emergency so he could do 'whatever you have to do to get out of that problem.' However, there is no problem. The United States is the world's biggest oil and gas producer, but Trump wants to achieve more 'dominance' by speeding up infrastructure permits and expanding production on public lands. If America had an emergency, the government's logical response would be to push for rapid deployment of renewable energy resources. They are cheaper, cleaner and indigenous. Instead, Trump wants to rescind federal investments in clean energy. Meantime, the real emergency is America's long oil addiction. It has triggered wars and recessions, environmental blight, fatal illnesses and global climate change. Clearly, Trump's response has nothing to do with an energy crisis, but it could have something to do with the $96 million that the oil and gas industry gave to his presidential campaign. The Brennan Center has identified 150 extraordinary powers that presidents can claim to address true emergencies. In Trump's mind, no issue is too small, no affront too petty, and no liberty too cherished for attack by executive order. Even paper straws have not escaped his wrath. He is wielding his contrived powers not only against government and civil society but also against cherished cultural assets like the Smithsonian Institution and the Kennedy Center. Again, the only active insurrection in the United States — the only affront to security, democracy, morality and liberty — is the one Trump is executing. Knowing what we knew after his January 6th rebellion, it was an extraordinary mistake to entrust him with the tools of the presidency again. Every government official in the United States, every civil servant, judge, Cabinet officer, military officer and soldier, regardless of political leanings, swears allegiance to the Constitution rather than to presidents. This president is pushing America onto a bridge too far. If oaths mean anything anymore, our collective duty is to stop Donald Trump from forcing us to cross it. William S. Becker is co-editor of and a contributor to 'Democracy Unchained: How to Rebuild Government for the People,' and contributor to Democracy in a Hotter Time, named by the journal Nature as one of 2023's five best science books. He previously served as a senior official in the Wisconsin Department of Justice. He is currently executive director of the Presidential Climate Action Project, a nonpartisan climate policy think tank unaffiliated with the White House. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The Hill
14-04-2025
- Politics
- The Hill
Trump is pushing America to its limits — who will push back?
Imagine a man with an insatiable appetite for real estate. He has devised an ingenious way to acquire it. In each building he visits, he pulls the fire alarm. There is no fire, but when the occupants evacuate, he takes control of the building and claims ownership. If the actual owners object, his high-priced lawyers argue that possession is nine-tenths of the law. He threatens to use violence to defend his occupancy. In case after case, the legitimate owners concede. With this tactic, the man builds and rules an empire. This analogy illustrates President Trump's strategy for amassing unprecedented powers over federal and state governments, cherished cultural institutions, law firms, universities and other parts of American society. He repeatedly declares crises where there are none, to give himself the extraordinary authorities that Congress, the courts and the Constitution allow a president to exercise during crises. He is using the tactic to continue his Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection by other means. Now, social media sites are filled with rumors that Trump will utilize a 'nuclear option' on Apr. 20 by invoking the Insurrection Act of 1807, a law the Brennan Center for Justice notes is 'dangerously vague.' The act would allow Trump to use the military to suppress 'rebellion,' curtail free speech and assembly, and enforce his orders. Why April 20? In January, Trump directed the Homeland Security and Defense secretaries to study the situation on America's border and recommend whether he should invoke the act. April 20 is the due date. The rumor has not triggered significant alarm because conspiracy theories are rife online. However, Trump has alluded several times that he might deploy the military inside the country. He has suggested using active and National Guard troops to fight urban crime, 'the enemy from within,' and ' radical left lunatics.' His former Defense secretary, Mark Esper, has warned that we should take Trump seriously. In addition, Trump has nearly normalized the use of executive orders by 'flooding the zone' with them. Many are being reviewed by the courts. They include a variation we can call the 'executive extortion order,' where he cuts off federal funds, rescinds contracts and security clearances, sanctions clients of some of America's most prestigious law firms, and even forbids them access to government buildings. Several firms have capitulated by offering Trump millions of dollars in free services, promising not to act against him or, in the case of universities, discouraging protests on campus. Each capitulation emboldens Trump to push the envelope further. Some lawsuits have reached the U.S. Supreme Court. It has ruled in his favor, a signal that the nation's highest legal authority is capitulating to totalitarianism, too. Another troubling sign is that Trump's moves to suppress dissent are metastasizing through the states. According to The Guardian, officials have introduced 41 bills across 22 states since the start of the year to expand criminal punishments against peaceful protests. Five federal bills would create harsh prison sentences and fines for college students, anti-war protesters and climate activists. The fingerprints on these anti-democratic bills are often evident, like one that would send protesters to prison for up to 20 years if they 'disrupt' planned or existing gas pipelines. Finally, thousands of Americans have taken to the streets to protest Trump's actions. As welcome as these demonstrations are, Trump can use them as a pretext for claiming that a rebellion is underway. In case Trump's fire-alarm tactic is not obvious, there are examples. By the end of the Biden administration, the U.S. economy was the envy of the world. Nevertheless, Trump claimed falsely that President Biden had handed him an ' economic catastrophe and an inflation nightmare.' Trump invoked the International Emergency Economic Powers Act of 1977 and imposed worldwide trade tariffs that crashed the stock market and the retirement savings of millions of Americans. He claimed tariffs would 'increase our competitive edge, protect our sovereignty, and strengthen our national and economic security.' Instead, most economists say Trump's tariffs will raise consumer prices and trigger a global economic recession. Meanwhile, Trump's DOGE exercise is cutting the social programs that could help lower-income families cope with the financial security he is causing. Trump claims that foreign rapists, criminals, mental patients, drugs, cartels and gangs are invading America. Yet when Congress and the Biden administration reached a rare bipartisan agreement to improve border security last year, Trump instructed Republicans in Congress to kill it so immigration would remain an issue he could use against Biden. Since taking office, Trump has issued orders to revoke birthright citizenship and 'repel, repatriate, or remove migrants' from the country. He invoked the Alien Enemies Act, an 18th-century law used rarely and only during wartime. The Supreme Court has affirmed his right to use it. Citing the act, the administration deported 238 immigrants to an infamous Salvadoran prison without due process. A CBS News investigation found an 'overwhelming majority' of the deportees have no apparent criminal convictions or charges. On Feb. 14, Trump declared a national energy emergency so he could do 'whatever you have to do to get out of that problem. ' However, there is no problem. The United States is the world's biggest oil and gas producer, but Trump wants to achieve more 'dominance' by speeding up infrastructure permits and expanding production on public lands. If America had an emergency, the government's logical response would be to push for rapid deployment of renewable energy resources. They are cheaper, cleaner and indigenous. Instead, Trump wants to rescind federal investments in clean energy. Meantime, the real emergency is America's long oil addiction. It has triggered wars and recessions, environmental blight, fatal illnesses and global climate change. Clearly, Trump's response has nothing to do with an energy crisis, but it could have something to do with the $96 million that the oil and gas industry gave to his presidential campaign. The Brennan Center has identified 150 extraordinary powers that presidents can claim to address true emergencies. In Trump's mind, no issue is too small, no affront too petty, and no liberty too cherished for attack by executive order. Even paper straws have not escaped his wrath. He is wielding his contrived powers not only against government and civil society but also against cherished cultural assets like the Smithsonian Institution and the Kennedy Center. Again, the only active insurrection in the United States — the only affront to security, democracy, morality and liberty — is the one Trump is executing. Knowing what we knew after his January 6th rebellion, it was an extraordinary mistake to entrust him with the tools of the presidency again. Every government official in the United States, every civil servant, judge, Cabinet officer, military officer and soldier, regardless of political leanings, swears allegiance to the Constitution rather than to presidents. This president is pushing America onto a bridge too far. If oaths mean anything anymore, our collective duty is to stop Donald Trump from forcing us to cross it. William S. Becker is co-editor of and a contributor to 'Democracy Unchained: How to Rebuild Government for the People,' and contributor to Democracy in a Hotter Time, named by the journal Nature as one of 2023's five best science books. He previously served as a senior official in the Wisconsin Department of Justice. He is currently executive director of the Presidential Climate Action Project, a nonpartisan climate policy think tank unaffiliated with the White House.
