Recently, some headlines have suggested that the federal courts may be the “last bulwark” against Trump’s drive to centralize executive power. Others have argued that the state attorney generals are our “last line of defense” to save our democracy.
While these make for dramatic headlines in a scary time, the truth is a bit more complicated, and ultimately, even scarier.
When constitutional scholars talk about “checks and balances,” they usually are referring to the interplay between the three branches of the federal government — the executive, legislative and judicial.
Since all three are now under Republican control, and the GOP is in turn under the sway of right-wing extremists, that is a cause for red-alert alarm bells alone.
But an important additional check on power is our federalized system, which mandates a certain degree of decentralized power-sharing between the states, cities and regional branches of the central government.
It is these distributed layers that are now under assault by Trump’s Justice Department. The seven resignations by prosecutors in the wake of suspending the federal corruption charges against NYC Mayor Eric Adams illustrate the direct threat both to local authorities and the traditional independence of U.S. Attorneys in places like the Southern District of New York, or the 9th Circuit on the west coast.
Other Trump initiatives are challenging state power in various ways in blue areas like California, New York and Illinois. The first ICE raids, for example, were by design staged in Chicago. The administration is targeting jurisdictions that have proclaimed sanctuary status protecting immigrants for future mass deportation raids.
There are two great vulnerabilities hampering the ability of local and state authorities to resist the Trump power grab. One is control over the federal purse strings, which now lies with the Republican-controlled Congress, although even that check is now being challenged by DOGE.
To a large degree, cities and states depend on federal funds to finance their programs and to help them recover after the increasingly frequent natural disasters caused by climate change. The scale of events like mega-hurricanes and massive wildfires makes the cost of recovery beyond any state’s capacity — even California with the largest state budget.
The other vulnerability is the frightening rise of right-wing militias now they are free to resume plots like their plan to kidnap Michigan’s Democratic governor. These groups will be emboldened if and when Trump dog-whistles them into action, safe in the knowledge he will pardon them no matter how heinous their acts against his “enemies.”
It is now not difficult to imagine a series of events that could fatally undermine our democracy.
I wish this was all a paranoid fantasy, and I’d more than happy to be wrong about all of this. But should any kind of resistance movement to Trump’s authoritarian oligarchy emerge, I fear the risk of political violence to suppress the leaders of that movement is high.
The true last line of defense is those of us, the American people, who refuse to give up the hard-earned freedoms we’ve achieved over the past 248 years. Unfortunately, it looks like we now will have an extended battle on our hands.
QUOTE OF THE DAY:
“We’re here, right by your side.” — Ontario (advertisement)
HEADLINES:
JD Vance attacks Europe over free speech and migration (BBC)
Vance’s message is simple: drink the Maga Kool-Aid or you’re on your own (Telegraph)
World leaders expected clarity on Trump’s peace plan for Ukraine. Instead, JD Vance scolded them on immigration and lectured them about censorship (Fortune)
Vance meets with leader of far-right German party, blasts European leaders (WP)
NATO is in disarray after the US announces that its security priorities lie elsewhere (AP)
Judge orders US to restore funds for foreign aid programs (Reuters)
Trump’s A.G. Just Did Something So Corrupt She Should Be Fired Already (TNR)
The Justice Department’s recent instruction to drop corruption charges against New York City Mayor Eric Adams has prompted a wave of resignations from key federal prosecutors on Thursday, including one attorney who said the order "amounted to a quid pro quo." [HuffPost]
Federal prosecutors resign after order to drop Eric Adams case (Today)
Danielle Sassoon’s American Bravery — A conservative prosecutor in New York makes the first bold move against Donald Trump’s rampaging Presidency. (New Yorker)
Some federal workers given just 30 minutes to leave amid Trump layoffs (Guardian)
A Consumer Financial Watchdog’s Fate Is Unclear. Here’s What’s at Stake. (WSJ)
This Watchdog Agency Shielded Troops and Veterans from Fraud. Musk and Trump Just Gutted It. (Military.com)
Nazi flags can fly in Utah schools, but not pride flags, GOP lawmaker says (Salt Lake Tribune)
Trump firings cause chaos at agency responsible for America's nuclear weapons (NPR)
ICE Raids Send Chill Through Migrant Workforces (WSJ)
The real obstacle for Trump’s campaign against DEI isn’t Democrats. It’s demography (CNN)
Senate Panel Advances Kash Patel’s Bid for F.B.I. Director Amid Agency Turmoil (NYT)
The Erasing of American Science (Atlantic)
Will Student Loans Be Cancelled If Trump Shuts Down Department Of Education? (Forbes)
Laid-off Meta employees blast Zuckerberg for running the ‘cruelest tech company out there’ as some claim they were blindsided after parental leave (Fortune)
Video shows whale gulping up kayaker: ‘I thought I had died’ (WP)
The damage done when the journalists get the story wrong (Al Jazeera)
Female protagonists reach parity with men in top-grossing films of 2024 (AP)
A new study is offering a good reason to stop depending on tools like ChatGPT for everything. [HuffPost]
Concerned Bartender Takes Away Pete Hegseth’s Security Clearance (The Onion)
ARCHIVAL VIDEO:
Norah Jones — Forever Young at memorial for Steve Jobs
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