Today In Paul Krugman's 'stack he calls ICE a secret police force: " because what are we supposed to call an organization whose masked agents, bearing no identification, simply grab people off the street? "
"I worry, as everyone should, about how a huge expansion of this deeply un-American organization may be used as a tool of presidential power and repression. Furthermore, give people power without accountability — and it’s hard to give a better example than masked, unidentified agents authorized to use force — and some of them will abuse their position. And given what ICE has already been doing, what kind of people do you think are likely to sign up as it massively expands?"
The last sentence above is crucial. The personality type of those who want to be members of Trump's Gestapo/SS aren't like people who join other law enforcement agencies because it satisfies a need to exercise authority, fight real crimes, AND help people as well. These tend to be on the extreme end of authoritarian personality types where they have sadistic traits which includes a need to dominate others so they are afraid of them. I can imagine them as having been bullies since they were children.
The stats (which may not be accurate - this is hard to measure - show that 1-4% of the population meet the psychiatric criteria for having sociopathic traits. It may seem like a small number, but that's a lot of people. Plus, ICE is lowering the requirements for joining. Used to be that police departments and federal law enforcement required a psych eval for applicants to weed out these people. https://mindpsychiatrist.com/what-percent-of-the-population-is-a-sociopath/
trump is mad. Certifiably insane. He has no understanding or concern for Americans writ large. He is so sick with revenge and "retribution" that he us virtually unable or doesn't care about killing American citizens. ICE is a repeat of the Nazis. Their actionsd are a repeat of Germany in 1938. He is directing the building of concentration camps--not just in Florida, but all across our nation. Congress MUST stop him!
Lawrence O'Donnell called Trump insane when the dotard said Chuck Schumer was not Jewish. The Nebraska governor is bragging that his state is building a cornhusker concentration camp. Sabrina and most of the posters here are fascist resisters.
Thank you, Sabrina. You/me/we are not alone and Our Mad King Donald the 1st is thankfully in an obvious state of mental and physical decline, which is his ONLY contribution to our democratic constitutional Republic. As I have said numerous times over the past 8 1/2 yrs. of this national nightmare, Tramp's basic psychological development is trending to the final conclusion of his self-loathing, suicide, and he wants to take as many "friends" and "supporters" with him as possible, just like his hero Adolph. Have a blessed day.
I expect either this will happen, or someone observing such an act is armed and believes they are justified in using lethal force to stop it. This could be an on-duty or off-duty police officer as well as a civilian. How long before there's a shootout between the Trump thugs and these people?
ICE is a sandbox spat, compared with the global risk in Ukraine. Yesterday Thomas Friedman penned this extortion sentence in NYT.
Putin to Ukraine: "Marry me or I'll kill you."
Imagining Trump to Zelensky and Putin, basically: Hire me as your marriage counselor., and I'll guarantee that you will live happily ever after.
But nobody would make this deal with such deceptive parties. The only only response Putin will respect is unflagging power from a united front, meaning NATO, US, EUROPE. (Rattling his nuclear saber is so stale by now.) But trump wants to appease the bigger bully, hoping for a bauble from the Nobel committee, which will never come. He's such a loser!
I'm still dismayed by the immunity ruling and consider it one of the most flawed and partisan rulings ever. But I've re-read it multiple times, along with more recent (and also partisan) rulings, and don't believe it licenses murder. (A low bar, I realize). It was terrible timing bc the prosecution was stopped due to trump's re-election. Had it continued, even under Roberts' theory, he would not have been deemed immune from the violence he caused. Any other result would give him the right to execute S Ct justices, and even Alito would balk at that.
See my other comment... murder is the extreme on the continuum of violence against American residents (citizens or not) which a president isn't licensed by the SCOTUS ruling to order. Am I correct?
that is how I read it. the line between official and unofficial presidential acts is still being debated, but the "core constitutional powers" is more persuasive. it could never be a core constitutional power to act in a way that is blatantly unconstitutional, like executing citizens for exercising their free speech rights. my hope is that the case challenging trump's illegal use of the military under posse comitatus will get to the Supreme Court asap so we have advance warning. if they rule that trump can declare any emergency he wants regardless of facts, which will enable him to deploy armed forces against American citizens, that is a declaration of civil war. if that's what's coming, w the Roberts court's blessing, the sooner we know, the better we'll prepare. for some, that will be leaving the country. for others, that will be organizing and arming.
So, here I am sitting with Ann on the patio on a beautiful mild morning listening to the insistent cawing of a crow in a nearby tree, and looking at the lovely sky... and Ann adds that we are wondering as octogenarians, how we can deal with this possible, if not likely, civil war. And the crow stops cawing, and we have mortified silence.
SCOTUS may have missed its chance. Executing judges is not unknown in fascist societies. But if it’s Trump doing the executing, he will be selective. Total loyalists like Alito and Thomas will always be spared the chopping block.
Right. I've thought from the beginning that the ruling, as misguided and reprehensible as it is, does not really sanction as much as it might seem to, and that again would be because of the "official acts" clause. But a scary central question might have to be whether murder ever can be an official act -- case in point, the killing of bin Laden.
It is a core function. The problem is the immunity decision itself. It must be overturned and is best ignored until it is. The so-called immunity is completely unconstitutional and made up by John Roberts. There is no presidential immunity in the Constitution and parsing "official and unofficial" acts is BS.
Agreed. And part of the problem it creates is that it adds to an already bloated list of constitutional crises. Every one of them creates a sea of crises around it until the courts are stymied. It's enough to make you wonder if that's part of the plan.
i hope if we make it through this and still alive we figure out how to have a lever to pull on future crazy, evil people that get elected into office. i find it incredible that we cannot remove this destroyer of not just America but his impact is worldwide. he has broken his promise, his OATH to "faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my Ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States." he broke that oath on day one. HOW can he not be held accountable already??? 💔🤦🏽♀️💀
it comes down to political will and the GOP’s addiction to power. They may very well decide it’s better to ride trumps coattails as he declares Civil War, executes democrats, and cancels future elections than it is to block him now. If a handful of Republicans start speaking up, others will follow, but that damn has not yet broken.
obviously, I consider the failure to act and remove him from an office to be an act of treason, given his clear intention to destroy America, and serve Putin’s interests. But a defense to treason includes personal fear, and as a couple of senators have said on record, they genuinely fear maga attacks on their lives and families.
The chances are slim to none that the typical Fox News TV viewer or website reader will be reading these words. Okay, maybe there's a more open minded and literate one actually reading our words and they might give pause and rethink their support for what Trump is doing. :-o
I never tune into Fox News on TV but once in awhile look at their website. This mornig after reading your Substack I wanted to see how they were covering what Trump is doing in DC. Here's what I ended up writing: This is what the Fox News website thought were the most important stories this morning, and why it matters. https://halbrown.substack.com/p/this-is-what-the-fox-news-website [Of course I included a link to this Haake Take ;-). ]
The whole of Home Land Security is now another terrorist organization, no better than Isis, or Hamas, and others because they choose to cover their faces, have no identifying badges, use gang tactics to snatch or kidnap individules off the street, and not one of the have any honor, just like the Republican holding office running our government. Personally I think of them as nothing but a Treasonous group that are distorying DEMOCRACY!
Miss Haake, All that said , i keep wondering when Trump will sick his goons on the Russian mob operating in the USA, or even per haps the Albanian group who terrorizes peaceful merchants, then he might want to look at the Triad and taken them put also making America a safer place to live and do business , BUT I guess he would have to look to hard to find them, where as seeking people of color is much easier whether they are bad people of not -- STILL no one is standing up to him - writing articles that he does not read because he cannot read . does not lead to much except indicating most people are in agreement that he has to go ....
I agree that writing about the problem does not, in itself, solve it. I do it because corporate media is falling down on the job. no one can keep up with the constant barrage of bullshit, so, as I see it, we need writers to explain what's happening. I'm also aware that there are many political voices with a larger following than I have, but I'm not doing this for money, or to make a living. I cannot wait until this prick is gone and I can get back to writing about more peaceful subjects.
Today In Paul Krugman's 'stack he calls ICE a secret police force: " because what are we supposed to call an organization whose masked agents, bearing no identification, simply grab people off the street? "
Krugman writes:
"I worry, as everyone should, about how a huge expansion of this deeply un-American organization may be used as a tool of presidential power and repression. Furthermore, give people power without accountability — and it’s hard to give a better example than masked, unidentified agents authorized to use force — and some of them will abuse their position. And given what ICE has already been doing, what kind of people do you think are likely to sign up as it massively expands?"
https://paulkrugman.substack.com/p/iceing-the-us-economy
The last sentence above is crucial. The personality type of those who want to be members of Trump's Gestapo/SS aren't like people who join other law enforcement agencies because it satisfies a need to exercise authority, fight real crimes, AND help people as well. These tend to be on the extreme end of authoritarian personality types where they have sadistic traits which includes a need to dominate others so they are afraid of them. I can imagine them as having been bullies since they were children.
exactly my meaning when I wrote here that the bad news is human nature...
The stats (which may not be accurate - this is hard to measure - show that 1-4% of the population meet the psychiatric criteria for having sociopathic traits. It may seem like a small number, but that's a lot of people. Plus, ICE is lowering the requirements for joining. Used to be that police departments and federal law enforcement required a psych eval for applicants to weed out these people. https://mindpsychiatrist.com/what-percent-of-the-population-is-a-sociopath/
Without a doubt, ICE has become the American dictator's secret police.
trump doesn't have to shoot someone on fifth ave. -
he just gets someone else to do it.
and his republican backers will say that he was justified
and his prejudiced judges will let him walk
with a slap on the wrist.
trump is mad. Certifiably insane. He has no understanding or concern for Americans writ large. He is so sick with revenge and "retribution" that he us virtually unable or doesn't care about killing American citizens. ICE is a repeat of the Nazis. Their actionsd are a repeat of Germany in 1938. He is directing the building of concentration camps--not just in Florida, but all across our nation. Congress MUST stop him!
Yes, Trump has effectively made ICE his Gestapo, and for the uniformed variety, he's trying to enlist the National Guard as his SS.
Lawrence O'Donnell called Trump insane when the dotard said Chuck Schumer was not Jewish. The Nebraska governor is bragging that his state is building a cornhusker concentration camp. Sabrina and most of the posters here are fascist resisters.
in trump we rot.
Wish I had something more to add.
sometimes simple is best.
Thank you, Sabrina. You/me/we are not alone and Our Mad King Donald the 1st is thankfully in an obvious state of mental and physical decline, which is his ONLY contribution to our democratic constitutional Republic. As I have said numerous times over the past 8 1/2 yrs. of this national nightmare, Tramp's basic psychological development is trending to the final conclusion of his self-loathing, suicide, and he wants to take as many "friends" and "supporters" with him as possible, just like his hero Adolph. Have a blessed day.
Imagine a court case in a STAND YOUR GROUND state where a "kidnapping target" shoots first.
Love it! Great idea for a future column too!
I expect either this will happen, or someone observing such an act is armed and believes they are justified in using lethal force to stop it. This could be an on-duty or off-duty police officer as well as a civilian. How long before there's a shootout between the Trump thugs and these people?
ICE is a sandbox spat, compared with the global risk in Ukraine. Yesterday Thomas Friedman penned this extortion sentence in NYT.
Putin to Ukraine: "Marry me or I'll kill you."
Imagining Trump to Zelensky and Putin, basically: Hire me as your marriage counselor., and I'll guarantee that you will live happily ever after.
But nobody would make this deal with such deceptive parties. The only only response Putin will respect is unflagging power from a united front, meaning NATO, US, EUROPE. (Rattling his nuclear saber is so stale by now.) But trump wants to appease the bigger bully, hoping for a bauble from the Nobel committee, which will never come. He's such a loser!
Thank you Sabrina - Such incredible truths - it is our social and moral duty to remove this hitleritic, stalinesque, natanyahooese, putiny felon.
The sooner the better - if only yesterday were possible!
I agree Sabrina, but unfortunately SCOTUS does not. We’re going to have to be satisfied with “moral indignity.”
I'm still dismayed by the immunity ruling and consider it one of the most flawed and partisan rulings ever. But I've re-read it multiple times, along with more recent (and also partisan) rulings, and don't believe it licenses murder. (A low bar, I realize). It was terrible timing bc the prosecution was stopped due to trump's re-election. Had it continued, even under Roberts' theory, he would not have been deemed immune from the violence he caused. Any other result would give him the right to execute S Ct justices, and even Alito would balk at that.
See my other comment... murder is the extreme on the continuum of violence against American residents (citizens or not) which a president isn't licensed by the SCOTUS ruling to order. Am I correct?
that is how I read it. the line between official and unofficial presidential acts is still being debated, but the "core constitutional powers" is more persuasive. it could never be a core constitutional power to act in a way that is blatantly unconstitutional, like executing citizens for exercising their free speech rights. my hope is that the case challenging trump's illegal use of the military under posse comitatus will get to the Supreme Court asap so we have advance warning. if they rule that trump can declare any emergency he wants regardless of facts, which will enable him to deploy armed forces against American citizens, that is a declaration of civil war. if that's what's coming, w the Roberts court's blessing, the sooner we know, the better we'll prepare. for some, that will be leaving the country. for others, that will be organizing and arming.
So, here I am sitting with Ann on the patio on a beautiful mild morning listening to the insistent cawing of a crow in a nearby tree, and looking at the lovely sky... and Ann adds that we are wondering as octogenarians, how we can deal with this possible, if not likely, civil war. And the crow stops cawing, and we have mortified silence.
SCOTUS may have missed its chance. Executing judges is not unknown in fascist societies. But if it’s Trump doing the executing, he will be selective. Total loyalists like Alito and Thomas will always be spared the chopping block.
Right. I've thought from the beginning that the ruling, as misguided and reprehensible as it is, does not really sanction as much as it might seem to, and that again would be because of the "official acts" clause. But a scary central question might have to be whether murder ever can be an official act -- case in point, the killing of bin Laden.
It is a core function. The problem is the immunity decision itself. It must be overturned and is best ignored until it is. The so-called immunity is completely unconstitutional and made up by John Roberts. There is no presidential immunity in the Constitution and parsing "official and unofficial" acts is BS.
Agreed. And part of the problem it creates is that it adds to an already bloated list of constitutional crises. Every one of them creates a sea of crises around it until the courts are stymied. It's enough to make you wonder if that's part of the plan.
i hope if we make it through this and still alive we figure out how to have a lever to pull on future crazy, evil people that get elected into office. i find it incredible that we cannot remove this destroyer of not just America but his impact is worldwide. he has broken his promise, his OATH to "faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my Ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States." he broke that oath on day one. HOW can he not be held accountable already??? 💔🤦🏽♀️💀
Because there's nobody who has the LEGAL AUTHORITY to stop him that is willing to do so.
And if we don't do it using LEGAL means, we're no better than the Russians, Nicaraguans, or any other third world country.
it comes down to political will and the GOP’s addiction to power. They may very well decide it’s better to ride trumps coattails as he declares Civil War, executes democrats, and cancels future elections than it is to block him now. If a handful of Republicans start speaking up, others will follow, but that damn has not yet broken.
obviously, I consider the failure to act and remove him from an office to be an act of treason, given his clear intention to destroy America, and serve Putin’s interests. But a defense to treason includes personal fear, and as a couple of senators have said on record, they genuinely fear maga attacks on their lives and families.
The chances are slim to none that the typical Fox News TV viewer or website reader will be reading these words. Okay, maybe there's a more open minded and literate one actually reading our words and they might give pause and rethink their support for what Trump is doing. :-o
I never tune into Fox News on TV but once in awhile look at their website. This mornig after reading your Substack I wanted to see how they were covering what Trump is doing in DC. Here's what I ended up writing: This is what the Fox News website thought were the most important stories this morning, and why it matters. https://halbrown.substack.com/p/this-is-what-the-fox-news-website [Of course I included a link to this Haake Take ;-). ]
The whole of Home Land Security is now another terrorist organization, no better than Isis, or Hamas, and others because they choose to cover their faces, have no identifying badges, use gang tactics to snatch or kidnap individules off the street, and not one of the have any honor, just like the Republican holding office running our government. Personally I think of them as nothing but a Treasonous group that are distorying DEMOCRACY!
Agreed, but we no longer live in a democracy.
Miss Haake, All that said , i keep wondering when Trump will sick his goons on the Russian mob operating in the USA, or even per haps the Albanian group who terrorizes peaceful merchants, then he might want to look at the Triad and taken them put also making America a safer place to live and do business , BUT I guess he would have to look to hard to find them, where as seeking people of color is much easier whether they are bad people of not -- STILL no one is standing up to him - writing articles that he does not read because he cannot read . does not lead to much except indicating most people are in agreement that he has to go ....
I agree that writing about the problem does not, in itself, solve it. I do it because corporate media is falling down on the job. no one can keep up with the constant barrage of bullshit, so, as I see it, we need writers to explain what's happening. I'm also aware that there are many political voices with a larger following than I have, but I'm not doing this for money, or to make a living. I cannot wait until this prick is gone and I can get back to writing about more peaceful subjects.
I know the feeling, Sabrina!
The tinder pile is growing daily; it's only time until someone throws the "match."
I would prefer this not be the case but one's preferences rarely determine history.