@ChrisMurphyCT post about this threat on X on December 17, 2024:
1/ Can I take a minute to connect the dots – on how Trump is putting into action a plan to cripple our democracy in a way we may never recover from?
2/ He wasn’t kidding when he said Democrats were the no. 1 threat to America and needed be dealt with by law enforcement and the military.
Today House Republican’s referral of Liz Cheney for criminal prosecution – on made up charges – shows you the plan.
3/ Who will stand in the way of Cheney and others being put in jail?
Not DOJ. Kash Patel was chosen to lead the FBI BECAUSE he wants to prosecute Trump’s opponents.
Not the courts. Trump’s pliant DOJ can handpick a jurisdiction with a MAGA judge.
4/ Not every Trump opponent will fold, but many will. If you have a family at home, are you really going to stand up to Trump if there’s a chance you could end up in jail?
History shows that selective prosecution of a regime’s opposition has a broad chilling effect.
5/ The second part of Trump’s plan is to use the White House to destroy the free media. Today’s lawsuit against the Des Moines Register – just because they released a poll showing a close race in Iowa – is stunning. We shouldn’t pretend this is normal.
6/ Already, you see how the big media companies are giving in. ABC paid Trump $15M even though his defamation suit had no merit. Bezos told the Post to not endorse against Trump. MSNBC is up for sale because Comcast doesn’t want to get in trouble.
7/ Sometimes Trump will win these suits because he controls the DOJ and some courts, but other times he doesn’t care. After he lost one case against a journalist, he said, “I did it to make his life miserable, which I’m happy about.” He gladly admits it’s about intimidation.
8/ Trump has also said he will use the FEC and regulatory agencies – all of which will be run by his blind loyalists – to intimidate news orgs. Even if he uses this power rarely, media companies have already shown they are reluctant to put up a fight.
9/ Is there a chance this is all show and bluster? Maybe, but the developments of just the last few days – ABC’s bogus settlement, the referral of Cheney for prosecution, Trump’s suit against the Register – all point to this being very, very real.