On Monday, the president said it would be a "great thing" if border czar Tom Homan arrested Newsom; in response, the California governor fired back that the comment is an "unmistakable step toward authoritarianism."
In a sign of how much politics is driving the confrontation, Trump, when asked on Monday afternoon by ABC News what crime Newsom has committed to warrant his arrest, Trump said the governor's "primary crime is running for governor because he's done such a bad job." Newsom responded on X, "Donald Trump admits he will arrest a sitting governor simply because he ran for office."
Reporter: What crime has Governor Newsom committed to warrant his arrest?
— Republicans against Trump (@RpsAgainstTrump) June 9, 2025
Trump: “I think his primary crime is running for governor. Because he’s done such a bad job…It’s the wrong philosophy”
pic.twitter.com/qLBafisyKw
President Trump doesn't want this, and so Director of Enforcement and Removal Operations Tom Homan won't do it. Not yet, anyway. Prosecution of political opponents will be one of the defining aspects of Trump's endgame of partial control of culture and total control of government.
But this is a very big thing. The President of the United States of America, the leader of the (thus far) Free World, has called for the arrest of an elected official. It's not as dramatic as de facto advocating the execution of a US congresswoman or chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Execution is far worse than arrest but Trump at least came up with a rationale, albeit a false accusation, for imposing capital punishment.
Now, the President has slyly recommended the arrest of a government official of the opposing party. O.K., still not as bad as execution, yet ruinous to a republic. Nor should it be written off as just Trump being Trump. The spoken wish is no more legitimate because it is in character.
Which brings me to a Charles Barkley allegory. Long before the NBA superstar became a pop culture figure as a reasonably informed and very entertaining sports personality on TNT, Barkley was a great forward for the Philadelphia 76ers. He also was a bad boy, and not in a good way, fighting a fan on a Milwaukee street, playing a game drunk, spitting on a girl attending a game, and generally being a jerk.
That was "Charles being Charles" as many Philadelphia fans and sportswriters characterized it, partly because he was a dominant player and partly being it was considered just the way it was for Sir Charles.
Barkley changed; Trump won't, as he increasingly gains power amidst the failure of either law firms, colleges, or media outlets to stand as one and continues drive toward an autocratic state.. Terry Moran gets sent to the woodshed (or worse) and the sound you hear is of a tree limb being sawed off behind the brave and bold Scott Pelley.
Worry not about Governor Newsom, who won't get charged with a crime in the near future and will land on his feet. However, the attack upon him by President Trump is a warning, typically a significant, secondary aspect of much of what Trump does. If we ignore this incident- as the news media largely has done- the "King" will be further emboldened. And unlike the frog, we may not notice until it's too late.
No comments:
Post a Comment