That last bit kind of sums up this entire administration, doesn’t it? Except, of course, it’s a lot louder and a lot worse.
As to why he’s hankering to attack blue cities and states: don’t forget he’s the one who’s decided that not only is he America, but any insult to him is, in fact, treason.
And in more DPRKesque dictatorial fashion, he blathers this tidbit.
And what was co-conspirator Hegseth’s contribution to this photo op?
That’s telling the assembled career military officers, those who’ve dedicated their entire adult life to serving their country, that “too many” of them do not deserve the rank they hold. They will be cashiered. The only question is how soon that will happen.
Speaking of Hegseth’s view of the military, under his stellar leadership, it’s quite likely military suicides will increase. Why do I say this?
Do you recall this old joke?
What’s the difference between the military and the Boy Scouts?
The Boy Scouts have adult leadership.
The United States Armed Forces no longer have adult civilian leadership.
(/CROSSPOST)
Meanwhile in Memphis, we are still waiting for the National Guard to show up. They’ve been saying within two weeks for a couple weeks now. I imagine Trump has forgotten all about us. It’s not flashy, it doesn’t get him headlines, so it really doesn’t matter to him. There are some members of the ABC agencies who are apparently assisting the local police force. It was reported that they made 9 arrests and found 2 illegal guns. The city is ready for them, though, if this is any indication.
After weeks of speculation, it’s time for the invasion of Memphis. Pam, Pete WAR! and Stephen (new nickname I saw - Naziferatu) flew in this afternoon to kick off the operation. (I thought the air smelled sulphureous.) There have been members of the ABC agencies in town for several days. I don’t see that it got any national play, which must be disappointing for them. It just doesn’t have the pizazz you get from a war-torn Portland or Chicago. But I’m sure they hope they can get some violence out of it. Pam gave the cops permission to, well…
Stephen echoed this.
National Guard troops and vehicles were seen in a staging area.
Memphis is an interesting place to test out soldiers on American streets. It’s a blue city not only in a red state, but in a red county where 61% of the voters went for Trump in 2024. That says a lot since just 30% of the population of Memphis is white. The county below us in Mississippi is red. The county across the river in Arkansas is red. It goes without saying that all of those Republicans are thrilled with this.
I honestly don’t know what they expect is going to happen. You can put soldiers on the streets and, yes, crime will go down. That’s how it works in police states. But that does not solve the issues that lead to crime which will still be there when they leave. If they leave. Activists are talking about push-back but I don’t know what they plan to do. It could get ugly fast.
I guess we will see where this goes. I have no idea what’s in store.
I think the question I’d have is how/where the Tennessee state, and Shelby County authorities fit into all this.
I mean, except for pretty limited circumstances, the Federal law enforcement agencies don’t really have jurisdiction for most of those criminal acts that they’re talking about, and the NG has none at all. So it’s going to take cooperation by the county sheriffs, county DAs, and city police in order to actually do anything. And if as you say, Memphis is a blue city, then I suspect the city government will direct their cops to not get in the way, but not help either.
So in my estimation, it’s just more performative bullshit that doesn’t actually amount to anything. They’ll show up, puff out their chests, make a big show, and then claim that crime went down as a result, because as you say, with all that law enforcement, or at least uniformed presence, criminals will likely lay lower than usual.
But also, like you say, it’s not going to actually result in more arrests, convictions, or any fundamental change in the crime rate or reasons for crime. It’s like a city square with a bird problem; lead a pack of dogs through there, and the birds will clear out temporarily, but they’ll come right back, as you haven’t done anything to actually repel the birds in a longer-lived fashion.
I think it would be bad for the public to not have it be televised, but I wonder how Trump would react if the media just decided not to cover it at all. Would Trump keep this up if he wasn’t getting all this attention?
I’m not sure what the National Guard are doing here. There’s no evidence that they are on the streets, like in DC or LA. There have been law enforcement actions in some of the poorest parts of the city today with apparently a combination of LEOs. They are doing a lot of traffic stops in some areas and apparently calling ICE when people can’t present their papers.
They claim there were 93 arrests in the last 72 hours. This is causing a problem at the jail because there aren’t enough staff to handle that many in a short time. Looks like somebody didn’t think this through. Big surprise.
Wouldn’t it be nice if all the money and manpower that had gone into this blatant violation of constitutional rights had gone into feeding and housing the needy?
I am wondering when some of this chaos will hit smaller towns and rural areas?
I live near and frequently visit large cities in the US but reside for the most part in a small town.
It breaks my heart to see the mess that is now Washington, DC which is one of the cities I visit frequently.
