Trump Could Legally Quell Protests with Military: Former Defense Secretary
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Former US secretary of defense Mark Esper on Friday warned of Donald Trump's ability to legally suppress protests against him by using the military if he's reelected in 2024.
Trump is currently seeking the GOP nomination for US president in 2024, with poll after poll giving him a seemingly insurmountable lead over the rest of the candidates, leading many to consider him the inevitable nominee. Last Sunday, The Washington Post published a report outlining Trump's alleged plans to invoke the Insurrection Act on the very first day of his hypothetical second term in the White House, allowing him to use military force to quash protests against his presidency, Newsweek reported.
Esper served as the secretary of defense under Trump from 2019 to 2020, taking over the role after the resignation of Jim Mattis. He was fired from the position by Trump via a social media post shortly after the 2020 election, with many speculating that he was terminated due to his unwillingness to go along with Trump's plans to contest Joe Biden's victory. Esper later joined all other living former defense secretaries in publishing on op-ed condemning Trump's election denialism.
On Friday, Esper made an appearance on CNN where he discussed the ability that Trump would have to legally suppress dissent if reelected.
"I think if something like (the invocation of the Insurrection Act) were to happen right after an inauguration in January 2025, I guess there would not be a civilian chain of command in place at that point in time, first of all, to push back," Esper explained.
"So there would probably be an acting secretary, he or she would then have to decide whether or not to implement that order. Otherwise, the military chain of command would be intact. There's another option too. Most often, people go to the active duty, but there's nothing that prevents the president from asking a governor, a friendly governor, to mobilize his national guard to assist as well."
He continued, stressing that "once the president is signed into office, it is completely legal for him to invoke the Insurrection Act," and noting that such a process is usually initiated with a recommendation from the attorney general. As of the first day, there would likely only be an acting attorney general, complicating the matter further.
During the last months of his presidency, Trump was reportedly told by lawyer Jeffrey Clark that the Insurrection Act could be used to shut down protests if he had attempted to remain in office despite losing to Biden.
