Throughout the election season, Donald Trump repeatedly used the phrase “enemy from within” to describe Democrats and other Americans he dislikes. This, in and of itself, was extraordinary, but in mid-October, with roughly three weeks remaining before Election Day 2024, the Republican pushed the envelope even further.
In an interview that aired on Fox News, Maria Bartiromo asked Trump whether he was “expecting chaos on Election Day.” As part of the question, she referred to immigrants with criminal records and those on terrorist watch-lists.
“I think the bigger problem is the enemy from within,” Trump replied. “We have some very bad people. We have some sick people, radical left lunatics.” In the next breath, in an apparent reference to Election Day concerns, the Republican concluded, “It should be very easily handled by, if necessary, by National Guard — or if really necessary, by the military, because they can’t let that happen.”
In context, as we’ve discussed, it was difficult to avoid the conclusion that Trump was suggesting the military could, and perhaps should, be used against Americans on American soil.
The relevance of the comments has not faded. On the contrary, as NBC News reported, two Democratic senators are hoping to see the Biden administration help Trump-proof the Pentagon by issuing a policy directive related to domestic troop deployments.
Sens. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., both members of the Armed Services Committee, sent a letter dated Nov. 26 to President Joe Biden and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin that urged them to issue a policy directive that would ensure that U.S. troops can be used only when local or state authorities ask for federal help or are unable or unwilling to protect the public.
“We write to urge you to issue a policy directive that prohibits the mobilization of active duty military or federalizing National Guard personnel to be deployed against their fellow Americans unless specifically authorized,” the Democratic lawmakers wrote.
At this point, I imagine many readers are thinking along the same lines. “Yeah, sure,” some of you are no doubt saying. “Biden and Austin could issue a directive on this, making the guardrails clear, but there would be nothing to stop Trump from issuing his own directive after Inauguration Day and undoing the policy.”
That’s true, and it’s a point Warren and Blumenthal are well aware of. But let’s not lose sight of the context: If, after returning to the Oval Office, Trump were to rescind a policy directive prohibiting the mobilization of active-duty troops be deployed against Americans, that would be the basis for a rather dramatic controversy.
Indeed, the new Republican White House would suddenly face some difficult questions as to why, exactly, Trump felt the need to take such a step.
To be sure, Trump and his team might not care about difficult questions, political pushback, and public uproar, but they’re not the only relevant players: Congressional Republicans, many of whom have to worry about re-election in 2026, would face related lines of inquiry about why their party’s leader wants the authority to deploy the military against American civilians on American soil.
All of which is to say, if Biden and Austin are considering such a move, the fact that the president-elect might reverse it shouldn’t discourage them.
