In my previous post I highlighted the severe damage Trump’s cronies were inflicting on the capacity of the federal government:
Shutting down agencies, blocking distribution of funds, purging personnel throughout the executive branch, and trampling over the Constitution and the law of the land. All of this will have profound long-term consequences.
And that’s the point. To do permanent damage. To unravel the administrative readiness of the federal government. To render the state incapable of serving working- and middle-class Americans.
I wrote this with a sense of urgency, because if this effort continues apace, it will take only days or weeks for the folks Trump has unleashed to inflict enormous harm. So much so that even with good faith efforts to recover, it could take years or decades to rebuild from the rubble. (And there isn’t the slightest reason to suppose that recovery efforts would take place under favorable circumstances.)
Meanwhile, the world’s richest man and most frenzied oligarch leading the lawless wrecking crew, while incongruously claiming the mantle of democracy, is in a hurry:
We’re never going to get another chance like this.
It’s now or never.
This is a lawless enterprise, so of course Elon Musk, the Project 2025 fanatics, and MAGA loyalists are in a hurry to complete the dirty deed. The Roberts Court, departing sharply from constitutional principles, granted Trump broad immunity from criminal prosecution while in office. Through his pardon power, Trump can exempt everyone acting under his authority from criminal liability as well.
Is this the perfect crime? (Or crime spree?) It’s happening right before our eyes, but can anyone stop it?
The Democrats lack clout.
The Democrats have finally woken up to this crisis, but — locked out by voters in the November 2024 — have little institutional power to push back. They are ▪ trying to get the attention of the public, ▪ preparing to use leverage in their negotiations over the budget and the debt limit, and ▪ turning to the third branch for help by filing lawsuits.
▪ But Musk is immune from repercussions from anyone except Trump, who is gaga over having Musk in his corner drawing monumental attention to the president’s second go-round in the White House. The public is split. The MAGA faction is with Trump, while the Democrats who are alert to the crisis are just not well-positioned to do much more in February 2025 than they were in November 2024.
▪ With the narrow Republican majorities, the minority party in Congress has significant leverage regarding legislation, but this isn’t a legislative battle; the legislative crunch time is a month or more away; and what do laws matter when there is a lawless chief executive who has empowered a rogue agent?
▪ Democratic governors, attorneys general, and other allies will seek judicial remedies. There will be victories (and defeats), but we’ve seen Trump successfully evade accountability for his criminal conduct in the January 6 and classified documents cases. The courts are slow to act; too many judges (and justices) are corrupt partisans; and the tools the judiciary commands are hardly unlimited.
At the moment, this doesn’t feel much like a winning hand. But it’s going to have to do for now.
The Republicans are onboard with Trump’s agenda.
If just a handful of Republicans in either house were to offer objections to Musk’s lawless and unconstitutional power grab, they could at least slow things down. But the incentives (like those of billionaires and corporate America) count against standing in Trump’s way.
If they objected, their careers would be threatened and perhaps their personal safety. There were reports that a number of House Republicans who declined to vote for Trump’s second impeachment because they feared violence directed at them and their families. Such considerations look more likely today, after the Trump pardons of violent criminals, than they did in 2021.
Moreover, Congressional Republicans are aligned with Trump’s war on federal agencies and spending. For decades the Republican Party has sought to limit the regulatory scope of the federal government and to cut taxes to fund these activities. Shrinking government is the party’s holy grail. That’s what Musk is doing on Trump’s watch.
Having come this far with Trump, no Congressional Republican has dared object to the unlawful means Musk has employed to hollow out the federal workforce or to block distribution of approved funding. No one has objected that the process has been reckless or haphazard; that Americans may be denied assistance; that Trump is U.S. is ceding influence internationally; that collateral damage, such as personal data breaches, are likely.
There may be murmurings about this or that, but no Republican dares to raise a hand to put a stop to it. Instead, they stay silent, duck questions about lawless conduct, play whataboutism, or actively endorse what’s going on.
All the while, they await a victory to shrink the size and scope of the federal government. Finally, Social Security, Medicare, EPA, HEW, and other alphabet agencies may be tamed.
It’s no wonder that Republicans haven’t objected to Musk’s methods. Instead they’ve decided to just take the win.
The battle at this early stage on behalf of the rule of law; a robust, effective federal government; and American strength and security is up to the Democratic Party.