Lawsuit: Trump using feds in Portland to create national police force | KOIN.comPORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN TV)
"The federal response to the ongoing protests in Portland is a result of President Donald Trump’s threat to “‘take over’ American cities” and desire to create a national police force, a lawsuit filed on behalf of Don’t Shoot Portland, Wall of Moms and other individual protesters claims.
The lawsuit, which was filed on Monday and names Chad Wolf, the acting Secretary of Homeland Security, and U.S. Attorney General William Barr among other defendants, alleges Trump consulted with Barr and Wolf to use the Black Lives Matter protests in the wake of the killing of George Floyd “as an opportunity to use federal forces — not to defend civil rights, but to quell the protests.”
I don’t know if this had been brought up but I saw this today:
Jeh Johnson (former US Secretary of Homeland Security) confirmed on MSNBC that DHS 'cops' are 'contractors.' They are mercenaries supplied by Erik Prince, brother of Betsy DeVos, who runs a private military company called Blackwater. The US Govt is paying for this army.
Can this be true? Who knows. But interesting. I have seen this on other twitter thread.
https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1286730355496476673.html
Jeh Johnson (former US Secretary of Homeland Security) confirmed on MSNBC that DHS 'cops' are 'contractors.' They are mercenaries supplied by Erik Prince, brother of Betsy DeVos, who runs a private military company called Blackwater. The US Govt is paying for this army.
Can this be true? Who knows. But interesting. I have seen this on other twitter thread.
It fits. @jeanne-mayell told us about Erik Prince and Blackwater here years ago. I expected news of him to pop up sooner or later!
I found this earlier but didn't share it yet. Relates to @jessi1978 previous post.
Portland
Clashes in Portland as Trump’s actions light fuse under protests in other cities.
"The US agents, drawn mainly from border patrol, were dispatched to Portland by Donald Trump ostensibly to protect the courthouse.
But they have succeeded in inflaming the situation, redirecting the ire of demonstrators away from police brutality and towards the president’s provocative deployment of highly militarised officers with no known training in crowd control.
Trump has justified the move, saying it is intended to tackle anarchy and violence on the streets of Portland and other cities.
But he has focused his rhetoric at the Democratic management of those cities in what critics have decried as a blatant electoral ploy ahead of November's election."
Clashes in Portland as Trump’s actions light fuse under protests in other cities | Portland | The Guardian
My husband (poli sci major) reminded me this evening that these so called troops are not subject to the rule of Posse Comitatis, because they are not technically part of any military branch. This has the stink of Stephen C-Grade Fascist From Santa Monica Miller all over it.
Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler and Commissioner Joanne Hardesty request meeting with DHS Secretary Wolf to resolve Portland protest.
| kgw.com
With our evening news reporting that at different times they have heard that Trump was increasing DHS agents and others by 50 to 100 to even a reported 150 more, its pushing the need for a change in both policing and federal responses.
Ps Thanks @laura-f for the Posse Comitatus Act link. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Posse_Comitatus_Act
I watched AG Bob Barr bluster, prevaricate and twist in his "testimony" all afternoon.. it was clear to see (and Jim Jordan's ridiculous antics all over again just like in the Impeachment hearing.. thank God Doug Collins wasn't there to add his screeching) that he is Trump's man.. not the peoples. HE was also questioned about the paramilitary "special groups" deployed to Portland and their "job" there... and.. of course.. an honest answer was not forthcoming. He was called out several times and forced to see his complicity which of course he continued to deny. It is interesting to see where it goes from here... as the testimony/appearance just came to an end.
@jessi1978. @michele-b. @vestralux
I could find zero news except for the one you posted which was from something called Candy Comedy and then a bunch of other non news sites that post rumors.
We posted some that is related to this item and it came in March when it was discovered that Erik Prince had been hired by the Trump Administration to spy on liberal protest groups, starting with a teachers union in his sister, Betsy Davos, the Education Secretary's home state of Minnesota. Erik Prince Recruits Former Spies to Infiltrate Liberal Groups.
This development could be the beginning of something dark and dangerous that some of us have been worried about for several years. It is possible Prince's mercenaries are part of the DHS troops, but no credible news sources have reported it as far as I know.
I admit that when I saw the unmarked police in Portland grabbing young men from the streets, I thought it was Prince's work and that they were going to get intelligence from them to help Trump's campaign. But I have no credible information on it, just a bad feeling.
Some astrologers on YouTube are suggesting sending secret police to democratic cities to incite violence is part of Trump and Barr's plan to declare martial law and send in the military to supress democratic votes and disrupt the election. Any thoughts?
Perhaps this article has some use for confirming what we "feel"? https://www.justsecurity.org/71636/the-presidents-private-army/
and this is what I found when researching if they are a reliable source: https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/just-security/
The President’s Private Army
"Congress and the courts must step in. Otherwise, having found his army, Trump is sure to use it again in coming months. Bullying Democratic mayors and governors plays well with his base, whose support was beginning to waver due to Trump’s disastrous mishandling of Covid-19. More chilling, he could deploy his paramilitary forces in Democratic strongholds on Election Day as a means of suppressing voter turnout.
With DHS acting as a paramilitary force, the deployment violates the fundamental principle behind the law.
President Trump has already used federal forces to undermine local sovereignty and the rights of protesters. This practice must be stopped, lest he use these same tactics to undermine"
https://www.justsecurity.org/71636/the-presidents-private-army/
Home Page - Just Security
https://www.justsecurity.org/
"Just Security is based at the Reiss Center on Law and Security at New York University School of Law."
@journeywithme2, I heard a few bits and pieces of Barr sleazing his way through the hearing. No real surprises. When asked about mail-in voting, he supported what his boss has been claiming, i.e. mail-in votes are more suspectable to fraud. So we know what he's planning to do with the 2020 election.
Any recent readings on Barr? Out or still in before the election?
@susane I've been saying since 2016 that I felt that this is what will happen if Trump decides he has no other way of staying in office. I had this message on the main prediction page for two years. It's still in the forum somewhere. Now it is starting to show signs that it could happen.
@jeanne-mayell Will we be able to get past the pending doom? Will justice prevail?
@jeanne-mayell: I've been saying since 2016 that I felt that this is what will happen if Trump decides he has no other way of staying in office. I had this message on the main prediction page for two years. It's still in the forum somewhere. Now it is starting to show signs that it could happen."
I joined officially one month to the day from when Jeanne launched this newest site and you, @jeanne-mayell, Graham, and @LB and @natalie were posters that all made me really interested in this amazing site.
And that warning about Trump and future tactics for re-election was indeed a mainstay of your primary predictions and imprinted in my brain to stay alert and never take the outcome of the 2020 election for granted just as we all learned we shouldn't have trusted the 2016 one.
Talk about pre-sentience! I remember all kinds of civil unrest discussions that could distract us all, make it challenging, or impossible for many to vote in 2020 all being brought up as well, so Trump could keep control (with help) over the process.
@jeanne-mayell:
Ultimately the future is a mystery, but I believe with all my heart that justice and goodness will prevail once people are done with the darkness. Women will rise. People of color will rise. All honest working people will rise. You, Enkasongwriter, have already risen.
Everyone must vote and vote early enough to be sure their vote is counted. And help others to vote too!
Yes Yes Yes to all of this! Keep positive faith and do all we can to help keep the energies focused and positive while still keeping an eye on the all of the manipulative powers in play.
@enkasongwriter I know we will be okay down the road. I pray it works out this election but only spirit knows. Many here have seen good outcomes for the election -- I even got a good card reading recently-- but I still have that vision for the 2020's six years ago that showed it would take several years to turn things around. That vision didn't tell me what the election outcome would be however, just that it's going to be a few years before the Great Unraveling makes way for the Great Turning.
Ultimately the future is a mystery, but I believe with all my heart that justice and goodness will prevail once people are done with the darkness. Women will rise. People of color will rise. All honest working people will rise. You, Enkasongwriter, have already risen.
Everyone must vote and vote early enough to be sure their vote is counted. And help others to vote too!
@michele-b I like your attitude that we just have to use our awareness of these dark tactics that are afoot to be extra alert, to get everyone to vote. To help unseat the GOP control of the Senate and this president. Send positive energy, do all we can.
@jeanne-mayell Will we be able to get past the pending doom? Will justice prevail?
I remember reading somewhere (no link -- sorry) that mass demonstrations are the only way to put a stop to authoritarian rule.
With that in mind, I think things look hopeful, considering the current state of affairs. If people are protesting this much NOW -- and there are no signs of it slowing down -- imagine what will happen come November if he refuses to leave office.
The reason I think that trump will lose in November is because if ultimately things are going to work themselves out, and we get past all this, well I don't see how that can possibly happen if he IS reelected. I don't see how our democracy, our economy, our society can bounce back from it. That said, this is just my head talking, not instinct or intuition. On that level I'm too freaked out today to know how I feel. Yesterday's Barr hearings alarmed me even more. It's not news that he's a smug, condescending jerk, but his level of lawlessness, and his lack of shame at flashing it before the world on TV is both depressing and frightening. Why is he so confident? What does he know, and what is he planning? As far as distractions, there's more to come.