New Orleans The current table thumping by President Trump, Vice-President Vance, and Attorney-General Bondi, seems largely to be a cry that “vengeance is mine” without rhyme, reason, or restraint. It’s hard to tell if this is grief and sorrow over the Kirk assassination being converted into words or a cover for previous plans and intentions. We seem to be moving from autocracy and one-man rule knocking on the door to the same people swinging the door wide open.
The target of all of this retribution without evidence or justification is some mystical and largely imaginary “radical left.” It seems the administration and its attack dogs are still looking for antifa, whatever that might really be.
The attack is also directed at funders of this so-called bunch. Thus far that seems to be the usual rightwing placeholders, like Ford and George Soros Open Society Foundations. One-hundred philanthropic institutions, including those two, as well even libertarian outfits like Omidyar, signed an open letter blasting both political violence and this vengeance-based call for retribution. Not sure what that really achieves other than making sure none of them are individually targeted on specious grounds. No report that Gates or any of that ilk joined in defending illegal attacks like the ones Trump and his team are threatening.
Most reports believe that the attack on organizations will be directed at the tax-exempt status of nonprofit organizations, like these. Technically, it won’t be easy for the Trump team, because there are specific laws which offer even criminal penalties for IRS employees who attempt to purse individual attacks on an organization’s tax status. This was a rock that stubbed Trump’s toe earlier this year when he went after Harvard and its 501c3. The fact that it’s not legal may not dissuade them, as we have seen in the Media Matters situation. They finally prevailed when a federal judge ordered the FTC to stop their biased investigation, but had spent millions in defending themselves before that reprieve. Bleeding nonprofits dry like that or intimidating funders from making grants and forcing them also divert their resources would have the same chilling and detrimental impact. Declaring groups to be domestic terrorists, leaves little grounds for appeal, as we have seen in the British situation involving Palestine Action.
More than 15 years ago in the attack against ACORN, some wiseacres had argued that if conservatives had not had ACORN to attack, they would have had to invent something like that for their campaign. What’s worrisome now is the mission of the Trump vengeance tour may have as its objective just that – inventing boogeymen to attack.
The Attorney General was so far off the ranch in some of her remarks about speech that even the archconservative editorial writers at the Wall Street Journal felt it necessary to scold her for her lack of understanding about free speech and the real definitions of “hate” speech. In a coup de grâce, they did no using broad arguments for free speech, even close to the line, from Charlie Kirk’s own statements. Their real message was less to Bondi, who may be uneducable, although they suggested she spend more time studying the law than appearing on podcasts, than it was to the White House. Hopefully, someone up there has their feet on the ground, because it won’t be Stephen Miller, whose comments on all of this have made Bondi seem like a choirgirl.
These are dark times.