President-elect Trump has talked about using the military against the “enemy from within” against cartels at the border and possibly in Mexico as well.
The rhetoric has raised concerns among Democrats on Capitol Hill as President Trump heads toward a second term. But Republicans largely downplayed the concerns in interviews this week.
Rep. Adam Smith (D-Wash.), ranking member of the House Armed Services Committee, has expressed concerns about sending troops to the United States, especially after the election of Pete Hegseth, a Fox News personality and veteran of far-right activism. He said he was concerned. Views as the new Secretary of Defense.
“Throughout their careers, many people who have served in the Department of Defense and the military have made clear their commitment to the fact that domestic law enforcement is not the military's place,” he said. . “That's one of many concerns.”
But Rep. Doug Lamborn (R-Colo.), also a member of the Armed Services Committee, deflected the concerns, as did several Republicans contacted by The Hill.
“I don't think a lot of these ideas are that advanced to the point where they can be discussed concretely,” he says.
During the campaign, Trump supported mass deportations of illegal immigrants and vowed to use the military against demonstrators and “radical left” enemies to wage war on cartels in Mexico. expressed.
While President Trump's first term was at times thwarted by senior military and Pentagon officials, in his second term there are protests that Trump will install an absolute following who will act on his impulses. The faction is concerned.
Notably, President Trump's potential misuse of the military in 2020 was thwarted by former Secretary of Defense Mark Esper, whom Trump fired in November of the same year. Esper broke with Trump over his invocation of the Insurrection Act, which sent active-duty troops against protesters in the wake of George Floyd's death.
Critics fear that Trump will be given even greater freedoms in his second term after the Supreme Court ruled this year that presidents cannot be prosecuted criminally for acts of officialdom. Official acts would include military orders, but according to the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ), service members must obey the law regardless of instructions from the commander-in-chief.
President Trump sparked concern across Washington in October when he said in a Fox News interview ahead of Election Day that “the bigger problem is the enemy from within” rather than an external threat.
“We have some very bad people. We have sick people and radical left-wing lunatics,” the president-elect said. “It could very easily be dealt with by the National Guard if necessary, or by the military if we really needed it. They can't allow that to happen.”
Esper said last month that Americans should take President Trump's threat to use military force “seriously.”
Democrats on Capitol Hill issued a similar warning.
Rep. John Garamendi (D-Calif.), chairman of the Armed Services Committee, said President Trump has promised to “use the military to fix America and make America great again.”
“Then why don't we believe his word?” he said. “We should be concerned.”
Garamendi warned that the sitting president has “extraordinary powers” to send in the military.
The Insurrection Act of 1807 gives the president broad powers to send the military to quell an insurrection so long as it significantly impedes the functioning of the state. This is limited in part by the Posse Act of 1878, which states that the military may not be used to enforce or assist in domestic law enforcement without specific authorization from Congress.
Rep. Sarah Jacobs (D-Calif.), also on the Armed Services Committee, said that posse militias are “a fundamental tenet of our military, and following unlawful orders is illegal under the UCMJ.”
“As I represent the largest military community in this country, I know that service members should only be deployed as a last resort and never against the American people to suppress dissent.” ” she added in a statement.
But Rep. Mark Alford (R-Missouri), also a member of the Armed Services Committee, dismissed the concerns. “Mr. Trump doesn't mean that.” [target] American citizens within the United States or elsewhere,” he said.
President Trump has also promised to send troops to the border, a move many Republicans now support.
Although National Guard troops have been moved to the border before, the scope President Trump and the Republican Party envision would be unprecedented.
of 2024 Republican Platform It calls for “using all the resources necessary to stop an invasion of our country, including moving the thousands of troops currently stationed in countries that are not happy with us.”
The Republican document also states, “We will send the U.S. Navy to impose a complete fentanyl blockade of our regional waters and board and screen vessels for fentanyl and fentanyl precursors.”
The conservative Heritage Foundation's blueprint for the Trump administration, “Project 2025,” outlines a clear plan for military use at the border. President Trump has distanced himself from some of the documents.
Gene Hamilton, a former Trump administration attorney general adviser, wrote the Department of Justice chapter of Project 2025, which calls for “active-duty military and National Guard troops to assist in arrest operations along the border.”
Democrats expressed concern about what such a deployment would mean.
“Military use for domestic purposes is inappropriate and totally inappropriate,” Garamendi said. [dangerous] course. “
Republicans have also warmed to the idea of sending troops to Mexico as part of a broader fight against drug trafficking and illegal immigration.
Several candidates in the Republican primary, including runner-up Nikki Haley and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, recommended some form of military action against Mexican cartels.
Although President Trump has not explicitly mentioned action against cartels, his aides, including former Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security Ken Cuccinelli, have publicly proposed For that. Cuccinelli wrote the Homeland Security chapter for Project 2025.
Congressman Mike Walz (R-Fla.), nominated by President Trump to be National Security Advisor; Previously introduced legislation Authorizing the use of military force against cartels.
And President Trump's incoming border czar, Tom Homan, told Fox News this week that fighting cartels “absolutely requires military operations and special operations.”
The Hill previously reported that military action in Mexico threatens to upend the U.S. government's relationship with its largest trading partner and is unlikely to resolve the underlying problems that led to the cartels' vast power. Ta.
Esper said President Trump considered dropping bombs on drug labs in Mexico during his first term.
Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Florida), who was nominated by President Trump to be secretary of state, supports sending troops to Mexico “as long as there is cooperation from the Mexican government.”
“I would be happy to support this measure, but it requires cooperation between the military and the Mexican police. Otherwise it would not be possible.” he told El Unisar In 2023.
But Democratic lawmakers are worried that Trump, who has already threatened to impose huge tariffs on Mexico, could act unilaterally and further sour relations with the U.S. neighbor.
Jacobs expressed concern about the “unwarranted and unauthorized invasion of our nation's largest trading partner,” adding that “cartels will retaliate and more refugees will come to the United States to escape the violence that, ironically, we have caused.” It's very likely.”
“For those of us who live in Mar-a-Lago, we need to understand the impact of sending troops to the Mexican border and into Mexico, which we deal with every day, from trade to tourism to counterterrorism to cross-border pollution. There's no way they would understand,” she said.
“I don't think it's a good idea to go to war in Mexico,” added Smith, the ranking member on the Armed Services Committee.
