https://www.axios.com/trump-firing-wray-haspel-esper-088cbd70-3524-4625-91f1-dbc985767c71.html
There are indications that if Trump stays in office he plans a purge – a move that
will alarm some within the Establishment as it indicates he's prepared to adopt
a completely reckless attitude in his second term. And given the way he's conducted himself over the past four years, that's really saying something.
His iconoclasm will continue even while he panders to certain
elements within the Establishment. A friend to Wall Street and the Pentagon,
Trump is suspicious of the American Deep State which despite the protestations
of CNN and the like is in fact a real thing. And it didn't originate with
Trump. It's been talked about for decades and the FBI and CIA play important
roles within it. These are the Praetorians who defend the order despite who
holds the throne (or Oval Office).
And yet Trump is attempting (or will attempt) to purge these
elements. A dangerous move at any time, it may be his undoing or it may mark
his triumph and the rise of a new epoch in American history. And while the current
arrangement is ugly and has led to great suffering around the globe, the new
order that Trump seeks to establish will not be pretty.
In the early 4th century the Praetorians backed
Maxentius and when he was defeated by Constantine (the Great), the new emperor
dismantled them and scattered them to the winds. Their power was broken.
Other emperors tried and failed as have other presidents such
as John F Kennedy. The price of failure has often been quite high.
They have been moving tepidly against Trump. It would seem
they've tried to use and control him and in other cases manipulate him to their
advantage but on certain points he's proven recalcitrant and destructive. It's
clear they want him gone but he's not going to go quietly. We may see his first
move on election night as there are indications that he plans to declare
victory early. This is assuming that the in-person votes which are counted
immediately (and affect exit polls) will give him the advantage. Then in
subsequent days when the mail-in ballots move the needle over into the Biden
column, the Trump team will call 'foul' and 'fraud'.
It could get very interesting indeed especially if his
paramilitaries take to the streets.
Trump may get away with a lot but it's complicated as figures
like Attorney General Barr are clearly part of the Deep State-Praetorian
structure. Barr has been a longtime agent of US intelligence and when I spoke
of them using and manipulating Trump – I think of figures like Barr who
operates with his own agenda and often independently of Trump. Will Trump
retain him or purge him? It might 'tip the scales' either way. I'm surprised in
some ways they haven't moved more aggressively against Trump but the threat of
Civil War is real and frankly controlling the narrative of something like an
assassination isn't as easy as it once was. It's an awful risk even for those
in power. The political risks are low as Pence would easily slip into the role
and would not conduct himself like Trump but the problem is no one believes
Pence can control the Trumpian street – the increasingly armed, militant, and
dangerous Trump-inspired radicalised street.
We'll all be holding our collective breath waiting to see
what the November 2020 to January 2021 time-frame has in store.
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