In his new book, The Sacred Oath, published earlier this week, Mark T. Esper, a former defense minister, revealed that President Donald J. In 2020, Trump proposed the idea of launching rockets in Mexico to “destroy drug labs” and asked why the military could not “just shoot” racial justice protesters in Washington at the feet.
Mr Esper also described fears that Mr Trump could abuse the military during the 2020 elections, for example by asking soldiers to seize ballot boxes.
On Monday, when a Fox News presenter asked if he thought President Trump was “a threat to democracy,” Mr Esper was outspoken.
“I think that given the events of January 6, given how he undermined the election results, he encouraged people to come to the District of Columbia, woke them up that morning and failed to repeal them, for me it threatens our democracy,” he said. .
“So yes?” Asked host Brett Bayer.
Mr. Esper replied, “What else can you conclude, Brett?”
This comment from a man who also served as secretary of the army and chief of staff of the conservative Heritage Foundation was seen by some as a startlingly direct condemnation. But Mr Esper was not the first former Trump administration official to go beyond criticism of President Trump’s temperament or specific policies to say he posed a threat to American democracy itself.
Here is a compilation of comments from Mr. Esper and other former officials made during and after President Trump’s term.
MARK T. ESPER, Minister of Defense (July 2019-November 2020)
“It was a very worrying event. At the moment, it was an uprising, an attempt to overturn free and fair elections and prevent a peaceful transfer of power. And that [sic] he was right to be impeachment. “
– Interview with Judy Woodruff, PBS NewsHour, May 6, commenting on the January 6 uprising
STEFANI GRISHEM, White House Spokesperson and Director of Communications (July 2019-April 2020)
“Everyone is showing their loyalty to them, he is on a tour of revenge for people who dared to vote for impeachment. I just want to warn people, after he takes office, if he has to win, he no longer has to worry about re-election, he will deal with revenge, he will probably have a lot of draconian politics.
– Good Morning America interview, October 4, 2021, in which she also said that she would call on Mr. Trump “not to run” in 2024.
Miles Taylor, Chief of Staff, Department of Homeland Security (February 2019-September 2019) and author of the anonymously published book “Warning”
“I am still amazed by the countless Trump officials who have privately agreed with me that he is a threat to democracy, but are * still * silent. Why? “
– Twitter, June 11, 2021
JOHN F. KELLY, Secretary of Homeland Security (January 2017-July 2017) and Chief of Staff of the White House (July 2017-January 2019)
“What happened on Capitol Hill yesterday was a direct result of poisoning people’s minds with lies and deception.
– Interview with Jake Tapper, CNN, January 7, 2021
HR MCMASTER, former National Security Adviser (February 2017-April 2018)
“This is a gift for our opponents, who want to shake our confidence in who we are, to shake our confidence in our democratic principles and institutions and processes.
– Interview with Chuck Todd for “Meet the Press”, September 27, 2020, commenting on President Trump’s refusal to commit to a peaceful transfer of power if he loses the election
JOHN R. BOLTON, Former National Security Adviser (April 2018 – September 2019)
“My concern, speaking as a conservative Republican, is that once the election is over, if the president wins, the political restraint will disappear. And since he has no philosophical basis, it is impossible to say what will happen in the second term.
– Interview with Martha Radac, ABC News, June 21, 2020, in which he also said that President Trump is a “danger to the republic.”
JAMES N. MATTIS, Secretary of Defense (January 2017-January 2019)
“When I joined the army about 50 years ago, I swore to support and defend the Constitution. I never dreamed that troops who took the same oath would be ordered under any circumstances to violate the constitutional rights of their fellow citizens – much less to provide a strange picture of the elected commander-in-chief with the military leadership standing. next to him.
“We know we are better than the abuse of executive power we have witnessed in Lafayette Square. We must reject and hold accountable those in power who would mock our constitution. “
– Statement published by The Atlantic on 3 June 2020 following the clearing of protesters from Lafayette Square in Washington, DC
REX W. TILLERSON, Former Secretary of State (February 2017-March 2018)
“If our leaders seek to hide the truth or we as human beings begin to accept alternative realities that are no longer based on facts, then we as American citizens are about to give up our freedom.
“If we as Americans do not face the crisis of ethics and integrity in our society and among our leaders in both the public and private sectors – and unfortunately sometimes even in the non-profit sector – then American democracy as we know it,” enters the twilight years ”
– Opening speech at the Virginia Military Institute, May 16, 2018
Add Comment