June 11, 2025

Once again, we've got alternating pro- and anti-Trump headlines at Real Clear Politics.

I blogged a screen grab like this 2 days ago, here, so let's take a look today's image of distanced balance:

Once again, I'll use my time-saving method of picking one of each:

On the anti side, I'm going with Judith Levine, "Trump is waging war against citizens in LA. This is a dangerous new era/In its first months in office, the Trump administration enacted what could be called soft authoritarianism. Now we are in a second phase" (The Guardian):

In its first months in office, the Trump administration enacted what could be called soft authoritarianism: rhetorical glorification of white masculinity and derision of frailty and difference; intimidation of liberal democratic institutions – universities, law firms, the press, and the arts; weaponization of the judicial system against Trump’s perceived foes.... 
But in the last week or so, a second phase has begun unfolding: the literal weaponization of the government to contain dissent. It is no hyperbole to call this, and the less visible mechanisms that reinforce it, fascism.

This weekend in Los Angeles, protests broke out over Ice raids across the city.... Some of the resistance was not peaceful – objects were thrown at cars, for instance – but the LA police got matters in hand. Still, over the objections of Newsom and LA’s mayor, Karen Bass, Trump deployed 300 national guard troops to the scene.... Like every authoritarian regime, this one justifies doing its “job” as a defense of public safety necessitated by lawlessness....
On the pro side, we've got Heather Mac Donald, "Trump’s Unapologetic Defense of the Rule of Law/The president is right to activate the National Guard amid the lawless mayhem in California, which is being excused and dismissed by the state’s leaders" (City Journal).

Trump has referred to an “invasion” of illegal aliens. That characterization does not seem wildly off-base when one sees the ostensible fealties of the alleged invaders. A history of normalizing, minimizing, or even celebrating violence preceded the illegal-alien riots, including the beatification of assassin Luigi Mangione, the glorification of Hamas terrorism, and the excusing of inner-city street crime routinely provided by Democratic public figures....

Trump’s order is confined to the “temporary” protection of ICE and other federal personnel, as they enforce federal law, and to the protection of federal property in places where protests against federal enforcement have occurred or are likely to occur....

To the disgust of the media, Trump said after the mobilization: “No one will spit on our police and our military; when they spit, we will hit.” There may be more eloquent ways to express this determination, but for many Americans, Trump’s unapologetic defense of the law this weekend represented liberation from a poisonous set of lies.

67 comments:

rehajm said...

…have you just discovered RCPs left/right/left/right summary march?

Ann Althouse said...

no

Chris said...

"This weekend in Los Angeles, protests broke out over Ice raids across the city.... Some of the resistance was not peaceful – objects were thrown at cars, for instance – but the LA police got matters in hand." That might be the biggest line of bullshit i've ever read. Also the reason why I have to argue with idiots that think that Trump sending in the national guard has no precedent in history ever like it's never ever been done ever and a sure sign that he is literally orange hitler.

Kate said...

I read the WSJ one. All the others, based on the source and the headline, are predictable. I love RCP, but I prefer when they surprise me with their picks.

Peachy said...

Rachel Maddow - soi boi of the leftist liars and instigators.

Quaestor said...

Soft authoritarianism? What the Sam Hill is that equivocated shit? Whenever a president exercises his lawful powers of enforcement, he's being authoritarian. When a president is a soft authoritarian, he's neglecting his constitutional duty.

FormerLawClerk said...

Trump isn't waging a war against citizens.

He's waging war against illegal aliens.

Get your wars right, Guardian.

And by the way, hasn't your country been taken over too?

Mason G said...

"It is no hyperbole to call this, and the less visible mechanisms that reinforce it, fascism."

Yes, it is.

Leftists are rioting, causing the destruction of innocent people's property and Trump is making an effort to stop it.

Blow it out your ass, Judith.

The Middle Coast said...

“Objects were thrown.” How do we know the objects didn’t throw themselves?

BUMBLE BEE said...

Same revolution, different century.
Been there, seen that.

FormerLawClerk said...

Trump has been very clear about what US policy needs to be vis-a-vis sanctuary states:

"The reason the cities ignore federal law is the fact that there is no funding at the federal level to provide for the kind of enforcement at the federal level you need. Pick up the New York Times today. There's a city that imposed similar sanctuary. And what they found out is, as a consequence of that, their city went in the dumpster. Stores started closing. Everything started to happen. And they changed the policy. Part of the problem is, you have to have a federal government that can enforce laws. This government has been fundamentally derelict in not funding any of the requirements that are needed even to enforce the existing law."

Oh, by the way, that's not Trump.

That's Joe Biden speaking to NBC News.

Aggie said...

Where are the complaints from actual verifiable home & business-owning citizens, decrying that Trump's protection is hurting them? What about a counterpoint to this? Instead, no input from actual verifiable citizens. "...In this diverse city, which immigrants are rebuilding after the devastating fires..." Really? Rebuilding what, exactly? The homes of movies stars that can't get building permits, or their own actual homes? Or is it more a case of 'don't take our cheap labor !' ?

Aggie said...

Also, all these politicians waxing eloquent on 'overreach' and 'fascism'. How come they aren't in the streets with their constituents, making sure nobody's civil rights are being violated? How come they do all their talking from the Press Room? Walter Kirn asks this, also pointing out that there's a level of respect from LEO's on the remarkable levels of organization, logistical support, discipline and tactical training evidenced by these poor, beleaguered, undocumented migrants that are just looking for a better life, God Bless'em.

Peachy said...
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Peachy said...
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Saint Croix said...

Matt Taibbi is rivaling AA for the title Our Favorite Liberal. Ferocious free speaker unleashed.

Peachy said...

Law clerk - is that from 2007?
Because when Crook Joe(D-Soros puppet) was running his campaign prior to 2020 - Biden said "Illegals should surge the border - and seek asylum"
Biden rolled out the red carpet for illegals, and told them to abuse our asylum laws. Soros funds bused and trucked them to the border in clean sneakers.

Here is the Clip of Biden

Breezy said...

Soros knew how to game NGO funding. He contributed a dime for every dollar or more from our own government, then dictated the allocation of NGO funds from there. He used our own tax dollars to tear us down. He and his ilk need to be banished from every western society. And our legislators need to put guardrails up against these future shenanigans.

RCOCEAN II said...

Its impossible to read much of the MSM anymore its just leftist propaganda with no connection to the truth or reality. Biden issued zillions of executive orders but that wasn't "authoritarianism". That only occurs with Trump. And what does "authoritarianism" even mean? Its just an insult label.

Newsom has to gone to a Leftwing Judge to get the NG recalled. Amazingly, the Lefty judge refused to issue an injunction but will hear the issue. Look for another King Judge "Ruler of all he surveys" to overide the POTUS and demand the NG be recalled.

At some point, trump will have to say the Judges have overstepped their authority and refuse to obey them. Because we cant go on with 700 district judges thinking they're POTUS.

Breezy said...

Saint Croix comment re Taibbi gets a ditto from me. IMHO, he’s one of the most well read information assimilators in our media ecosystem.

Peachy said...

Taibbi - Several chess moves ahead in his thinking.
thanks for the link - Saint Croix.

GRW3 said...

A Grauniad columnist commenting on a war against citizens is rich, considering what is happening in the UK these days.

Big Mike said...

… the literal weaponization of the government to contain dissent

Rioting, burning cars, looting, throwing rocks “big enough to kill people,” these days that’s mere “dissent.” Would Ms. Levine be okay with young conservatives “dissenting” using those tactics in her neighborhood?

Didn’t think so.

Wince said...

Did any of the articles mention shadowy billionaire Neville Singham?

In 2019, Singham started a consulting business with partners who are active in the propaganda apparatus of the Chinese Communist Party and who co-own a company with a municipal government that promotes anti-poverty policies.

A socialist and supporter of Maoism, according to The New York Times, Singham has provided significant funding for media outlets, organizations and politicians around the world that promote pro-Chinese government propaganda.


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neville_Roy_Singham

Rory said...

"It is no hyperbole to call this, and the less visible mechanisms that reinforce it, fascism."

Uh, street thugs are one of the hallmarks of fascism.

Wince said...

Rep. Anna Paulina Luna @RepLuna
Thanks to the investigative work of @DataRepublican, House Oversight will issue a formal document request to Neville Singham regarding his funding of a communist group linked to the LA riots and the CCP.

IF HE REFUSES TO APPEAR, HE WILL BE SUBPOENAED, AND IF HE IGNORES THAT HE WILL BE REFERRED TO THE DOJ FOR PROSECUTION.


https://x.com/DataRepublican

mindnumbrobot said...

"... the Trump administration enacted what could be called soft authoritarianism: rhetorical glorification of white masculinity and derision of frailty and difference..."

That's as far as I got. No need going any further.

Kakistocracy said...

I’m not sure this is a wannabe autocrat pursuing authoritarianism. To me, it looks like a man who is concerned more about ratings than the law. He wants this show—it’s theater.

And, perversely, it also benefits Newsom.

We need the courts to come down hard on this, and quickly. Then we will see Trump whine and cry on social media, and back down.

Hassayamper said...

He and his ilk need to be banished from every western society.

He should be extradited to Hungary, where he is a wanted man, to face trial for his financial crimes against the people of that nation.

He is a soulless currency speculator who employs no one except a handful of traders and fixers, and made his billions by looting national treasuries and depriving their citizens of needed services. In all likelihood he is the beneficiary of insider information (and perhaps even more unsavory help) from the Deep State intelligence apparatus and/or its foreign co-conspirators like MI6 and Mossad.

He is the very Platonic ideal of the Monopoly-man capitalist boogeyman that is always portrayed in top hat and spats by the far Left. If he gave money to Republicans instead of Democrats, he would easily supplant the Koch Brothers and Trump and every other conservative, in fact all of them put together, as the primary target of the Left's "Two Minutes Hate."

Peachy said...

Kak - a -phony
No one cares what you or rachel maddow vomit.

Leland said...

Soft authoritarianism? What the Sam Hill is that equivocated shit?

This coming from the UK Guardian, where Kier Starmer’s government put a woman in jail for 2.5 years for publishing a tweet. The same government that sent party representatives to the US to interfere on behalf of Biden in our national elections. I’m ok with RCP and Althouse trying to be neutral, but perhaps stay away from media that claims fascism elsewhere while living without free speech.

n.n said...

LA is a scorched earth city. We didn't start the conflagration, but we'll cool the warming flames of catastrophic anthropogenic climate change.

tcrosse said...

What's with all those guys waving the flag of a country - Mexico - they don't want to live in?

Jamie said...

Racket News, with Matt Taibbi and weekly featuring America This Week with Walter Kirn, is my favorite Substack - and the competition is fierce!

So, my husband was listening to Newsom's speech (today? Yesterday?) saying that they, the Democrats, predicted Trump's descent into fascism, and this is the moment. He (my husband, now) got very depressed by the speech and said he expects to see that Newsom will emerge as the Party leader, because - as is much wished for by like 84% of Democrats according to CNN - he is even more aggressive in "fighting Trump" than everybody who's been calling Trump a fascist for going on ten years now. I hesitate to tempt fate like this, but... I likened it to W's "bring it on" speech, which was initially met with a lot of patriotic chest-thumping (I joined right in, back then) and things like that famous ad from the Ad Council or whatever it was, showing all the flags flying in front of row houses in some clearly northeast or mid-Atlantic city, but which eventually became emblematic of Republican war-mongering.

Original Mike said...

There is no rioting in LA. Kaka's family assures us of this.

Original Mike said...

Unfortunately, I couldn't read the Taibbi article, but I was amused by the picture. A rioter (with the obligatory Mexican flag), arm raised in "defiance". He's masked to hide his identity, but he's got an arm full of uniquely identifying tattoos! Brilliant!

Mike (MJB Wolf) said...

“Objects were thrown.”

Well. There's a rule that news is written in active voice. When they don't follow the rule and use passive voice phrasing like that, it's not news. It's propaganda.

Mike (MJB Wolf) said...

Did any of the articles mention shadowy billionaire Neville Singham?

His wife runs Code Pink, the pestilence that continually gains access to Congress and disrupts the official proceedings, which sometimes is the very definition of Insurrection.

Yancey Ward said...

“Objects were thrown.”

Well, at least they didn't write it "Objects flew through the air" or "Objects threw themselves."

Yancey Ward said...

Looks like Bich/Kakaphony is no longer claiming there is no rioting or violence.

Mary Beth said...

objects were thrown at cars

Does she mean the man who was throwing rocks at vehicles (ICE or Border Patrol, I'm not sure which)?

I would call it something stronger than "not peaceful", like "attempted murder".

Bob Boyd said...

How much of his state is Newsome willing to cede to Mexico?

n.n said...

Objections were hurled with rhetorical farce.

Kakistocracy said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Howard said...

I mean, c'mon. Hot town summer in the city LA is dirty and gritty. Some of the most out of control domestic disturbances have occurred in the City of Angels. So far, Trump seems to be reasonable ordering in the National Guard and Marines.

We'll see if the mission is a success or a failure all in due time

Original Mike said...

“What I find interesting is how come the networks aren’t interviewing the protesters? There’s a selective shielding going on. They know the protesters are the worst spokesmen for the protest.”

He's right.

Original Mike said...

"Looks like Bich/Kakaphony is no longer claiming there is no rioting or violence."

But it's only one car!

Yancey Ward said...

"But it's only one car!"

I will give Bich/Kakaphony credit for one thing- his shamelessness is epic in scale.

hombre said...

Kak (9:46): “To me, it looks like a man who is concerned more about ratings than the law. He wants this show—it’s theater.” Right! “There is no violence directed against federal officers or obstructing enforcement of federal laws and no indication from LAPD of loss of control,” imagines the Igna sock puppet.

wendybar said...

And then you have Nasty Nancy lying to the media, when we all know she is lying....but she doesn't care....


Chief Steven Sund
@ChiefSund
·
Follow
FACT: I made 11 urgent calls requesting National Guard support on Jan 6, starting at 12:58 PM. Approval was withheld for 71 minutes by the House Sergeant at Arms, who reported directly to Speaker Pelosi. She caused critical delays, and now is shifting blame to @realDonaldTrump Show more
CSPAN
@cspan
.@SpeakerPelosi: "On January 6th...we begged the president of the United States to send in the National Guard. He would not do it...And yet, in a contra-constitutional way, he has sent the National Guard into California. Something is very wrong with this picture."

Rusty said...

What do the rooftop Koreans say?

Bob Boyd said...

Why isn't Newsome marching with the protestors in these peaceful demonstrations?

Leland said...

DHS announces federal arrest in LA. You know how Botfly was repeating the progressive line that Trump is arresting US citizens for peacefully protesting? Would you believe this guy throwing the fire bomb at officers had a rap sheet with priors including a previous deportation? That’s the kind of person Botfly thinks is peaceful and should be allowed in our country to burn cars and police officers.

https://www.dhs.gov/news/2025/06/11/ice-arrests-illegal-alien-molotov-cocktail-attack-law-enforcement-caught-video

rehajm said...

…from the call to Los Angeles this morning it sounds like the kids would be safe playing kickball on the freeways in/out of downtown…

Greg The Class Traitor said...

Some of the resistance was not peaceful – objects were thrown at cars, for instance – but the LA police got matters in hand

Gosh, I guess that means all that looting is just a "cheap fake"?

Oh, wait, it's The Guardian, of course they're lying

Greg The Class Traitor said...

Rusty said...
What do the rooftop Koreans say?

They say that Downtown LA is a shithole, and they don't care what happens there. But if the rioters come to their part of town, they'll leave in body bags.

Saint Croix said...

Unfortunately, I couldn't read the Taibbi article

I think the subscription was $5 a month. Now it might be $7 or $10, not sure. Worth it.

Saint Croix said...

It's $7. I just sent a free subscription to Althouse.

Iman said...

@tradwifemom

“So I went to Costco without a membership, I snuck around the card readers, I didn’t want to wait in line to get an actual membership or one day pass. They caught me in the store and asked me to leave or go to the service desk and get a membership. Instead of leaving I demanded free products and food and waved a Sam’s club flag in the middle of their store to show them just how much I love Costco and want to stay. When they still asked me to leave I began stealing whatever I could and threw frozen hamburger patties at security. They should have just let me shop there without a membership, I’m special!“

Saint Croix said...

My favorite thing to do with Taibbi is read the transcript to his chat with Walter Kirn. America This Week. They also discuss a short story at the end of it. They've moved on to novels, their first is 1984.

Saint Croix said...

The Memory-Holing of Everything, Even George Orwell

Original Mike said...

"I think the subscription was $5 a month. Now it might be $7 or $10, not sure. Worth it."

The problem is, once you start subscribing to things, where do you stop? How many "must read" sites are there? Has anybody compiled a list? I'd like to peruse one.

Craig Mc said...

The Grauniad - predictably wrong as ever.

Kakistocracy said...

It’s really unfair to say that Trump did nothing when his supporters attacked the Capitol. He watched on TV and cheered.

RCOCEAN II said...

I think people on the Right just need to accept that the American people - especially the "independents" just don't give a damn if the Democrats lie. They just follow the MSM coverage. And even when you tell them about the bald-faced lies and hypocricy - they just don't care.

So, we on the Right need to stop caring so much about our side being honest. Otherwise, we're just being suckers.

RCOCEAN II said...

Newsom isn't just a liar - he's stupid. He tweeted that Trump never talked to him before calling out the NG, and Trump came back and showed he called Newsom twice. And the second time, talked to Newsom for 16 minutes. And the impact will the same as a grain of sand dropping in the pacific ocean.

As for Peloisi, we'll have to wait for the DHS/DOJ/FBI document drops - but I'm convinced J6 was a setup from the word go. Of course it only worked because of dumbshits like Erick Erickson and RINOs like Tillis and Graham. "Shoot em down" "Its an insurrection". TedCruz was calling it an "Insurrection: in July 2021. Which is reason 401, I'd never trust Cruz on anything.

Aggie said...
This comment has been removed by the author.

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