Donald Trump just signed an executive order that doesn’t officially declare martial law…
But it moves us disturbingly close.
Titled “Strengthening and Unleashing America’s Law Enforcement to Pursue Criminals and Protect Innocent Citizens” (yes, really), this order is a blueprint for an authoritarian police state—and it should alarm every single person who cares about civil rights, constitutional protections, and democratic governance.
Here’s what you need to know:
1. It protects police—no matter what they do.
Trump directs the DOJ to create a legal defense fund for law enforcement officers who face lawsuits or criminal charges “unjustly” for actions they took on the job.
Translation: if a cop kills or injures someone, the federal government will help cover their legal bills.
This isn’t about justice. It’s about impunity.
2. It guts federal oversight of violent police departments.
The order directs the Attorney General to modify, rescind, or terminate any DOJ consent decree that “unduly impedes” law enforcement.
Consent decrees are a critical civil rights tool—used after police departments are found to have committed widespread abuses. This move would shut them down.
3. It militarizes police even further.
Within 90 days, the Pentagon and DOJ are ordered to expand the transfer of military equipment, training, and personnel to local police.
We’ve already seen what this looks like: armored vehicles in protests, tear gas on civilians, surveillance tech used with no oversight. This order ramps it all up.
4. It threatens local officials who pursue reform.
The order says DOJ should prosecute any state or local officials who “obstruct” police or push “equity” policies that limit law enforcement.
So if a mayor limits stop-and-frisk? If a city council bans chokeholds? If a prosecutor supports alternatives to incarceration?
Trump’s DOJ could come after them.
5. It turns national security task forces inward.
Trump is reassigning Homeland Security’s border-focused task forces to help enforce domestic policing priorities—blurring the line between immigration enforcement and local law enforcement even further.
This isn’t martial law—yet. But it’s martial law adjacent.
Let’s be clear: Trump hasn’t suspended the Constitution or replaced civil courts with military tribunals. But he’s creating a system where:
Military assets are embedded in domestic policing
Police are protected from accountability
Progressive reformers are targeted
Equity and justice are rebranded as “obstruction”
This is not about keeping us safe.
It’s about consolidating power, silencing dissent, and criminalizing reform.
And we need to sound the alarm.
If you're able, paid subscriptions allow me to continue this work—breaking down legal developments, exposing abuses of power, and helping people understand what’s at stake.
Stay loud. Stay vigilant.
Share this post