The DSR Network FTA: Stop Waiting for Us to Become an Autocracy. We're Already There
Dec 29, 2025
Miles Taylor, former Chief of Staff at the Department of Homeland Security and outspoken critic of the Trump administration, shares his alarming insights on the normalization of domestic military deployments. He discusses Trump's deployment of the National Guard to Los Angeles as a troubling signal of authoritarianism. Taylor warns of the misuse of emergency powers and the chilling effects on democracy, urging for mass peaceful protests to counteract these trends. He illustrates the dangers posed by figures like Stephen Miller and outlines strategies to combat the shift towards autocracy.
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Military As A Presidential Tool
- Miles Taylor warns Trump's deployments aim to normalize using the U.S. military as a domestic police force.
- He says this stems from Trump's fixation on emergency powers as "magical powers."
Legal Authorities And Judicial Limits
- Norm Ornstein notes many emergency statutes give the president sweeping powers in crises, assuming good-faith use.
- He asks whether stronger judicial limits would have reduced the danger of abuse.
Counterterrorism Tools Can Be Turned Inward
- Miles Taylor admits conservatives underestimated the need for safeguards around national security powers.
- He now sees those counterterrorism tools as plausibly repurposed against domestic political enemies.