Divisions in Military and Civilian Bureaucracy Continue to Deepen
As the final days of the U.S. presidential election draw near, the divisions within the military and civilian bureaucracy in the United States continue to deepen. Significant numbers of retired generals and admirals are publicly coming out in favour of either Donald Trump or Kamala Harris.
On October 1, a group of more than 200 retired admirals and generals, known as Flag Officers 4 America, gave their support to Trump, calling him a "proven leader who will secure our border, repulse our adversaries, revitalize our economy and keep America safe and strong." They advocate increased "military preparedness," and warn that the U.S. could lose in conflicts with adversaries like China.
Simultaneously, a group called the National Security Leaders for America (NSL4A), came out in support of Harris. NSL4A is said to be bipartisan with 741 "national security leaders, comprised of over 230 general and flag officers, including 15 retired four-star generals and admirals," former cabinet members and ambassadors. Formed in 2021, after Trump's attempted January 6 coup, its mission is to unite the military and civilian bureaucracy behind defending the existing institutions and countering "growing threats to our democratic institutions, norms, and processes."
This group said Harris is "the best -- and only -- presidential candidate in this race who is fit to serve as our commander-in-chief." Their narrative focuses on the issue of loyalty to the president as commander-in-chief using the quote from the military oath of office concerning defending "the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic." They describe Trump as an unpatriotic enemy of the Constitution.
This is language used in a civil war to determine who is with the Union and who is a traitor to the Union, not only within the military and many policing agencies but among the people as well. NSL4A followed the lead of Hillary Clinton who invoked this military oath at the Democratic National Convention held in Chicago in August to railroad a unanimous nomination of Kamala Harris as the Democratic candidate for the presidency. By saying Trump is an "autocratic" enemy of the Constitution, they are making sure the military lines up behind Harris, hoping to forestall a Trump challenge and secure transition.
But as an attempt to make dysfunctional democratic institutions function, this approach is to no avail. The rulers as a whole want to forestall open violent factional fighting and all out civil war. But whether this attempt to rally the bureaucracy to portray Trump as a traitor, to be branded and blocked from power as such, succeeds is not a foregone conclusion.
The deepening divisions within the military and civilian bureaucracy raise the serious concern about how the various military and policing agencies will act if their particular candidate is not given the position of Commander-in-Chief in the upcoming November presidential election.
This article was published in
Volume 54 Number 43 - October 14, 2024
Article Link:
https://cpcml.ca/Tmlm2024/Articles/TS54436.HTM
Website: www.cpcml.ca Email: editor@cpcml.ca