Merkley said he is here “to ring the alarm bells that there is a full authoritarian assault on our constitutional values, our separation of powers, and a full assault on our liberties…on due process, on free speech, on free press, on free assembly.”
He also accused Trump of the “weaponization” of the Department of Justice to go after a “political enemies list,” referring to prosecutions of former officials who spearheaded investigations into him, such as ex-FBI Director James Comey.
The DOJ accuses these officials of politically motivated fabrications against Trump, which they deny.
“It is the effort to mobilize the military to go after peaceful protestors and to create violent interactions that would justify even more authoritarian power,” Merkley said in his speech.
Trump deployed federal troops to cities across the U.S. to quell what he said were rioters not properly dealt with by state and local law enforcement and who posed a threat to federal agents carrying out their jobs, particularly around immigration.
Merkley called Trump an “authoritarian president emboldened by a rubber stamp Congress, emboldened by a deferential Supreme Court, sending military troops against American citizens who are peacefully protesting.”
“This is un-American,” Merkley said. “It is a fundamental violation of the purpose of our military.”
