Can the Constitution Curb Trump’s “Frightening” Payback Plans? Good morning. It’s a near certainty that Donald Trump will attempt to weaponize the government against his enemies. The real question is whether—or how far—the institutions will really bend to his will. Such is the subject of Chris Smith’s eye-opening interview with former FBI counterterrorism agent Ali Soufan, who opines on Trump’s cabinet picks, discusses escalating tensions in the Middle East, and expresses fears about the president-elect’s thirst for political retribution. “It is frightening,” Soufan says, but “I think I trust the institutions to manage this storm.”
Of course, that responsibility will also fall upon the Democratic Party, which remains steeped in a major reckoning around why the 2024 election ultimately proved to be such a stinger. Ask Ken Martin, the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party chairman, and he’ll tell you it’s all about the party’s “branding” and “messaging” problems. “We can’t just resist Trump,” Martin, a contender the Democratic National Committee, says in an interview with Eric Lutz. “We also have to give people a sense of who we are, who we’re fighting for, and why.”
Elsewhere, Lutz scorches Republicans over the government shutdown fight; Kase Wickman catches Trump’s dinner with Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez; and Hadley Hall Meares delivers a historical deep dive on European royals’ past collaboration with the Nazis. Thanks for reading, and see you Monday.
—Jon Skolnik, associate editor |
