Podcast 137
By Jackalyn Rainosek, PhD
Introduction
What we must realize is that all the chaos that Trump brings to our world and the dramatic “light shows of power” like the military parade on his birthday are all about power. The chaos causes us to ignore what is going on in DC, and then we do not know what to focus on. Unfortunately, we need to respond to Trump’s action, since we need to let him know what we think and feel and that we WILL NOT BE SILENT anymore about his actions. My concern is we need to be focusing on fighting the “Big, Beautiful Bill” with our senators and educating everyone about the harmful actions that are described in that bill. We cannot ignore this bill, since it will affect millions of people in our country, and various segments of this bill will restrict certain actions by courts. Trump is the only president I have seen that refuses to respect the constitution of the United States, and is very clear that he thinks the Executive branch of our government should run the country ignoring the legislative and judicial branch of our government. The branches are there for a reason. They provide balance and are protection for us as Americans. There is more you need to know about this bill.
Trump’s Chaos Strategy: Distract, Divide, and Dominate
Yes, I am going to cover the invasion of LA that could have been easily resolved by the Mayor of LA, Karen Bass and the Governor of California, Gavin Newsom. That would not be acceptable to Trump, since he could not show Gavin Newsom that he will do whatever he wants, and besides Newsom is a “thorn” in Trump’s side—Newsom will not shut up and he will keep confronting Trump in the news and in the courts. Also, Trump thinks he has to show us he will rid us of as many immigrants as he can. Trump has demonized immigrants and has built them into a major hate group.
The LA Invasion: Targeting Immigrants and Political Rivals
I feel appalled at the number of countries he has placed travel bans on in his executive orders. His ICE will do their job and deport people, since they have daily quotas from Trump. They are not deporting people who are criminals, they are people who contribute to our community, work and pay taxes like anyone else.
Trump wanted to use the immigrants and the resistance to ICE raids in LA as a way to see if he could put down peaceful protests, since he is testing all kinds of action before the 2026 elections. He knows he is in trouble. The protest are a statement that millions of people in America do not support what he is doing. He learned that protests nation-wide took many Americans away from his parade. We need to understand the cost of Trump’s parade. The cost for invading LA with military troops was $134,000,000. I believe there are definite dangerous from manufacturing chaos, which Trump is doing. Trump’s actions become even more dangerous when he decides to support his “Boarder Czar,” Tom Homan, in saying that California Governor Gavin Newsom should be arrested, which is not for a crime but opposing Trumps unusual seizure of his state’s National Guard.
Weaponizing the Military: A Dangerous Constitutional Breach
Now let’s get to the crux of things about the invasion of LA by Trump. It has been sixty years since a president needed to send troops into a state. I was in college during that time in history. I will tell you the differences in the action of President John F. Kennedy sending troop to Alabama to overrule the governor of Alabama and sent troops to desegregate the University of Alabama in 1963. President Kennedy was protecting civil rights leaders fighting segregation versus Trump sending troops to LA to prove that he could do it, and his actions only increased conflict in LA.
Through my lawyer friends I have gotten clarity that Trump invoked a rarely used provision of the U.S. Code on Armed Services that allows for the federal deployment of the National Guard if “there is a rebellion or danger of a rebellion against the authority of the government of the United States.” There is no such rebellion underway. Americans are angry about the deportations, and know that they are not justified. One of Trump’s many executive orders that are not a law but rather a memo to the executive branch has assumed that “to the extent that protests or acts of violence directly inhibit the execution of the laws, they constitute a form of rebellion against the authority of the government of the United States. Yet, the closest action I can see in our country that could have been defined a rebellion was when Trump’s own supporters (whom he incited, then mostly pardoned) sacked the U.S. Capitol in 2021. The reality is past presidents have seldom “deployed troops inside the United States” since “they worried about using military domestically and because the legal foundation for doing so are unclear. If presidents hesitated before using the military to assist in recovery after natural disasters but feel freed to send in soldiers after a few cars are set on fire, the law is alarmingly vague” The quote is from The New York Times, June 8, 2025, by The Editorial Board, entitled, “Trump Calling Troops Into Los Angeles Is the Real Emergency.”
Manufactured Rebellions and Legal Smoke Screens
When Trump decided to send the U.S. Military into LA that is also questionable. Public Citizen in their newsletter (president@citizen.org), Tuesday, June 10, 2025, 2:22 PM entitled, “What’s happening in Los Angeles right now” presents a clear picture by this statement: “Now Trump is deploying the U.S. Military against American citizens on our own soil. For the ‘crime’ of exercising our Frist Amendment right to speak up against tyranny. This is what authoritarianism looks like.” Trump actions were against the wishes of the Karen Bass, the mayor of LA and California’s governor, Gavin Newsom. “Newsom accurately called what Trump has done ‘purposefully inflammatory” and “a serious breach of state sovereignty.”
It is interesting to see what the Epoch Times, Constitution Ave newsletter@theepochtimes.com on Tuesday, June 10, 2025, at 7.59 pm. “As protests against President Donald Trump’s immigration policies flared across Los Angeles over the weekend, questions have arisen about whether he would—or could invoke the Insurrection Act of 1807, and send active duty military to quell the rioting and vandalism.” The Epoch Times give some of the history related to this act and the few times it has ever been enacted. I thought you might be interested when it was use: “President George Washington called up state militias to suppress the Whiskey Rebellion,” which was an uprising again federal excise taxes on liquor. Abraham Lincoln used it on the outset of the Civil War, and Ulysses S. Grant against the Ku Klux Klan. George Bush used it when four police officers were acquitted after beating Rodney King to death. In 2020 with the death of George Floyd, Trump declined to use the law.
“No King Day” Protests and Citizen’s Marched
I want to begin this section of the podcast with the Forbes’ newsletter dailydozen@email.forbest.com, Wednesday, June 11, 2025, 6:59 AM, “Walmart Heiress Challenges Trump.” “When President Donald Trump was inaugurated, a slate of billionaires stood behind him. Now, a small number of the country’s wealthiest are standing against him. Walmart heiress Christy Walton, one of America’s richest women—worth an estimated $19.4 billion—paid for a full-page ad in The New York Times calling on readers to mobilize on Saturday, the same day Trump is scheduled to host a military birthday parade in Washington, D.C. The words ‘No Kings’ appear at the top of Walton’s ad, an apparent reference to a political organization of the same name that is organizing nationwide demonstrations this weekend.” Of course, Trump warned if anyone interfered with his deployment of the National Guard and Marines and if anyone protested his parade they would be met with “very big force.”
Here is another woman standing up and describing to us what is happening in Washington. Congresswoman Lizzie Fletcher ReplizziefletcherTX07@mail.house.gov, on Friday, June 13, 2025, 9:29 PM in her “Washington Week Wrap-Up.”
- “Sending U.S. Military into American cities. On Saturday, President Trump federalized the California National Guard and announced that he would send National Guard troops and U.S. Marines to Los Angeles. This is not normal. And, according to local and state officials, not needed. Neither the Mayor nor the Governor asked for troops to deal with protests in a small area of downtown Los Angeles. A federal court ruled Thursday that Trump violated federal law and the U.S. Constitution, exceeding the scope of his statutory authority and violating the Tenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. The court explained the federal and state governments and ‘sets’ a dangerous precedent for future domestic military activity.’ Trump appealed the decision, and an appeals court temporarily blocked the judge’s order, allowing the National Guard to remain under federal control while the appeals court considers the case. A hearing on the appeal is scheduled for next Tuesday (June 17, 2025).
- In Washington, these events were also viewed in the context of the military parade that the President has requested, taking place on his birthday tomorrow, which is the 250th birthday of the U.S. Army—a day to celebrate and honor the extraordinary men and women who have served our country to secure, protect, and preserve our country and our freedom for 250 years. Across Washington and across the country, many (including me) are concerned about the optics of tanks on the streets of the nation’s capital—something we are more used to seeing in places like North Korea or Russia—and the message it sends about the state of democracy in America.
Authoritarianism on Display: The Parade and the Protests
- The parade is expected to cost taxpayers between $25 million and $45 million at the same time that the administration is cutting benefits and services for active-duty military families and for veterans. The President’s speech this week in Fort Bragg, North Carolina, criticizing the free press and political opponents, disregarding long-standing norms, and undermining the Army’s non-partisan service gives rise to further concerns about the state of our democracy. These words and actions are those of autocrats and authoritarians, the very opposite of the first President of the United States, George Washington, the first commander-in-chief of the Continental Army, and the kind of leader Washington warned us against.
The Economic Fallout: Small Businesses and Deportation
I want to also look at the resistance to Trump actions in LA affects every small business in America. Inc. This Morning newsletters@e.inc.com in their article, “What the L.A. Protests Mean for Small Businesses and the Economy,” on June 11, 2025, by Kayla Webster, Staff Editor gave us some excellent comments to consider. It is important for you to know the subtitle to this article which is “An expert on American labor history lays out what needs to happen to avoid a recession as the government pushes for mass deportation. Here are the comments from the article:
- “The protests against ICE raids targeting undocumented workers are about more than workers’ and immigrants’ rights—they’re a fight to keep the U.S. out of a recession. Paul Ortiz, professor of labor history at Cornell’s School of Industrial and Labor Relations, says only pressure from small businesses and labor unions can stop that from happening.
- Cities across the U.S. are joining Los Angeles in protest after David Huerta, president of Service Employees International Union California—a hospitality workers’ union with a heavy immigrant membership—was arrested Friday during a demonstration, triggering further protests. Huerta was released on bond Monday.
- The movement against the raids has garnered support from a surprising source: Florida Republicans. U.S. representatives Carlos Gimenez and Mario Diaz Balart, and Latinas for Trump co-founder state senator Ileana Garcia—all diehard Trump supporters—have spoken out against the Trump administration’s mass deportations. Why did they change their tune? Labor unions reminded them that small businesses rely on immigrant labor. Ortiz has thoughts on how this will play out and what small businesses should do to protect the economy.
- It goes back to the fact that many small businesses throughout the entire run of American history have been led by immigrants. But political parties, historically, have stirred up anti-immigrant rhetoric to get votes. But from the perspective of a small-business owner, whether they’re Hispanic, whether they’re in San Francisco or Los Angeles or St Louis or New York City, the question that they have for the federal government is, “Who is going to do the work? Who is going to keep my doors open?”
Veterans Speak Out: A Betrayal of Service
Time gives us another message in their June 12, 2025, 10:40 am, article, “Veterans Condemn Trump’s ‘Misuse of Military Power’” Amid L.A. Protests by Rebecca Schneid. In another article by Schneid entitled, “Veterans Speak Out Against Trump’s Military Parade: ‘It Feels Gross,’” on June 14, 2025, 10:03 Am CT give us a clear picture of what veterans think about Trump and his actions. The ending about the parade article is important to hear: “I think if you ask (those) families what they need at this moment, it wouldn’t be a parade. It would be, “I need a job’ or ‘I need childcare,’” Jamison argues. “who is this parade really for? Because it doesn’t feel like it’s for service members or families.” In the other article on veterans condemning the use of the military here is a strong point that is made: “President Donald Trump has prompted conflicting feelings among veterans, some of whom strongly disagree with his decision to bypass Gov. Gavin Newsom and deploy the National Guard and Marines to quell Los Angeles’ immigration-related protests against federal raids in the city. A long-time strong voter base for Trump, some veterans have, much like Newsom, voiced their grievances regarding Trump’s use of the military on this occasion. These concerns come amide protests over recent cuts to the Department of Veteran Affairs and several of its programs, including one that provides mortgage assistance.”
The Marines’ Dilemma: Serving Democracy or Serving Trump?
When I have read articles by marines that discuss how Trump is putting soldiers in an impossible situation, I understand when I read the short article by Jake Auchincioss on June 13, 2025, in The Washington Post, “I’m a Marine. Trump is putting solders in an impossible position.” “The president’s deployment of Marines to Los Angeles is not only unnecessary and illegal. It is also unfair to the Marines themselves. As a former captain who commanded infantry at Twentynine Palms, where these Marines are stationed, I empathize with their dilemma. The sergeants and corporals have to adopt tactics against their training. The lieutenants and captains have to wrestle with the lawfulness of this executive order. And spirit de corps for all the Marines must be suffering as they ask themselves, on this convoy from inland California to the coast, ‘is this what I enlisted for.’ That’s an infantry unit—not military police, not logistics, not communications. Their tactics are geared to locate, close with and destroy the People’s Liberation Army or the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, not Angelenos.
Millions March: No Kings, No Tyrants
Then Paul Krugman Substack describes what many media sources realize. He talks about joining the No Kings Day protest in New York. He says, “The protest was huge despite the rain. The poll analyst G. Elliott Morris has worked with a number of independent journalists to produce rough estimates of how many people participated in the protests nationwide, and come up with a number between 4 and 6 million. That’s a huge number. Meanwhile, Donald Trump got the military parade he wanted for his birthday. And it was a box-office bust, probably attracting far fewer people than the 250,000 the White House claimed. In fact, the optics were simply embarrassing. As the Washington Post noted: ‘Some of the crowd filed out as the parade continued, the number of onlookers thinning before the president made his remarks. Even bleacher seating for VIP guests, positioned directly across form a rise for news cameras, remained half-empty throughout the program. So, what we saw on Saturday was more than just the juxtaposition of a poorly attended parade that was supposed to glorify the Leader against massive, enthusiastic protests. We also saw a body blow to Trump’s image of invincibility and a demonstration that millions of Americans are willing to stand up for democracy.”
The Right to Dissent: A Constitutional Stand
I want to end this section with comments from the American Constitution Society. This organization is a diverse nationwide group of progressive lawyers, law students, judges, scholars, advocates, and many others that support and advocate for laws and legal systems “that redress the founding failures of our Constitution, strengthen our democratic legitimacy, uphold the rule of law, and realize the promise of equality for all, including people of color, women, LGBTQ+ people, people with disabilities, and other historically excluded communities.” In this article on June 9, 2025, their article, “ACS Statement on Military Response to Los Angeles Protests says the following:
- “After a week of mostly peaceful gatherings in Los Angeles protesting increased U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids in Southern California and the administration’s immigration enforcement policies, the federal response suggests that its priorities are to stifle dissent and score political points rather than maintain public safety. Unfortunately, we as a nation already know the danger of involving the military in responses to largely peaceful civilian protests. From protests against the Vietnam War at Kent State in 1970 to protests in support of Black Lives at Lafayette Square in 2020, the misuse of our military to stifle public pretests only to sow chaos and provide a pretense to undermine civil liberties and constitutional rights.
- The right to protest, embodied in the First Amendment’s protection of speech and assembly, is foundational to the health and vibrancy of our multiracial, pluralistic democracy. ACS supports the rights of all who choose to express their dissent through peaceful protest and encourages all protestors to know their rights.”
Conclusion
We must face the truth: Donald Trump is no longer pretending to lead within the bounds of democracy—he is actively dismantling it. By turning the military against American citizens, defying court rulings, silencing dissent, and glorifying himself with tanks and pageantry, he reveals exactly who he is: a man hungry for control, not committed to service.
But he’s not the only one with power. We, the people, have our voices, our protests, and our votes. The courage of millions who marched on “No Kings Day,” the outcry from veterans, the resistance from governors, and the pushback from small business leaders show us that Trump may control the military—but he doesn’t control our conscience.
We are not pawns in his parade. We are patriots. And at this moment, our silence would be complicity. Let us continue to speak, march, organize, and defend the promise of this nation. Because democracy doesn’t defend itself—we do.
References for Podcast 137: (Please know that most newsletters you will need to sign up for them.)
Public Citizen, (president@citizen.org), Tuesday, June 10, 2025, 2:22 PM, “What’s happening in Los Angeles right now?”
Epoch Times, Constitution Ave newsletter@theepochtimes.com on Tuesday, June 10, 2025, at 7.59 pm. “As protests against President Donald Trump’s immigration policies flared over.”
Forbes’ newsletter dailydozen@email.forbest.com,
Wednesday, June 11, 2025, 6:59 AM, “Walmart Heiress Challenges Trump.”
Inc. This Morning newsletters@e.inc.com, “What the L.A. Protests Mean for Small Businesses and the Economy,” on June 11, 2025, by Kayla Webster, Staff Editor.
Time, June 12, 2025, 10:40 am, “Veterans Condemn Trump’s ‘Misuse of Military Power,’” Rebecca Schneid.
https://time.com/7293271/veterans-condemn-trump-military-power-national-guard-los-angeles-protests/
Time, Rebecca Schneid, “Veterans Speak Out Against Trump’s Military Parade: ‘It Feels Gross,’” June 14, 2025, 10:03 AM CT.
https://time.com/7294215/trump-military-parade-veterans-speak-out/ake
Jake Auchincioss on June 13, 2025, in The Washington Post, “I’m a Marine. Trump is putting solders in an impossible position.”
American Constitution Society, June 9, 2025, their article, “ACS Statement on Military Response to Lost Angeles Protests.
https://www.acslaw.org/press_release/acs-statement-on-military-response-to-los-angeles-protests/