Ahead of his first debate with Kamala Harris on ABC, the former president and GOP nominee Donald Trump is pandering to those who favor a big, dystopian government as he threatens to arrest his political opponents.
“WHEN I WIN, those people that CHEATED will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the Law, which will include long term prison sentences so that this Depravity of Justice does not happen again,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. Trump then added, “Please beware that this legal exposure extends to Lawyers, Political Operatives, Donors, Illegal Voters, & Corrupt Election Officials. Those involved in unscrupulous behavior will be sought out, caught, and prosecuted at levels, unfortunately, never seen before in our Country.”
Trump’s threats came after he told the Fraternal Order of Police Officers to be on the lookout at polling stations for voter fraud because the everyday American public is “afraid of that badge.” This has made state election officials as well as volunteers tasked with working polling stations nervous over rogue citizens taking action over this type of manufactured hysteria from Trump, a tactic he demonstrated back in 2020 which threatened the safety of election workers then.
The idea of arresting political opponents is actually probably something that Democrats welcome in the discourse considering it’ll enable them to run against Trump rather than run on their own policies. Not to mention it’s highly unlikely Trump actually goes after his rivals since it’s something he didn’t do during his first term. Again, what’s more concerning is the safety of the election workers as Trump continues to shit out his asinine rhetoric.