How Trump failed in his latest bid to weaponize justice

[Dulcinea]

(CNN) Here’s three things we know about Donald Trump.

He thirsts for revenge; he’ll stretch the limits of presidential power to enact it; and he never gives up after a defeat.

No wonder that six Democratic lawmakers, all military and intelligence veterans, are bracing for what comes next despite a grand jury refusing to indict them for warning service personnel against obeying illegal orders.
-snip-
The lawmakers’ warning to the troops that started the showdown came in the form of a social media video that tipped Trump into a rage. He lambasted the six as “traitors” guilty of “sedition at the highest levels” who should potentially be eligible for the death penalty. His bid for revenge was backed by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, who has launched an effort to lower Kelly’s last rank of captain and clip his retirement pay.

https://www.cnn.com/2026/02/12/politics/trump-pam-bondi-mark-kelly-justice-department-analysis?iid=cnn_buildContentRecirc_end_recirc&recs_exp=up-next-article-end&tenant_id=related.en

[RussBLib]

1. kakistocracy to the max

Obnoxious though it is, the internet might still save us, unless they pull the plug. They'll probably pull the wrong plug.

https://russblib.blogspot.com

[no_hypocrisy]

2. Hey, Stephen Miller only has so many hours in a day to come up with

these innovative ideas . . . .

[Ilikepurple]

3. I know it's not your headline, I don't think the intent was to weaponize justice as much as the Justice Department

I don’t think not getting an indictment is really a failure as much as a lesser victory. If there was more backlash acknowledging this weaponization, it might be a failure. The chilling effect of this weaponization is and will be felt regardless of whether grand juries fail to indict, judges dismiss cases, or juries fail to convict. He has seemingly weaponized every tool at his disposal. Law firms are afraid to law, news agencies are afraid to news, people are afraid to speak out, and now Gallup is afraid to Gallup.