Dem warns MAGA allies will urge Trump to use 'martial law' to confront terrorism
Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT) is raising alarms over what actions Donald Trump will be urged to take in the aftermath of the New Orleans attack that left 14 dead and dozens injured as the country continues to grapple for answers.
The warning came Thursday as Republicans – led by Trump – continued to falsely claim that President Joe Biden’s “open border policy” is to blame for authorities missing signs that could have thwarted the attack. House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-LA) suggested that diversity, equity and inclusion, or DEI, initiatives also played a role.
“In the coming days, watch for autocracy-fetishizing MAGA figures who call on Trump to use ‘emergency powers’ or ‘domestic war powers’ (i.e. some form of martial law) to confront domestic terrorism,” Murphy told his X followers on Thursday. “They aren't out to destroy terrorists. They're out to destroy the rule of law.”
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The Connecticut senator made a series of posts to his X account in the hours after a man rammed a pickup truck through a crowd in New Orleans’ famed French Quarter to condemn the attack as “an abomination” – and call out Trump.
“Trump is intentionally lying about the attacker being an immigrant - he wasn’t,” Murphy wrote above a social media post from Trump. “Why does it matter? Because he is going to use episodes of violence to justify his crack down on immigrants and his attack on dissent - whether the facts line up or not.”
He added: “This is just the start.”