I am deeply alarmed by the rapid and unchecked buildup of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) force under the Trump administration. We are being told that this expansion is simply about “securing our borders” and capturing “dangerous criminals.” But this narrative is deceptive. It’s clearly designed to stoke fear and manipulate patriotic sentiments so that Americans will accept, even cheer for, a dangerous paramilitary buildup.
ICE recruits are being lured with high pay, generous benefits, student loan forgiveness while admission standards are being dangerously lowered. This combination is a recipe for assembling a force that is blindly loyal to one man and one ideology.
If this pattern continues, especially alongside efforts to federalize the National Guard and misuse the Insurrection Act, it could open the door to martial law in America. Such a force would almost certainly be used to intimidate voters, detain peaceful demonstrators, and exert heavy control over blue cities, all under the guise of “law and order.”
This is how democracy dies; not in one dramatic moment, but in quiet steps of fear-driven power consolidation. We cannot let it happen in America. We’ve got to resist this trend now, before it accelerates beyond reversal.
If you are awake to this danger, good for you. Now, let’s help awaken others. Democracy requires vigilance, courage, and truth. We can do this!
Dale Palmer, Sandy
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