1. United States
2. Ind.
3. Letter

I am deeply concerned about the recent speech given by former President Donald Trump at the Marine Corps base in Quantico, Virginia. This address to approximately 800 top US military leaders represents a grave threat to our democracy and the principles upon which our nation was founded. Trump's rhetoric during this speech was alarming. He suggested using major American cities as "training grounds" for the military, implying potential domestic military action against US citizens. He also indicated that law enforcement and border patrol could act with impunity when dealing with protesters or immigrants. These statements, made to our nation's top military brass, are a dangerous step towards autocracy. Of particular concern is the discussion within the White House about invoking the Insurrection Act, which would allow the deployment of military forces for civilian law enforcement. This potential misuse of our armed forces against American citizens is unprecedented and deeply troubling. The transformation of our military into a domestic political tool of the executive branch would be a fundamental shift away from our democratic principles. It's crucial that you, as my representative, take immediate action to prevent this erosion of our constitutional safeguards. I urge you to publicly denounce any attempts to use the military for domestic law enforcement or to suppress constitutionally protected rights such as free speech and peaceful protest. Furthermore, I ask that you support legislation that would strengthen civilian control of the military and explicitly prohibit the use of armed forces against American citizens exercising their constitutional rights. Time is of the essence. The lack of resistance to these ideas at the highest levels of our military leadership is alarming. We must act now to preserve the integrity of our democratic institutions and prevent the presidency from sliding into dictatorship. Our nation's future as a democracy hangs in the balance. What specific steps will you take to address this urgent threat to our constitutional order?