So it was only a couple of weeks ago that a gaggle of Dem professional politicians (who also happened to be military veterans) got together to sternly remind current active-duty personnel about the dangers of following illegal orders … by which they likely meant ‘orders we don’t like at all ‘cause Orange Man Bad’ issued them. It’s not as if active-duty personnel need such a reminder, not in the decades since the My Lai massacre and the examples of Lt. Calley (who was held responsible along with his immediate commander for issuing those orders) and W.O. Hugh Thompson and his helicopter crew (who defied and protested them, as well as rescuing many of the Vietnamese civilians from the murdering rampage). In my day and my particular military specialty, there was a specific set of circumstances likely to result in an illegal order being given by an officer to a junior enlisted; a set of peculiar circumstances which had happened often enough that we were briefed about the possibility, told in no uncertain terms that it was our duty to refuse such an order, and that we would have the unreserved support of our chain of command in doing so. Other military specialties likely have their own specific circumstances – and I am presuming their personnel have been very well advised and briefed as regards as how such should be handled.

So, yes – the gaggle of Dem politicians making a do-do over recent military actions struck me as being more of an open warning – indeed a threat — about what might happen should the political worm turn from MAGA to progressive in the next national election cycle. It doesn’t take much imagination to conclude that happened to the J6 protestors would land on any military or law enforcement personnel luckless enough to catch the focused attention and malice of progressives to headlines to brandish and solitary prison cells to fill. The veniality and vengefulness of our current crop of ambitious progressive politicians and administrators guarantees that they would not be able to resist the opportunity to grandstand. Hakeem Jefferies, the Temo Obama is already going to town, threatening ICE officers with prosecution for doing their jobs in taking criminal illegal immigrants into custody. It also doesn’t take much imagination to see that freelance shysters, claiming to be champions of those victimized by the military or police would also want in on such a game – this has already done in Britain, although the lawyer involved was eventually disbarred for it.

The line has been drawn, apparently. Do your job … and if the Democrat Party manages to claw their way into power again, everyone – soldier, law-enforcement, whatever – who worked for the Trump administration and followed the law as it was established under them – will be in deep trouble.

Which is an excellent reason never to let the Democrat Party progressives ever anywhere near the levers of power again. Comment as you wish.