Trumps Witch Hunts Are Having a Huge Chilling Effect

[workinclasszero]

Trump’s Witch Hunts Are Having a Huge Chilling Effect
His intimidation of journalists, civil servants, and businesses is already doing incalculable harm to the public interest.
BY BRIAN BEUTLER December 14, 2016


The questionnaire President-elect Donald Trump’s transition team sent to the Department of Energy arrived with little fanfare (neither Al Gore nor Kanye West were dispatched as couriers), but it was delivered with the expectation that word of its contents would filter down to employees at every level of the agency. Among other unusual inquiries, it included a request for the names of officials and contractors who helped the government forge a global deal to combat climate change and worked on related efforts to reduce U.S. greenhouse gas emissions.

On Tuesday, the Department responded to Trump with a bold-lettered refusal: “We will not be providing any individual names to the transition team.”

The solace to dedicated civil servants will last for another 37 days. After that, it’s anyone’s guess how aggressively Trump’s administration will seek to dismiss or marginalize government employees and contractors who study and implement environmental policy. But even if a great purge isn’t upon us, a great chill almost certainly is.

The effect has already seeped outside the federal government, into the broader community of climate scientists who may not collect salaries directly from the federal government but depend on the federal government for research funding and crucial data. These scientists, according to The Washington Post, “have begun a feverish attempt to copy reams of government data onto independent servers in hopes of safeguarding it from any political interference.”

This kind of defensive paranoia is the visible reflection of the invisible but extensive chilling effect the incoming administration is likely having across many realms of public service and life. It is happening already, weeks before he officially assumes the presidency. And the most frustrating part is that we’ll never know how far it ultimately reaches.

https://newrepublic.com/article/139335/trumps-witch-hunts-huge-chilling-effect

[Initech]

1. And his brown shirts are intimidating professors and academics, and destroying property.

Things are getting scary.

[workinclasszero]

3. This is the Trump republican modern equivalent of nazi book burning

[Initech]

4. Happened here in my neck of the woods.

Professor speaks out about Trump, next minute said professor is getting death threats.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10028363200

Things are getting scary.

[workinclasszero]

5. Wow

This country is circling the toilet bowl

A brave new world awaits on January 20, 2017.

[Initech]

7. This one hits way too close to home.

I live like 20 minutes from that college and I go to a school in that district. And even though it's California what's scary is that this is happening everywhere. I'm keeping record of these the next time some Trump supporter talks shit about what happened after the election, I can throw this back in their faces. I think any amount of death threats, swastika graffitti, harassment and intimidation cancels out the rioting.

[workinclasszero]

9. And if that is happening in big blue California

How do you think things are in the middle of a red fascist sea in flyover country?

Let me tell you, I'm scared.

[Initech]

10. Yeah I would not want to visit that part of the country.

Even farmville here in California (Kern / Inyo / SB / Imperial, etc) were overwhelmingly voting for Trump. I would not want to visit the very red part of middle America right now.

Just yesterday I was saying that my grandparents were blue collar rust belt liberals their whole lives. They'd be horrified to learn that Michigan and Wisconsin voted for Trump.

[GoCubsGo]

2. Meanwhile, some here are asking why people are afraid of this asshole.

Jeezus Christ.

[workinclasszero]

6. IKR?

People have no idea of the violence that Trump and his party are going to attack this country and its democratic ideals with starting next month.

No idea....

[bdamomma]

18. he wants people to be afraid of him

it gives him more power, I would not give him SHIT.

He is just a wanna be. And you can tell he loves authoritarians.

You are not an American Mr. Trump, you are a treasonous bastard and should be locked up.

[etherealtruth]

8. Its not just climate scientists that are worried

Environmental scientists feel equally threatened (as does anyone working in the "scientific community&quot

[world wide wally]

11. I wonder if any of Trumps Brownshirt wannabes realize that Hitler had his Brownshirts executed

after they had served his purpose early on.

[Raster]

13. Of course they don't. That would require actual study of history...

...and require critical thinking skills to analyze the data. Much easier to "Sieg Heil," burn a book and let your inner racist, psychopathic 7-year old terrorize the neighborhood.

[world wide wally]

14. Must you be so factual and to the point?

[bdamomma]

19. ohhh

facts they are really afraid of those too. tRump is afraid of Germs too, that is his phobia. hmmmm............................

[world wide wally]

21. Then he's keeping the wrong company but I'm sure he wouldn't let his voters into Trump Tower anyway

[LongTomH]

12. And there's more to come!!!!

[PufPuf23]

15. Trump reminds me of Reagan on steroids.

I was a career Fed that resigned from Federal service in an environmental position during Reagan after being a seasonal to post university professional Fed (1969 to 1985).

Reagan declared war on the agency, gave the shop to industry, and made a mockery of long term policy and program that never recovered.

Many of the younger and thoughtful professionals left. On the other hand the agency inadvertently awarded the internal toadies that valued career over idealism and ethic.

[pipi_k]

16. Well, as far as journalism goes...

and not that I have any hope at all that it would happen, but I would really love to see all news media stop reporting on everything he says and does.

Just ignore the asshole and make him invisible. Like he doesn't even exist.

He's such an attention whore that I wonder exactly how far he would go to get the attention back on himself. Would he do and/or say ever increasingly outrageous things?

Would the nice men with the white coats and butterfly nets come and take him away after an epic meltdown on Twitter?

Like I said...zero chance it would happen...just something fun to think about

[bdamomma]

17. he looks deranged in that picture

he really has some mental issues, lock him up!!!!! he better stay out tanning bed too, it may do something to him. I really think other than this man being mentally unwell he is physically unwell too. It may catch up to him...................

[Ilsa]

20. Bookmarked and rec. Will they make them wear some kind of insignia?

I heard the Trumper claim to host Cuomo that scientists are wrong all of the time, that scientists thought the world was flat, etc, and they might be wrong on climate change.

Now they are marking people as "other." I suppose they'll have to start wearing some sort of insignia soon.