Trump, Dealing with Betrayers?… “If I win the presidential election, I will mobilize the judiciary to retaliate”

Former U.S. President Donald Trump is testifying as a witness in a civil trial related to allegations of financial fraud held at the Manhattan District Court in New York City on December 6 (local time). ⓒAP/Newsis

Former U.S. President Donald Trump has told his associates that he will retaliate against those who have fallen out with him if he wins the election next year.

The Washington Post (WP) quoted an anonymous source close to former President Trump on the 6th (local time), reporting that Trump is devising specific plans to retaliate against his enemies, which include amendments that would allow the president to direct investigations.

In recent months, former President Trump has reportedly told “pro-Trump” Republicans and associates that he will “take retaliatory measures using the Department of Justice against former White House Chief of Staff John Kelly, former Attorney General William Barr, former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley, and attorney Ty Cobb.” The individuals Trump pointed out are all those who once worked with him but have since fallen out.

Former Chief of Staff Kelly is the person who exposed that Trump had made insulting remarks about war veterans and the deceased. Former Attorney General Barr and former Chairman Milley did not join Trump’s election denial movement and criticized Trump. Cobb, the attorney, also spoke harshly to former President Trump. It is also known that Trump said that FBI and Department of Justice officials who investigated him are also targets for retaliation.

The WP reported, “Recently, he and his associates are creating laws to strengthen presidential power to manipulate the Department of Justice at will,” and “The draft has already been completed and Trump wants a structure where the president can directly order investigations to the Department of Justice.”

Saikrishna Prakash, a constitutional law professor at the University of Virginia, criticized in the WP, “When a politician starts to change the constitution to eliminate enemies, it means returning to a primitive society,” and “It tramples on the great history of the founding of the United States.”

In response to the controversy, Steven Cheung, a spokesperson for the Trump camp, said, “Former President Trump is currently focusing all his efforts on winning the election,” and “He has never had such discussions with his associates, and he is always striving to maintain order and uphold the constitution.”