Trump signed an executive order this afternoon, directing the Department Of Justice to investigate two former White House employees, one of whom admitted to being part of the “resistance” inside Trump’s first administration.
Miles Taylor, an intelligence expert, was an appointee who served in the Department of Homeland Security from 2017 to 2019, under the Trump administration. Taylor also served as chief of staff of the DHS. In 2018, he penned an anonymous op-ed in the New York Times, titled “I Am Part of the Resistance Inside the Trump Administration.”
Today, Trump revoked security clearance for Taylor, as well as ordering the DOJ to investigate him, saying: “It’s time to find out whether or not somebody can do that. I think he’s guilty of treason.”
Taylor came under fire at the time the Op-ed was published, and later admitted in a 2020 book titled A Warning, that he had written the piece. Taylor was the first former Trump administration official to endorse Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential campaign.
In a 2023 interview with MSNBC, Taylor said: “A number of folks who worked in the Trump administration with me and have since spoken out against the ex-president, we joke darkly about the fact that in a second term, a number of us will be in orange jumpsuits in Guantanamo Bay.”
Adding to his slew of executive orders since entering office, Trump also signed an order to investigate Chris Krebs, who previously served as Director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) in the United States Department of Homeland Security.
During the signing, Trump’s advisor said “Chris Krebs… this is a man who weaponized his position against free speech in the election context… this instructs your department of justice.. to investigate..”
Trump responded, “We’re gonna find out about this guy too. This guy is a wise guy.”
Trump mimicked Krebs saying, “This is the most secure election in the history of our country!” then adding, “No this was a disaster.”
As he signed the order, Trump added that Krebs is a “fraud” and a “disgrace.”
Trump signed the orders just hours after announcing that the “reciprocal” tariffs on China would be increasing to 125%. He also announced a 90-day pause on all other trade tariffs.
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