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by Causes | 9.6.18

In an anonymous New York Times Op-Ed yesterday, a senior Trump administration official said he and others are part of an internal resistance working to frustrate President Donald Trump’s “misguided impulses.”
Since then, reactions have poured in.

Trump’s team reacts

White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders issued a statement noting that no Americans had voted for a “gutless, anonymous source” to the New York Times. Sanders said the writer was “putting himself and his ego ahead of the will of the American people,” and called for the “coward” to “do the right thing and resign.”

Vice President Mike Pence, who some commentators have suggested could be the anonymous writer, denied he was behind the piece. His communications staff said Pence signs his Op-Eds, and that whoever wrote the “false, illogical, and gutless” piece “should be ashamed.”

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo similarly denied authorship, lambasting the New York Times for publishing the piece. Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats called speculation that he was the writer “patently false,” and Defense Secretary Jim Mattis also disavowed the Op-Ed.

Opinions & Analysis

A CNN Op-Ed by Scott Jennings, who previously worked for former President George W. Bush and Sen. Mitch McConnell, called for the writer to resign and said the assertions in the piece were:

“alarming because an anonymous, unelected government appointee is substituting his or her judgment for that of the duly elected leader of a constitutional republic… Nowhere in the op-ed does the appointee allege criminal or treasonous behavior on the part of the President.”

Analysis in Business Insider says the anonymous piece:

“would seem to be a boon for fringe conspiracy theorists who have long said a shadowy cabal of faceless, unelected officials secretly runs the US… [I]t’s unclear whether the news of open mutiny or a soft coup has significantly reassured anyone.”

A Washington Post analysis wonders about the democratic crisis the anonymous Op-Ed described, specifically referencing the allegation that senior Trump officials had considered and dismissed the possibility of 25th amendment proceedings to remove the President from office:

“If they were truly that worried, you'd have to think they would be so alarmed that they'd come out publicly about what's happening. Instead, they seem to want to protect themselves and hope everything turns out okay. They think it best to muddle through with a democratic crisis that could turn into an American crisis, while shunning the constitutional option that was put in place, it seems, for just such a circumstance.”

Countable user SSyar made a similar observation yesterday:

“Question: If he’s so unfit, why bother trying to protect him in his position? Sounds like pure politics and not actual concern for the country. It’s not a ‘cold comfort,’ it’s absolutely no comfort.”

What do you think?

What do you think of this anonymous Op-Ed? Was it appropriate for the writer to remain anonymous? What, if anything, should happen next? Hit Take Action to tell your reps what you think, then share your thoughts below.

—Sara E. Murphy

(Photo Credit: White House / Public Domain)

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