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  "authors": [
    "Paul Staniland"
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    "Carnegie Endowment for International Peace"
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Source: Getty

In The Media

The Militarization of U.S. Politics

The Trump administration has reportedly pressured law enforcement agencies to downplay the threat posed by these organizations, allowing nonstate violence to creep back into the political mainstream to a degree not seen since the 1960s and 1970s.

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By Paul Staniland
Published on Oct 29, 2020
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The South Asia Program informs policy debates relating to the region’s security, economy, and political development. From strategic competition in the Indo-Pacific to India’s internal dynamics and U.S. engagement with the region, the program offers in-depth, rigorous research and analysis on South Asia’s most critical challenges.

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Source: Foreign Affairs

Over the last four years, U.S. President Donald Trump has shown more sympathy for far-right groups, many of them armed, than any president in recent memory. At the same time, his administration has reportedly pressured law enforcement agencies to downplay the threat posed by these organizations, allowing nonstate violence to creep back into the political mainstream to a degree not seen since the 1960s and 1970s. Just last month, a group of antigovernment extremists was arrested for plotting to kidnap Michigan’s Democratic governor, Gretchen Whitmer, after she defied Trump’s demand to “LIBERATE MICHIGAN” from COVID-19 restrictions. More violence could erupt ahead of next week’s presidential election, as well as in its aftermath.

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This article was originally published by Foreign Affairs.

About the Author

Paul Staniland

Nonresident Scholar, South Asia Program

Paul Staniland is a nonresident scholar in the South Asia Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

    Recent Work

  • Article
    The Shadow of the Military in Modern South Asia

      Paul Staniland

  • Paper
    Major Power Rivalry and Domestic Politics in South Asia

      Paul Staniland

Paul Staniland
Nonresident Scholar, South Asia Program
Paul Staniland
Political ReformDemocracySecurityMilitaryCivil SocietyNorth AmericaUnited States

Carnegie does not take institutional positions on public policy issues; the views represented herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Carnegie, its staff, or its trustees.

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