Hitler’s Gestapo was established as a political police force charged with crushing any dissent. The Bergen-Belsen museum defined the mission of the Gestapo as follows:

“Its main objective was to combat political opponents and people who, in the eyes of the Nazi leadership, posed a potential threat to the state. In addition to members of the opposition, this also included people who criticized the Nazi regime or belonged to a particular group (e.g. Jews or Sinti and Roma). To ward off this supposed danger, the Gestapo had far-reaching powers. The Gestapo was known for its brutal behavior: Torture, arbitrary searches, surveillance and interrogation were among their common methods. After the war began in autumn 1941, the Gestapo was also largely responsible for organizing the deportation of Jews from all over Europe to concentration and extermination camps and ghettos.” 

If this sounds eerily familiar–well it should. This is much of what ICE has been implementing since Trump returned to office. There has been little to no substantive due process procedure in evidence. We have witnessed a wholesale epidemic of state-sponsored kidnappings followed by state-sponsored human trafficking to corporate owned detention facilities. 

ICE has become the American Gestapo. 

ICE ‘arrests’ resemble illegal abductions…

Just last Tuesday, April 22nd,  ICE agents took two men into custody, apprehending them from the Albemarle County Courthouse in downtown Charlottesville. This was part of multiple massive raids across the nation. At no point during the ‘arrest’ did these plain clothes ICE agents identify themselves, display badges, or produce any warrants. They merely claimed to be from ICE. This observation was recorded on video and witnessed by Nicholas Repucci, head of the Charlottesville Office of the Public Defender. Repucci added; “It’s horrifying for the person being detained. It’s horrifying for the community members watching it.” Repucci further stated that; “It is highly alarming that ICE would show up to court and detain persons whose charges were dismissed without identifying themselves, without producing warrants or any sort of information to corroborate who they were, or any sort of explanation.” Repucci further stated that this abduction was a “public policy mistake” and then accused ICE of “taking over a state agency with federal force.”

Not only are these rogue actions horrifying; they are confusing. No uniforms. No badges. No warrants. ICE refused to provide information to the court, (or the families of the men), where they are now or what charges they may face. These ICE agents behaved as mafia kidnappers and hired mercenary killers. What reasonable person would cooperate with what had all the trappings of a violent, terroristic kidnapping? This single incident is merely the tip of the tyrannical iceberg. Not only did ICE agents kidnap these men, but they further threatened bystanders with criminal prosecution for daring to film the incident and ask questions. 

Albemarle County Commonwealth Attorney responds to ICE raid…

The Albemarle County Commonwealth’s Attorney Jim Hingeley, has pledged to investigate the raid and warned ICE that “further actions like the courthouse arrests yesterday would constitute a grave danger to our community.” Hingeley has major concerns, again–with the manner of the detention, noting the lack of uniforms, identifying badges, or actual arrest warrants. One of the ICE agents was wearing a balaclava masking his face.

ICE ‘spokesman’ threatens Commonwealth Attorney…

An ICE ‘spokesman’ who refused to be identified, slandered by innuendo, the Commonwealth’s Attorney stating that; “It is shameful that the Commonwealth Attorney, a sworn officer of the court and fellow law enforcement officer, has decided to prioritize politics over public safety–placing a criminal’s wellbeing above that of the brave women and men in law enforcement, whom the Commonwealth Attorney took an oath to support.”  

Commonwealth Attorney responds to ICE slander…

Hingeley responded to the ICE spokesman’s allegations, stating; “It is a fact that the method chosen by ICE agents to make these arrests constituted a risk to public safety, and I stand by that statement.” Hingeley further criticized ICE stating that; “In Albemarle County, at least, if not at ICE, facts are facts, and I am confident my constituents appreciate my efforts to bring facts to light.” Hingley added that his investigation into this raid is ongoing. ICE threats will not stop it. “My investigation is balanced and impartial, and I have received input from the federal agencies involved in making the arrests, all the more reason, it seems to me, to conclude that the ICE spokesperson’s attack on my integrity was misguided. I leave it to my constituents to decide who was ‘posturing for the media.’” 

ICE threatening bystanders with criminal prosecution…

In addition to the migrant abduction, ICE has stated they will hunt down and seek obstruction of justice charges against the two women who filmed the incident and requested agents produce ID and a warrant signed by a judge. Again, an unidentified ICE spokesman stated that … “The U.S. Attorney’s Office intends to prosecute those individuals.”  

U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Virginia stonewalls…

Brian McGinn, a spokesman for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Virginia, had no further comment. McGinn merely added that … “We cannot confirm or deny the existence of an ongoing investigation.”  

Witnesses report how Hotline volunteers advocated …

According to a witness at the scene, the two women in question were believed to be volunteers with the Immigration Rapid Response Hotline. The Hotline is a public service group engaged by multiple civil rights and immigrant support organizations. Reporting from The Daily Progress documented witness accounts that the hotline was contacted when ICE agents were spotted.  

Advocating due process rights is now a crime…?

When did asking alleged law enforcement officers for badges and identification become a crime? When did advocating for proper arrest warrants and due process rights in general suddenly constitute ‘obstruction’? In a legitimate legal system–neither demand does. In the neo fascist world of Donald Trump, demanding due process rights illegitimately triggers criminal charges from the vaguely worded ‘obstruction’ allegation to the more threatening ‘aiding and abetting terrorists’ charge, (unless of course you’re a billionaire, white supremacist hailing from South Africa like Elon Musk or Peter Thiel). This is all part of another hairbrained, dangerous scheme to strip due process rights from any of us–except those ‘The Donald’ favors. 

Trump pushes to end ‘due process’ rights…a treasonous idea…

Donald Trump is making the case for ending–due process rights. Fulfilling his role as the consummate con artist, Donald pushed the asinine trope that … “We cannot give everyone a trial, because to do so would take 200 years.” 

Now, this outburst from Donald,  was in response to public outcry and multiple court cases demanding that his administration provide due process rights to every person facing potential criminal charges.  The demand definitely extends to those being subjected to state sanctioned kidnapping and human trafficking, courtesy of ICE. Donald’s tantrum against due process is probably also in response to the massive, nation-wide protests against him and his lawless administration. So, Trump did what Trump does best–he pushed innuendo, half-truths, and–just plain lied. Trump would have you believe that ‘due process’ is a privilege as opposed to a right granted to all PERSONS. In truth, ‘due process’ is mandated by the US Constitution. The 14th amendment is quite clear. 

Section 1 of the 14th amendment reads as follows:

“All PERSONS born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any PERSON of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any PERSON within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.” 

Now, notice the word PERSON. Nowhere does it mention ‘illegals’ or ‘undocumented.’ It speaks to human PERSONS. The first part of Section 1 deals with what is commonly dubbed–’birthright citizenship’, in addition to the existence of naturalized citizens. The key second part deals with the issue of ‘due process.’ It clearly states, with no hesitation or ambiguity, that the State may not …”deprive any PERSON of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law, nor deny to any PERSON within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.” 

Additionally, the 14th amendment isn’t the only section of the Constitution speaking to due process rights. The 5th amendment also mandates such rights in its text:

“No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the Militia, when in actual service in time of War or public danger; nor shall any person be subject for the same offence to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.”  

Notice the same phrase clearly stating that no person can be legally “deprived of life, liberty, or property without due process of law”, being mentioned over and over again? This entire “due process” thing is not an option to be skipped, like Pam Bondi skips the dessert cart in order to maintain her size 4 figure. This is a true mandate that has been the cornerstone of the U.S. Constitution since the Founding Fathers wrote the document. 

The guarantee of due process rights isn’t an option that DOJ can offer or deny based on the insane daily whims of a wannabe dictator. This is a legal and constitutional mandate. In plain terms, this means that government agents, such as ICE, are forbidden from ‘disappearing’ people off the street and throwing them into a concentration camp. And yet, that is precisely what has been happening, with ICE serving as a rogue actor, mimicking the practices of Hitler’s Gestapo. This is not hyperbole. It is reality. In fact, ICE has been a rogue agency since its inception during the George W. Bush administration and continuing through the subsequent terms of Obama, Biden and Trump. The one difference between Trump and his predecessors, is that Bush, Obama and Biden were smart enough to pay lip service to ‘due process’ rights, while Trump performs as the ‘frontman’ for an unconstitutional ‘smash & grab’ sponsored by the proud fascists of the Heritage Foundation and similar groups. 

So, why does dumb Donnie believe he can reduce the cornerstone of the Constitution to toilet paper someone else uses to clean his dirty diaper? Simply put; his attorney enablers in the GOP have pushed several legally bogus theories past credulity. It began with the 

unconscionable  Supreme Court decision in U.S. v. Trump, granting a president near total immunity from any criminal charges, no matter how egregious. Trump’s legal team made the specious argument that a president could commit any crime and be granted total immunity by virtue of holding the office of president. Lead attorney D. John Sauer, (who is now the Solicitor General at DOJ), promoted this asinine argument. I wrote about this in an earlier piece. Quoting myself: “Under such a tortuous reading of the Constitution, all a criminal president would have to do is order SEAL Team Six, (or any other group of assassins), to commit the extra-judicial murder of a few congressmen or senators, (like any other mafia boss), to halt any impeachment or subsequent conviction. In this scenario, a president could get away with murder. In fact, theoretically a president could commit genocide with legal impunity.”

Thankfully, his legal team of D. John Sauer, Will Scharf, and Michael Talent forgot one simple reality. While the republicans on the Supreme Court granted Trump absolute immunity for activities considered within the scope of his ‘official’ duties–no one else enjoys such criminal immunity. Under the present rogue actions of ICE, prosecutors can and should, bring criminal charges against ICE agents who implement state-sponsored kidnapping and human trafficking. 

So, how does the law define the crimes of kidnapping and human trafficking?

Kidnapping defined…

First, what constitutes the crime of ‘kidnapping’? The Legal Information Institute of the Cornell Law School provides a definition. To quote:

18 U.S. Code § 1201 – Kidnapping

1. “Whoever unlawfully seizes, confines, inveigles, decoys, kidnaps, abducts, or carries away and holds for ransom or reward or otherwise any person, except in the case of a minor by the parent thereof, when –

1. The person is willfully transported in interstate or foreign commerce, regardless of whether the person was alive when transported across a State boundary, or the offender travels in interstate or foreign commerce or uses the mail or any means, facility, or instrumentality of interstate or foreign commerce in committing or in furtherance of the commission of the offense;
2. any such against the person is done within the special maritime and territorial jurisdiction of the United States;
3. any such act against the person is done within the special aircraft jurisdiction of the United States as defined in section 46501 of title 49 https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/49/46501;
4. the person is a foreign official, an internationally protected person, or an official guest as those terms are defined in section 1116(b) of this title https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/1116#b; or
5. the person is among those officers and employees described in section 1114 https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/1114 of this title and and such act against the person is done while the person is engaged in, or on account of, the performance of official duties, shall be punished by imprisonment for any term of years or for life and , if the death of the person results, shall be punished by death or life imprisonment.” https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/1201

Now, I’m not an attorney, and I’m sure that there are many Trump enablers who would hunt for loopholes, but the law seems pretty clear. No law enforcement agents may apprehend and jail (detain) a person without due process procedures. No due process, no legitimate warrant–then no apprehension or imprisonment. The key word is “unlawfully.” What ICE has been doing is “unlawful”. 

Now, what constitutes ‘human trafficking’? The US State Department defines ‘human trafficking’ as the following:

“Trafficking in persons” and “human trafficking” are umbrella terms–often used interchangeably–to refer to a crime whereby traffickers exploit and profit at the expense of adults or children by compelling them to perform labor or engage in commercial sex. The United States recognizes two primary forms of trafficking in persons: forced labor and sex trafficking.” 

For the purposes of this piece, I will focus on the forced labor category of human trafficking. The State Department defines forced labor as the following: 

“Force Labor, sometimes also referred to as labor trafficking, encompasses the range of activities involved when a person uses force, fraud, or coercion to exploit the labor or services of another person.”

Now there are those in elected office who would claim that the US Constitution permits such ‘forced labor’ or slavery when such labor is performed by convicted felons. And while it’s shamefully true that the 13th amendment does permit slavery within the context of legal punishment for a convicted crime; these illegitimate abductions do not meet that requirement. As a reminder, I have provided the text of the 13th amendment, Section 1, below.

13th Amendment, Section 1:

“Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.”

See the part requiring actual convictions in order to trigger such ‘involuntary servitude’? The problem with the DOJ’s lame defense of these practices, lies in the plain fact that these kidnapped migrants haven’t been convicted in any court of law. They’ve been denied their ‘due process’ rights which are guaranteed by the 14th amendment. Such rights are mandated to all PERSONS, regardless of citizenship status. Subsequently, such ‘convictions of convenience’ pushed by the DOJ and DHS are illegitimate. 

Section 2 of the 13th Amendment is often ignored, but shouldn’t be. It reads: “Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.” 

Now, this section holds another key. Congress has the power to totally abolish all slavery at any time. Nowhere does it say that a president can legislate this issue (or any other), via executive order. 

Nowhere.

Conclusion:

So, what is the solution to a president cum unconstitutional dictator and a rogue agency (ICE), serving as the 21st century American Gestapo? The answer requires three distinct reforms.

First, State level and local prosecutors must begin arresting and prosecuting ICE agents participating in these illegal raids sponsored by the DOJ. In order for ICE to make legitimate arrests, they must wear identifiable uniforms, badges, and have a duly authorized warrant signed by a judge. 

Secondly, If ICE refuses such necessary reforms, then it must be permanently abolished. It is in actuality, a redundant agency, created in reaction to 9/11. In any case, no law enforcement agency should ever be granted the power to set aside our constitutional rights. 

Finally, Congress must legislate to establish the office of Attorney General as an independent arm of government, removing it from presidential cabinets. This is how it works at the state level. State level Attorney Generals are elected independently and are removed from the Executive branch. Presently, we have a US Attorney General who takes her marching orders from the Executive, acting as his personal attorney, prostrating herself to his political ‘pleasure’. This is a corruption of the entire process. DOJ cannot function as a legitimate agency when it serves the political whims of a president. The conflict of interest has devolved into a fascist arm of the executive serving like a mafia style consigliere or mob lawyer, crafting ‘stay out of jail’ cards for Donald Trump. This isn’t ‘justice.’ Rather it’s fascism, American style. 

These reforms must occur. A temporary truce with the fascists of the Trump regime will not restore any semblance of democratic rule. The very fact that the U.S. Attorney General serves at the ‘pleasure’ of a sitting president represents a clear and present danger to legitimate ‘rule of law.’ Such subordination of the DOJ to the Executive reduces the DOJ to a mere political actor. 

The conflict of interest is obscenely clear. Rule of law is in dire danger and these substantive reforms are the only actions which will restore justice. Resistance to this fascism is our duty, or to quote the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg aka ‘the notorious RBG;
…”When injustice becomes law, resistance becomes duty.”