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Don't worry: The military dislikes Trump too much to help him steal the election

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MenuSee More Speed ReadsPresident Trump's Wednesday to a peaceful transition of power should he lose the election has exacerbated all the worries raised by about serving an unconstitutional third term. No American president should dally with declining to cede power rightfully lost, and anger over the president's comments is justified. But panic, fortunately, is not.I understand fears about dissolution of democratic norms and the apparently nonexistent floor in of Republican officials in Trump's thrall. But Trump lacks two necessary things for the coup attempt some of his critics anticipate, and those deficiencies reassure me greatly.The first is competence. As my colleague Damon Linker , the president is very good at exercising rhetorical power, but he is very bad at actually doing things, because he is deeply incompetent. . He certainly cannot keep a secret or .The second is the absolute loyalty of the military Trump would need to retain the physical seat of power. If he had strong support among active-duty service members, it would still be quite a leap to say they'd help make him a dictator. But Trump doesn't even net a positive approval rating from U.S. forces anymore. An by Military Times found half of active-duty troops disapprove of Trump, while just 38 percent support him. A plurality of current service members said they plan to vote for Democratic nominee Joe Biden, a from military in elections past.For all he speaks of "my generals," Trump is even less popular among the officer corps, whom he'd need to organize the military behind his cause. Indeed, as The New York Times , Pentagon leaders have already publicly and privately considered the prospect of Trump attempting to involve them deciding the election. "In the event of a dispute over some aspect of the elections, by law, U.S. courts and the U.S. Congress are required to resolve any disputes, not the U.S. military," Gen. Mark Milley, chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said last month. "I foresee no role for the U.S. armed forces in this process."Trump is, in short, , and the American military is not going to give him a coup.While Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee reportedly the confirmation hearing for President Trump's Supreme Court nominee, Amy Coney Barrett, the party's senators will likely do whatever they can to slow the process, .Some of the tactics available for Democrats, who believe Republicans set a precedent for rejecting Supreme Court nominations in the lead up to a presidential election in 2016, that Politico include: invoking the "two-hour" rule — which Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) has — slowing down legislative business, objecting to recess, denying a quorum, raising points of order, enlisting the aid of the Democratic-controlled House, and delaying the final committee vote. Politico goes into more detail about each tactic .that there is broad, overwhelming support for pulling out all the stops among Democrats, including those, like Sen. Doug Jones (D-Ala.), who face tough re-elections and may get pulled off the campaign trail during a potentially lengthy process, and typically more conservative lawmakers like Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.V.).Jones Republicans of a "power grab," so even though Democrats don't have the votes to block the confirmation, "you do what you can to call attention to it." As Manchin , "we don't do anything around here anyway, we've got plenty of time to do meetings." Read more at .Amy Coney Barrett's Supreme Court confirmation process may be motivating Democrats more than Republicans, at least in North Carolina and Georgia, both of which are in play for the upcoming presidential election.In both states, a new CBS News/YouGov shows, 60 percent of Democrats say the polarizing Supreme Court debate has made them more motivated to vote compared to 46 and 47 percent of Republicans in Georgia and North Carolina, respectively. As CBS News points out, the court battle probably won't change many votes, since polls are suggesting that the majority of voters have their minds pretty set, but it could increase turnout.Supreme Court vacancy motivating Dems more than Republicans in key Southern states, per new polling— Kathryn Watson (@kathrynw5)That said, it hasn't made a huge difference in North Carolina and Georgia so far, as both states remain quite competitive and relatively unchanged. Biden Trump by two points in North Carolina, which is down slightly from his four point edge this summer. Georgia is closer still, more or less a straight toss up at this point. Trump by a point, a statistically insignificant change from Biden's previous one point advantage.The CBS News/YouGov were conducted in North Carolina and Georgia between Sept. 22-25 online. In Georgia, 1,164 registered voters were surveyed and the margin of error was 3.3 percentage points. In North Carolina, 1,213 registered voters were surveyed and the margin of error was 3.6 percentage points. Read the full results at .Fighting has broken out between Armenia and Azerbaijan, and the Armenian government has declared martial law and total military mobilization.Martial law and General mobilization will be declared in . : I call on the personnel attached to the troops to report to their territorial military recruitment offices. For the sake of the homeland, for the sake of victory— Government of Armenia (@armgov)The neighboring nations, both former Soviet republics, in a decades-long standoff over the contested Nagorno—Karabakh region, which is internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan, but has a majority ethnic Armenian population that has been running its own affairs since Azerbaijani forces were pushed out during a war in the 1990s. A ceasefire was brokered in 1994, but there have been flare-ups since, and Sunday's escalation appears to be the worst since 2016, .Both sides civilian deaths and blamed the other for instigating the fighting, while providing conflicting reports on how the clash has played out. The Armenian Defense Ministry Azerbaijan launched an attack on civilian settlements Sunday morning, and in response Armenia shot down two helicopters and three drones and destroyed three tanks. Azerbaijan that one helicopter had been lost while the crew survived, and a defense ministry spokesperson said several villages in Nagorno-Karabkh "which were under enemy occupation for many years have been liberated."Russia, France, and the European Union were that for an end to the violence and an immediate return to the ceasefire and negotiations. Read more at and .President Trump Amy Coney Barrett for the Supreme Court on Saturday, and the early reactions from the nation's political leaders are in.Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), who is naturally at the forefront of the Senate GOP's push to confirm Barrett before the November election, was effusive in his response to the nomination. In a statement, he said Trump "could not have made a better decision" and called Barrett "an exceptionally impressive jurist and an exceedingly well-qualified nominee," leaving little doubt as to how he'll vote, assuming the nomination moves past the Senate Judiciary Committee, as expected. The committee chair, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), meanwhile, agreed that Barrett is an "outstanding" nominee, adding that he's committed to ensuring she receives a "challenging, fair, and respectful hearing."Statement from .— Steve Herman (@W7VOA)House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) wasn't quite so thrilled, expressing particular concern for the future of the Affordable Care Act. "If this nominee is confirmed," Pelosi said in a statement, "millions of families' health care will be ripped away in the middle of a pandemic that has infected seven million Americans and killed over 200,000 people in our country."Former Vice President Joe Biden, the Democratic presidential nominee, also focused on the ACA, which he helped usher in while serving as former President Barack Obama's second-in-command, stating that Barrett "has a written track record of disagreeing" with the high court's previous decisions to uphold the ACA. Biden made another call for the Senate not to vote on Barrett's confirmation and wait for the presidential election to pass before filling the vacancy.Statement from .— Steve Herman (@W7VOA)As expected, President Trump on Saturday officially Amy Coney Barrett, a judge for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, for the Supreme Court following the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg last week.Speaking at the White House, Trump the 48-year-old Barrett, who traveled to Washington, D.C., from her home in South Bend, Indiana, for the nomination, as "one of our nation's most gifted and brilliant legal minds" and a "woman of unparalleled achievement, towering intellect, sterling credentials, and unyielding loyalty to the Constitution."During her own remarks, Barrett first paid tribute to Ginsburg, who she said "smashed" glass ceilings in the legal profession. She also paid homage to the late Justice Antonin Scalia — and his famed friendship with Ginsburg despite their fierce legal disagreements — whom she clerked for in the late '90s. Barrett, who is well-respected in conservative circles, said she shares the judicial philosophy of her mentor. Judges, she said, "must apply the law as written" while "setting aside any policy views they might hold."Watch Amy Coney Barrett's full nomination remarks— POLITICO (@politico)Barrett must now be confirmed by the Senate in what is expected to be a contentious process. While Barrett's legal opinions likely won't appeal to several Democratic lawmakers, the circumstances surrounding her nomination are what make this a particularly controversial nomination. In 2016, the Republican-led Senate blocked then-President Barack Obama's Supreme Court nominee, Merrick Garland, on the grounds that it was too close to that year's presidential election. There's actually an even smaller window between nomination and election this time around, but the GOP is ready to go through with the confirmation process, arguing the current situation differs from 2016 because the Senate majority and president hail from the same party.As Democrats try to beat the odds and prevent the confirmation of President Trump's Supreme Court nominee (almost certainly Amy Coney Barrett) before the November presidential election, some lawmakers and activists have suggested boycotting the Senate Judicary Committee hearings, which are tentatively for the middle of October. Just don't expect the idea to gain much traction, , especially among Democrats who sit on the committee.Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) he will forego the standard courtesy visit, in which the nominee meets with senators individually, but he to participate in the hearings and he believes "all my Judiciary colleagues will."The risks of skipping out on the hearings seem to outweigh the potential reward, per the Post. If Democrats don't go, Republicans swiftly though the questioning and toward a committee vote.More specifically, though, a boycott could prevent Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.), who sits on the committee, from giving a jolt to her own vice presidential campaign, . Harris, who is running alongside the Democratic nominee, former Vice President Joe Biden, has become well-known for her interrogations of Trump's nominees over the last few years, and there's a sense that she could enhance her ticket's chances during the hearings.With all that in mind, it's more likely that Democrats and make their case for why the nominee shouldn't be confirmed in a more traditional manner. Read more at .For the first time since June 5, New York state, the home of the United States' worst coronavirus outbreak since the pandemic began earlier this year, just over 1,000 new COVID-19 cases in a 24-hour period.Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) Saturday that the Empire State crossed the quadruple-digit threshold, though he didn't specifically address the number, saying only that New Yorkers should continue to practice social distancing, wear masks, and follow other mitigation guidelines.The state has seen a consistently upward trend in cases over the last week, which has prompted some concern as businesses and college campuses reopen, and officials that spikes in some neighborhoods in the New York City boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens are especially worrisome. But New York also continues to see a high number of daily tests. shows the positivity rate has remained at 1 percent, or just a tick below, for some time now, indicating that the high volume of tests is a significant factor in the case increase.published by The Lancet on Friday that searched for COVID-19 prevalence in a large nationwide sample of patients on dialysis found that about one-third of those tested in New York showed signs of a previous coronavirus infection. In terms of the study, that's the highest of any state in the U.S. and while it's far from what experts have pinpointed as the target for , those experts have also pointed out that numbers like that can still help slow the spread of the virus. Read more at and .2020 The Week Publications Inc., All rights reserved.

MenuSee More Speed ReadsPresident Trump's Wednesday to a peaceful transition of power should he lose the election has exacerbated all the worries raised by about serving an unconstitutional third term. No American president should dally with declining to cede power rightfully lost, and anger over the president's comments is justified. But panic, fortunately, is not.I understand fears about dissolution of democratic norms and the apparently nonexistent floor in of Republican officials in Trump's thrall. But Trump lacks two necessary things for the coup attempt some of his critics anticipate,...

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Bonnie Kristian

The Week is a weekly news magazine with editions in the United Kingdom and United States. The British publication was founded in 1995 and the American edition started in 2001; an Australian edition was published between 2008 and 2012. A children's edition, The Week Junior, has been published in the UK since 2015.

Don't worry: The military dislikes Trump too much to help him steal the election

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