Schlichter splashes a bucket of cold-water practical reality all over the “send in the troops” idea.

Let me share some background. After I got off active duty the first time, I joined the California Army National Guard. For the next 23 years I participated in, planned, and commanded during multiple civilian support operations. I was in the Los Angeles Riots, the Northridge Earthquake, and I commanded two battalions along with other forces in northern San Diego County during the 2007 fires. I planned ops from platoon to state headquarters level, and wrote about civil support ops in Infantry magazine and even in a first-of-its-kind law review article. So, I know a little about this stuff.

And what I know tells me that, despite our fantastic soldiers’ abilities, this is a bad idea.

But why? Let’s address the donkey in the room – Democrat governors, mayors and district attorneys do not want military forces deployed and will at least refuse to cooperate with them, if not actively hinder them. That makes a blue city like Portland a “non-permissive environment,” and the military is certainly designed to operate in them. That’s why when the military moves in force with, say, an infantry brigade combat team (IBCT) of 5,000 soldiers plus support elements (thousands more), we essentially deploy a small town with everything we need to survive – food, fuel, ammo, medical, maintenance, commo, power, transportation, even lawyers. Typically, in cities engulfed in chaos, it’s a permissive environment. The cops work with us. They take custody of arrestees, hold them, and the DA prosecutes them. Hospitals take in our wounded and sick. We use local government property to operate out of. We have access to the infrastructure of society. But what if the Democrat regime refuses to allow all that? Then the troops are on their own; it’s now an invasion, and while doable logistically, it takes a massive footprint.

A permissive environment solves some, but not all of the issues we will review. A non-permissive environment makes the whole thing exponentially worse. 

The complications and punji-pits just go on a-multiplying from there, and Kurt delves into ’em thoroughly. I’ve been torn from the start about it myself; on the one hand, it’s tough to argue that a President should sit on his hands while a large number of Democrat-Riot Party governors and mayors sit back and let their cities be damaged and destroyed, rendered uninhabitable by their so-called leaders’ refusal to live up to their responsibilities, honor their oath of office, and do their duty.

On the other, though, it couldn’t have been more apparent that, their obstructionism aside, those outright criminal Demonrat officials were salivating at the prospect of being to brand Trump a dictator when he tried to restore law and order via military force. It is NEVER a good idea to do what Demonrats want—NEVER.

On the gripping hand, I can’t help but be reminded of Lincoln’s frustrated fatalism in January 1862: “It is exceedingly discouraging. As everywhere else, nothing can be done.”

But that isn’t by any means what Schlichter is saying.

These hard truths are not to say there is nothing for the feds to do. Until the Democrat regimes decide this needs to end and cooperate, the feds should do one of the few things the feds are good at – taking down large criminal organizations. Antifa is just like the drug cartels with less testosterone, and just like the mafia except with worse clothes and less testosterone. The feds should ignore the street thugs who make up the shock troops. It was no coincidence that 100 percent of the people Kyle shot had criminal records. The feds should focus on the LARPing middle class SJWs and the dedicated Marxist cadre and use RICO, conspiracy, and other federal charges to take them out and lock them up. When little Ashleigh from the suburbs realizes that she’s looking at five years in federal prison instead of heading back to the Evergreen State to finish her Bolivian Trans Dance of the 13th Century degree, the lawyer daddy buys her will get her to sing like a canary about her commie pals. The feds should identify and map the whole criminal organization, identify its players and funding, and wipe it out.

Look, it’s perfectly understandable to be frustrated. But getting mad at Trump because he is not doing something that would turn into the cluster fark to end all cluster farks is doing exactly what the liberal elite and its media minions want. Let Portland and the rest of the blue cities trash themselves. Let the DOJ, which has already charged dozens of these degenerates with federal beefs, do its thing. And make sure you get out and vote straight Republican if you want any hope of this ever ending.

And hey, whaddyaknow:

Feds start leveling rare civil disorder charges against demonstrators for alleged violence at Portland protests
Two men and a woman appeared before a federal judge Wednesday in Portland, becoming the first in Oregon to face the rare federal charge of civil disorder for alleged violence during this summer’s turbulent protests.

A Seattle man is accused of launching a ball bearing with a slingshot during a downtown demonstration in July and striking a Portland Fire Bureau medic.

A Portland woman is accused of throwing a helmet that struck a police sergeant in the head last week outside the Police Bureau’s North Precinct.

The felony cases against Jesse Herman Bates, 38, Michelle Peterson O’Connor, 31, and Krystopher Michael Donnelly, 27, mark a significant detour from past practice in Oregon — federal prosecutors here haven’t used the charge in recent memory.

But U.S. attorneys in half a dozen other cities have brought similar civil disorder charges tied to violence that has erupted during protests nationwide decrying the May 25 death of George Floyd, a Black man who died after a white Minneapolis police officer knelt on his neck for more than eight minutes.

The Oregon U.S. Attorney’s Office is reviewing other violent actions from the last three months of protests and is expected to pursue similar civil disorder prosecutions.

What the hell, it’s a start. And if this courageous, valiant PantiFa warrior’s reaction to getting pinched is any indication, maybe it might suffice:

GREEN BAY, Wis. (WBAY) – A Neenah man had a flamethrower, smoke grenades and fireworks during a demonstration in Green Bay Saturday night, according to police and prosecutors.

Matthew Banta, 23, is charged with obstructing an officer and two counts of felony bail jumping.

The criminal complaint says Banta “is known to be a violent Antifa member who incites violence in otherwise relatively peaceful protests.” Police say he’s known as “Commander Red.”

Green Bay police say they were called for “a whole bunch of white people with sticks, baseball bats and helmets headed… towards the police” on Walnut St. near Webster Ave.

“I don’t know who comes to a protest with a baseball bat for anything other than criminal or illegal activity,” said Green Bay Police Chief Andrew Smith.

A responding officer says he saw four individuals walking towards a protest with baseball bats. One man was wearing a metal helmet with goggles and military-style gear with multiple pouches, and was carrying an Antifa flag. When the officer pulled his squad car in front of the group, they ran away. The officer caught Banta, who was carrying the flag, and says Banta “dropped into the fetal position and began crying.” He accused the officer of lying on him; the officer replied nobody was on him.

Now, none of us should make the mistake of assuming they’re all as soft and gutless as this puling, pussified little baglapper is. Certainly, there are some genuinely hard boys in amongst the scrofulous, contemptible rabble of creampuffs, thumbsuckers, and mama’s boys. But there only has to be a large enough percentage of them who are for the whole sorry facade to be brought crashing down, perhaps even without having to destroy the nation utterly in getting the job done.