'You are being warned': Trump’s former defense secretary Mark Esper calls him a ‘threat to democracy’

WASHINGTON, DC: Mark Esper, the former US Secretary of Defense, launched furious attacks at former President Donald Trump on the third anniversary of the Capitol riot, calling him a “threat to democracy.”

Esper was at an interview with CNN on Saturday, January 6 when host Jim Acosta asked, "Three years after the attack on the Capitol, I'm just curious, Mr Secretary, do you view Donald Trump as a threat to American democracy?"

The former Secretary of Defense then replied “And yes, I do regard him as a threat to democracy, democracy as we know it, our institutions, our political culture, all those things that make America great and have defined us as, you know, the oldest democracy on this planet.”

Esper, who served as the secretary of the Army and later as defense secretary under the Trump administration, said January 6 is a “tragic day in our nation’s history.”

Further in the interview, Tapper asked Esper then if Trump could ever be trusted in the White House again. To which, he replied “No”, adding "It's irresponsible action that places our service members at risk, places our nation’s security at risk.”

“You cannot have these documents floating around. We've got to take this very seriously,” he added, according to the Messenger.

The rocky relationship between Donald Trump and Mark Esper

Shortly after the election, in November 2020, Trump fired Esper, ending months of tension that began with the country's protests that summer.

Esper expressed worries that Trump might use the military to maintain his hold on power following the 2020 election and said that he might deploy the military to quell any protests at a 2025 inauguration if re-elected.

The former defense secretary stated that in such a scenario, he might imagine state governors—especially those who support Trump—lending him their national guard, according to the Hill.

He continued by saying that if that didn't work out, Trump could use the Insurrection Act, which gives him the power to use military action to put an end to demonstrations or acts of domestic violence.

Trump aides reportedly drafted an order that would have allowed the former president to invoke the act amid the Black Lives Matter demonstrations and civil unrest that followed after police killed George Floyd in 2020.

Internet reacts to Mark Esper’s remarks

Esper’s remarks have garnered immense social media attention, with one user saying “Imagine the inside knowledge...”

“A stark warning from Mark Esper about Trump's impact on democracy prompts reflections on our institutions,” a user wrote while another stated, “You forget we are a republic."

“You are being warned by insiders of the Trump administration 2016 that democracy is at stake. What you do with this information on voting day will determine your future, how prosperous it could be or how chaotic life will become. Choose wisely,” another user asserted.

“Yes because he will breakdown the rot in our agencies and keep us out of wars,” one user predicted while another said, “Does anyone honestly think a dictator is going to allow his citizens to be armed! 👀”

This article contains remarks made on the Internet by individual people and organizations. MEAWW cannot confirm them independently and does not support claims or opinions being made online.