Parts of California under military administration – The United States is governed by a madman and many are not much better

Donald Trump continues to militarize the southern border of the United States, and this time it affects California. The Interior Department has announced that it will transfer jurisdiction over large parts of the border region to the U.S. Navy – a step that exceeds previous lines and effectively turns the border into a military space. The area stretches almost continuously from the Arizona state line up to the Otay Mountain Wilderness, past the Imperial Valley and places such as Tecate. A stretch of land that was previously administered by civilian authorities is now placed under the control of the armed forces.

Since April, extensive sections in New Mexico, later in Texas and Arizona, have been designated as militarized zones. There, soldiers are allowed to arrest migrants, accuse people of “entering a military installation” and initiate additional criminal proceedings. More than 7,000 soldiers are now stationed at the border, supported by drones, helicopters and surveillance technology. The government calls this closing security gaps, but the numbers tell a different story: apprehensions at the southern border are at their lowest level since the 1960s. Nevertheless, Trump continues to push the expansion forward.

The question of his mental state is not only justified, it is of fundamental importance, because this man is ill.

Interior Secretary Doug Burgum speaks of protecting national sovereignty. But legal experts warn that the administration is circumventing prohibitions that restrict the use of the military for law enforcement on U.S. soil. The militarization creates a zone in which soldiers take on tasks that should actually be reserved for civilian authorities – arresting, searching, accusing. This merging of responsibilities opens the door to abuse and shifts the balance of power between the state and the military. On the same day, a federal judge drew a clear line for the administration: the National Guard in California must be returned to the state. In June, Trump had mobilized more than 4,000 Guard soldiers without the approval of Governor Gavin Newsom in order to advance his immigration enforcement agenda. The court decision shows how willing the president is to bypass state structures when they stand in the way of his plans.

The new military belt in California is part of a policy that elevates readiness to use force and deterrence to a guiding principle. People seeking protection are pushed into a space where the military, not the law, sets the tone. And a country that likes to present itself as a guarantor of democratic rules must ask itself what it means when soldiers along local communities become responsible for tasks that once belonged to civilian agencies. California is currently experiencing how a national decision changes daily life – and how far a government will go when it not only protects borders but shifts them. One calls that a dictatorship.