While running in 2024, President Donald Trump promised his audience, "I am your warrior. I am your justice. And for those who have been wronged and betrayed, I am your retribution."
By the end of the campaign, Trump backed off.
“We’re going to make this country so successful again,” he told a Fox News town hall in Iowa. “I’m not going to have time for retribution.”
But as New York Times reporter Mike Schmidt explained, Trump has launched a revenge campaign since being elected and it has been "far more expansive, efficient and creative than that — and less reliant on the justice system."
Writing Monday, Schmidt pointed to the recent attacks on top law firms that in the past had represented clients whom Trump had deemed to be political enemies.
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"Trump has filed lawsuits, signed executive orders, drafted regulations, fired people from government jobs and withdrawn security details to battle those who he believes stood in his way," Schmidt said. "In many cases, rather than turning to the courts or federal agencies to carry out his demands, he has asserted unilateral executive power."
Schmidt questioned whether Trump can legally enact some of the revenge he's taking, but noted it doesn't appear to matter.
"He has imposed costs on those who fail to heed his demands at universities, news organizations, and executive agencies," the reporter wrote.
Some of the law firms Trump targeted caved in by offering to perform millions in free legal work. In a video explaining the report, Schmidt said that the firms are being blasted for "enabling Trump."
Security clearances have been revoked for former Trump administration officials who spoke out against him during the 2024 election. Former Trump officials such as John Bolton and Mark Esper had security protections removed despite credible threats they've received in the past from foreign governments.
Lawyers who prosecuted the Jan. 6 attackers are being investigated, Schmidt continued, and the Associated Press has been blocked from the Oval Office and Air Force One.
Columbia University was threatened with losing millions in government funding and contracts, but they, too, cut a deal with Trump, said Schmidt.
Trump is also suing those who did reports he doesn't like, such as an Iowa pollster. Another targets a San Francisco radio station for coverage of immigration raids. ABC News settled with Trump after he sued them, agreeing to give $15 million to Trump's presidential library.
Schmidt closed by citing critics who say that "Trump is sliding toward undemocratic moves at an incredibly fast pace."
