Deadline: White House — “The stuff of revolution”

Host: Nicolle Wallace, MSNBC
Date: September 8, 2025

Episode Overview

This episode of "Deadline: White House" centers on the escalating threats of authoritarianism under a second Trump administration, including his threats to send federal troops into cities like Chicago, increased immigration enforcement, Supreme Court decisions enabling racial profiling, and the systematic transformation of the federal government into a loyalty-based “deep state”. Nicolle Wallace leads a panel discussion to dissect these critical developments and their consequences, featuring Myles Taylor (former DHS chief of staff), Eddie Glaude (Princeton professor, MSNBC analyst), Maya Wiley (former U.S. assistant attorney and civil rights leader), and Justin Wolfers (University of Michigan economist). The conversation highlights the dangers of normalization, the demoralization of institutions, the challenge of mass indifference, and the potential seeds of resistance amid encroaching autocracy.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

Trump’s Threats Against Chicago and Escalating Federal Power

• Context: Trump circulated a menacing social media post referencing the “Department of War,” threatening Chicago with military occupation, and alluding to the film "Apocalypse Now" (“Shippocalypse Now Chicago”).
• Response: Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson forcefully rejected these threats—Pritzker called them “jaw dropping and alarming,” while Johnson argued in the NYT that, “Sending in the National Guard is the wrong solution to a real problem.”
• Panel Reaction: Deep concern over a sitting president publicly threatening war on an American city, recalling past instances where initial disbelief or claims of “joking” were rapidly overtaken by ominous reality.

Quote [05:20, Maya Wiley]:
“We can't have Trump going in without the invitation of this governor... he does not have the constitutional permission to do it. It very clearly is not constitutionally permissible... I will [side with the governor] if he does it, because he can't do it legally.”

Quote [08:13, Nicolle Wallace]:
"This can never be normalized. An American president sent out a tweet... easy to understand as a declaration of war against Americans living in an American city."

Normalization of Authoritarian Moves and the Fragility of Guardrails

• Historical Patterns: Myles Taylor argues that Trump's pattern is to say something outrageous, surrogates label it as a joke, but then he acts—and former “red lines” get erased.
• January 6th Parallel: Panelists draw direct comparison to Republican red lines on the 2021 insurrection—which were repeatedly crossed, then rationalized—warning this dynamic is now repeating at higher stakes.
• Moral Numbing: The conversation turns to the dangers of public numbness and normalized outrage.

Quote [06:13, Myles Taylor]:
“We need to believe him when he says he's going to bring the Department of War to Chicago... when he says he believes the President of the United States is all powerful.”

Military Involvement, Civil Liberties, and Supreme Court Complicity

• Military as Propaganda: Panelists worry about the demoralization within the military when ordered to be used against US citizens for political theater.
• Supreme Court Shift: A recent divided ruling allowed ICE raids in LA, with Justice Sotomayor (dissenting) warning that now, “the government can seize anyone who looks Latino, speaks Spanish and appears to work a low wage job... I dissent.” [11:47]
• Authoritarian Playbook: Wiley warns this “will come for everyone” as tools of state power—once aimed at minorities—quickly expand to broader repression.

Quote [11:47, Maya Wiley]:
“This is going to come for everyone. That's the point about authoritarianism... If we don't have a red line with the Supreme Court, we have lost a major part of our balance of power.”

Quote [09:23, Myles Taylor]:
“Donald Trump is living out his authoritarian fantasies. It's happening.”

Criminalization, Mass Deportation, and the Expansion of Targeted Groups

• Erosion of Due Process: Wallace details how Trump’s administration has progressively redefined criminality, moving from deporting violent criminals, to all undocumented people, to legal residents, and even American citizens—within mere months.
• Public Response: The panel reflects on why mass public outrage hasn’t halted the slide, emphasizing the entwined roles of selfishness, indifference, and mass fear.

Quote [15:00, Nicolle Wallace]:
“To move that quickly from adjudicated violent criminals... to American citizens, to Americans he doesn't like in seven months should terrify everyone. Why are we numb?”

Quote [16:52, Eddie Glaude]:
“All the trains are running at the same time, which lets us know this is not just about Trump... The environment is perfect for this—a Cat 5.”

The Construction of a “Pro-Trump Deep State”

• Systematic Government Takeover: Myles Taylor lays out Trump’s concerted efforts to purge federal agencies of perceived disloyal staff—even civil servants—and replace them with MAGA loyalists, especially in law enforcement and security agencies, to cement Trumpism for a generation.
• Supreme Court Inaction: The panel laments the Court’s silence in the face of gross violations of appropriations law and Congressional intent, allowing the administrative state to be remade unchecked.

Quote [23:19, Myles Taylor]:
“Despite years of assailing the deep state, Trump and his allies are working to build one of their own... The scaffolding of autocracy is going up right in front of us and the construction workers are being hired for their loyalty to the leader.”

Quote [26:36, Myles Taylor]:
“They are creating something that will take a generation to undo. And really, you can't describe it any other way than a hostile takeover of the entirety of the federal government for the long term.”

Challenges to Resistance, Protest Movements, and Guardrails

• Grassroots and Protest: Maya Wiley emphasizes ongoing street protests, sanctuary movements, and direct action, but also points out the structural obstacles created by Supreme Court decisions weakening voting rights and judicial guardrails.
• Activism vs. Indifference: Eddie Glaude pushes the panel to examine why, despite activism, it hasn’t yet shifted broader indifference—a “sea of indifference” enabled by cultural selfishness.

Quote [28:21, Maya Wiley]:
“The idea [is] people are outraged... and a lot of why having this conversation isn't because people aren't engaged... The thing is, what do you do? That's why we've seen so much protest. That's why we've seen so much organizing.”

Quote [31:04, Eddie Glaude]:
“The scale of the response has to match the scale of the damage.”

The Economic Fallout: Immigration Raids and Tariffs

• Global Backlash: Economist Justin Wolfers breaks down the consequences of a massive ICE raid at a Hyundai factory in Georgia, which arrested hundreds and sent “shockwaves” through Asian boardrooms, undermining both manufacturing and foreign investment.

Quote [37:26, Justin Wolfers]:
"A factory is more than just people and machines. It's also knowledge... ICE has come in, shut the whole business down. And I think it's sent a message that's chilling not just within Hyundai, but any company that would think about sending any staff here."

• Farm Crisis: Farm bankruptcies and suicides are rising, with tariffs increasing input costs and crippling the agricultural sector. The pain is directly linked to Trump’s policies, yet political loyalties persist.

Quote [41:35, Farmer Testimony]:
"Five of my customers have committed suicide. That's how serious that this is. If there's no emergency funding this year... one out of three farmers will file bankruptcy."

Quote [42:18, Justin Wolfers]:
“What's causing their pain is tariffs. Foreigners are no longer buying American products at the same rates they once were... The other side of it, that's really stupid, is the Trump administration failed to read page one of the tariff handbook: don't put tariffs on inputs...”

American Identity, Political Tribalism, and the Possibility of Revolution

• No Quick Turnaround: Glaude notes that, historically, such crises take over a decade to resolve and that intense political identity (“it's who I take myself to be”) makes sudden shifts unlikely.
• Seeds of Upheaval: Yet, conditions are such that “the scenes are coming apart in the country”—and the pain and anger in rural America could yet flare into unpredictable—and possibly revolutionary—outcomes.

Quote [43:39, Eddie Glaude]:
"When people are talking like this, right, it is the stuff of revolution and that's what we have to understand. And revolutions aren't necessarily planned..."

Trump’s Culture Wars Reach New Targets

• Tom Hanks Incident: Wallace reports that revered actor Tom Hanks, known for his portrayals of American servicemen, had a West Point award ceremony canceled due to his criticisms of Trump, underscoring the breadth of Trump’s culture war tactics and their destabilizing impact even on military traditions.

Notable Quotes & Timestamps

• Maya Wiley ([05:20]): “We can't have Trump going in without the invitation of this governor... he does not have the constitutional permission to do it. It very clearly is not constitutionally permissible...”
• Myles Taylor ([06:13]): “We need to believe him when he says he's going to bring the Department of War to Chicago.”
• Nicolle Wallace ([08:13]): "This can never be normalized. An American president sent out a tweet... easy to understand as a declaration of war against Americans living in an American city."
• Justice Sotomayor, read by Wallace ([11:47]): “We should not have to live in a country where the government can seize anyone who looks Latino, speaks Spanish and appears to work a low wage job... I dissent.”
• Eddie Glaude ([16:52]): “All the trains are running at the same time... The environment is perfect for this—a Cat 5.”
• Myles Taylor ([23:19]): “Despite years of assailing the deep state, Trump and his allies are working to build one of their own...”
• Maya Wiley ([28:21]): “…people are outraged... That's why we've seen so much protest. That's why we've seen so much organizing.”
• Justin Wolfers ([37:26]): "A factory is more than just people and machines. It's also knowledge..."
• Farmer Testimony ([41:35]): "Five of my customers have committed suicide. That's how serious that this is."
• Eddie Glaude ([43:39]): “When people are talking like this... it is the stuff of revolution...”

Closing Reflection

Wallace and her panel deliver a piercing analysis of the United States at a crossroads, where legal, institutional, and cultural guardrails are being dismantled, and acts of resistance—on the streets and through the courts—contend with widespread indifference, fear, and systemic repression. The episode’s warning is unambiguous: the “stuff of revolution” is no longer a metaphor, and the path back from the edge is perilous and uncertain. The responsibility to respond—and to refuse to normalize the extraordinary—is left with “us.”