In a dizzying few days, Trump ramps up attacks on political opponents and 1st Amendment

['Ana Ceballos Is A Washington Correspondent For The Los Angeles Times. She Covers The White House', 'Congress. Before Joining The Times', 'She Was A State Government', 'Politics Reporter For The Miami Herald', 'Where She Covered The Administration Of Gov. Ron Desantis With A Focus On Immigration', 'Michael Wilner Is The Washington Bureau Chief For The Los Angeles Times. He Has Spent More Than A Decade Covering The Federal Government With A Focus On The White House. Before Joining The Times', 'Wilner Was Chief Washington Correspondent For Mcclatchy', 'Where His Enterprise', 'International Reporting Was Recognized With Multiple Awards. He Previously Covered Foreign Affairs In Washington', 'Overseas For The Jerusalem Post. Wilner Is A Graduate Of Claremont Mckenna College'] Los Angeles Times 2025-09-22 00:00:00

President Trump has harnessed the weight of his office in recent days to accelerate a campaign of retribution against his perceived political enemies and attacks on 1st Amendment protections. An active investigation into the president’s border advisor over an alleged bribery scheme involving a $50,000 payout was quashed by the White House itself. Erik Siebert, the U.S. attorney in Virginia, resigned Friday after facing pressure from the Trump administration to bring criminal charges against New York Atty. The Trump administration has also begun a military campaign against vessels crossing the Caribbean Sea departing from Venezuela that it says are carrying narcotics and drug traffickers. “This is real — a full-throttle assault on free speech in America,” Paulson said.