The Danish Peace Academy: Chossudovsky, Michel:Coup d'Etat in America?

Based on so-called "credible" reports, Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge has warned that Osama is now "planning to disrupt the November elections." A large-scale attack on American soil is said to be planned by Al Qaeda during the presidential election campaign:

"Possible targets" include the Democratic National Convention in July and the Republican Convention in New York in August.

Barely a few days prior to Tom Ridge's spectacular announcement, a spokesman of Northern Command Headquarters at Patterson Air Force Base in Colorado confirmed that Northcom (which has a mandate to defend the Homeland) was "at a high level of readiness" and was proceeding with the (routine) deployment of jet fighters over major cities as well as the posting of troops at key locations (Atlantic Journal and Constitution, 3 July 2004).

Cancelling or Postponing the Elections

This new terror warning by Homeland Security, not to mention the impending military deployment, has served to create an aura of insecurity concerning the November presidential elections.

Meanwhile, postponement of the election has become a talking point on major news channels including CNN, following the release of a letter by the Director of the Election Assistance Commission (EAC) to Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge, calling for so-called "guidelines" to cancel or reschedule the election in the case of a terror attack

Legal procedures for cancelling/rescheduling the elections are under study, at the request of DHS Secretary Tom Ridge, by the Justice Department's Office of Legal Counsel, which is examining the legal and constitutional implications. (Washington Post, 14 July, 2004)

The Military and Intelligence apparatus working in liaison with Homeland Security and the Federal Emergency Management Authority (FEMA) are indelibly behind this process, pointing to the unthinkable: the possibility of a coup d'etat in America.

Meanwhile, the cancellation / rescheduling of elections issue is presented to public opinion as a mere technical question, as a means of "protecting democracy," in the case of a terror attack. CNN has asked people "to vote" on their website, on whether they think the elections should be held in the case of a terror attack. It all sounds very democratic.

Crying Wolf on Terrorism. Who is the Wolf?

The terror alert level has been raised to orange (high alert) five times since September 11, 2001. There have been numerous other terror warnings since the "color coded" alert system was first established in the wake of 9/11.

There is, however, evidence from police sources that at least two of these five high profile post-9/11 code orange terror alerts were fabricated: February 7, 2003, and December, 21, 2003.

There is also ample evidence that Al Qaeda is a creation of the US intelligence apparatus and that the terror network is supported by the Bush Administration.

The most recent DHS announcement has all the appearances of yet another fabricated report of an impending attack by an illusive "outside enemy." It is already amply documented: Al Qaeda is a CIA sponsored "intelligence asset," and the disinformation regarding the terror attacks emanates out of US intelligence.

Details of the police/intelligence investigation regarding Secretary Tom Ridge's July terror warning have not been provided. Officials have said the USG "does not have specific knowledge about where, when or how such an attack would take place," but the CIA, the FBI and other agencies are said to be "actively working to gain that knowledge."

Code Red Alert and Martial Law

The possibility of a code red terror alert has been announced time and again since September 11 2001, with a view to galvanizing public opinion across the country in support of an emergency situation, if and when it occurs. The terror alerts have become part of America's day to day life:

Supported by a barrage of media propaganda, these repeated terror alerts have created an environment of fear and intimidation, a wait-and-accept attitude, a false normality. US citizensare led to believe that a military solution is required to protect democracy.

In other words, the possibility of an impending attack on America by this "outside enemy" has been accepted by the American public; this tacit acceptance has set the stage for the adoption of "the highest threat level": code red alert.

What the US public is not aware of, is that a code red alert suspends civilian government; it triggers a whole series of emergency procedures; it is tantamount to a coup d'etat -- although in many regards the coup d'etat has already taken place under the post-9/11 anti-terrorist legislation and the rigging of the 2000 elections which brought George W. Bush intothe White House.

Preparing for Code Red

Homeland Security (DHS) has in fact been contemplating a code red alert "scenario" -- using Al Qaeda as a pretext -- for more than a year. In May 2003, the DHS conducted a major "anti-terrorist exercise" entitled TOPOFF 2. The latter was described as

The exercise was based on code red assumptions involving a simulated terrorist attack.
See: http://www.globalresearch.ca/articles/CHO402A.html. A code red alert, according to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), would create conditions for the ("temporary" we are told) suspension of the normal functions of civilian government, implying the cancellation or postponement of federal and State elections.

Northern Command would take over. Several functions of civilian administration would be suspended; others could be transferred to the jurisdiction of the military. More generally, the procedure would disrupt government offices, businesses, schools, public services, transportation, etc.

A secret "Shadow Government" under the classified "Continuity of Operations Plan" was installed on September 11, 2001.
(See: http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A205842002Feb28?language=printer).
Known internally as "Continuity of Government" or COG, the secret shadow government would become functional in the case of a code red alert, redeploying key staff to secret locations.

Code red alert would, according to FEMA, also preclude and repress any form of public gathering or citizens' protest which questions the legitimacy of the emergency procedures and the installation of a police state. The emergency authorities would also exert tight censorship over the media and would no doubt paralyze the alternative news media on the internet.

Code red alert would trigger the "civilian" Homeland Emergency response system. The latteris already in place including DHS Ready.Gov instructions, the Big Brother Citizen Corps, not to mention the USAonWatch or Neighborhood Watch Program which has a mandate to "identify and report suspicious activity in neighbourhoods" across America.
http://backgroundchecks.org/home-security

The Role of the Military

What would be the involvement of the Military in a code red emergency situation?

The existing legislation inherited from the Clinton administration, not to mention the post 9/11 Patriot Acts I and II, "blurs the line between military and civilian roles," it allows the military to intervene in judicial and law enforcement activities even in the absence of an emergency situation.

The 1996 legislation allowed the military to intervene in the case of a national emergency (e.g., a terrorist attack). Clinton's 1999 Defense Authorization Act (DAA) extended those powers by creating an "exception" to the Posse Comitatus Act, which permits the military to be involved in civilian affairs "regardless of whether there is an emergency." See ACLU at:
http://www.aclu.org/NationalSecurity/NationalSecurity.cfm?ID=8683&c=24.

In other words, the Clinton era legislation had already laid the legal and ideological foundations of the "war on terrorism."

In the context of the war on terrorism, the so-called "exception" contained in the 1999 DAA legislation nullifies the provisions of the Posse Comitatus Act:

Despite this 1999 "exception"" to the Posse Comitatus Act, which effectively invalidates it, thePentagon and Homeland Security, anxious to remove all ambiguities, are nonetheless actively lobbying the US Congress for the outright repeal of the 1878 legislation.

President Bush and Congress should initiate action to enact a new law that would set forth in clear terms a statement of the rules for using military forces for homeland security and for enforcing the laws of the United States." --John R. Brinkerhoff, former associate director for national preparedness of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA),
http://www.homelandsecurity.org/journal/Articles/brinkerhoffpossecomitatus.htm

Senator Joseph Biden (a Democrat), former Chairman of the powerful Senate Foreign Relations Committee, has also being waging, since the mid-1990s, a battle for the repeal of the Posse Comitatus Act.

The Patriot Legislation

In turn, the Bush administration Patriot Acts have set the groundwork of a police state. In minute detail, they go much further in setting the stage for the militarization of civilian institutions.

Even under a functioning civilian government, the PATRIOT Acts have already instated several features of martial law. The extent to which they are applied is at the discretion of the military authorities.

The 2003 Patriot Act II goes much further in extending and enlarging the "Big Brother functions" of control and surveillance of people. It vastly expands the surveillance powers, providing government access to personal bank accounts, information on home computers, telephone wire tapping, credit card accounts, etc. For further details, see Ratical.org at
http://www.ratical.org/ratville/CAH/USAPA2.html#DSEAanalysis

The Northern Command (Northcom)

The creation of Northcom is consistent with the de facto repeal of the Posse Comitatus Act. In fact, the position of a "Homeland Defense Command" leader "in the event of a terrorist attack on U.S. soil," had already been envisaged in early 1999 by Clinton's Defense Secretary William Cohen. (http://www.thirdworldtraveler.com/Civil_Liberties/Posse_Comitatus_Law.html ).

Following the Bush Administration's decision to create Northcom, the White House instructed Justice Department lawyers "to review the Posse Comitatus law in light of new security requirements in the war on terrorism." The 1878 Act was said to "greatly restrict the military's ability to participate in domestic law enforcement." (National Journal, Government Record, 22 July 2002)

The role of Northern Command is defined in the Pentagon's "Joint Doctrine for Homeland Security (JP-26)." The latter constitutes a blueprint on how to defend the Homeland. Even inthe case where the enemy is fabricated, and this is known at the highest levels of military-intelligence, a military coup d'etat would become operational in terms of the detailed command military/ security provisions contained in this document (click here to consult JP-26).

According to Frank Morales,"the scenario of a military take-over of America is unfolding." And Northern Command is the core military entity in this takeover and militarization of civilian institutions.

Northcom has what David Isenberg describes as "a Creeping Civilian Mission." Since its inception, it has been building capabilities in domestic intelligence and law enforcement¹. It is [through the DoD] in permanent liaison with the DHS and the Justice Department². It has several hundred FBI and CIA officers stationed at its headquarters in Colorado. It is in permanent liaison, through an advanced communications system, with municipalities and domestic civilian law enforcement agencies around the country³.
(See Isenberg, op. cit.).

Meanwhile the CIA, which has a unit operating out of Northcom, has extended its mandate to issues of "domestic intelligence."

According to Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge (22 December 2003): "If we go to [code] Red ... it basically shuts down the country." In which case, a national emergency is declared. Northern Command deploys its forces on air, land and sea. Several functions of civilian government are transferred to Northcom headquarters, which already has the structures which enable it to oversee and supervise civilian institutions.

In other words, Northcom's "command structure" would be activated in the case of a code red terror alert. But Northcom does not require, in accordance with the provisions of the 1999 DAA, a terror alert, an attack or a war-like situation to intervene in the country's civilian affairs.

To prepare for new "law enforcement" missions for the military within America, overseen by the Northern Command, the Center for Law and Military Operations, based in Charlottesville, Virginia has published a "useful" handbook entitled Domestic Operational Law for Judge Advocates. According to Frank Morales, the handbook:

According to Morales, "the 'war on terrorism' is the cover for the war on dissent." (Ibid)

The jurisdiction of the Northern Command now extends from Mexico to Alaska. Under ("bi-national") agreements signed with neighbouring countries, Northern Command can intervene and deploy its forces and military arsenal on land, air and sea in Canada (extending into its Northern territories), throughout Mexico and in parts of the Caribbean.
(See: http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/agency/dod/northcom.htm )

Taken together, the existing legislation grants the military extensive rights to intervene in any "emergency situation," in practice, without the prior approval of the Commander in Chief.

Concluding Remarks

An Al Qaeda sponsored terrorist attack is being contemplated as a "trigger mechanism" for carrying out a coup d'etat.

Whether it is going to be carried out is another matter. The statements of the Bush administration regarding the possibility of a red code alert must, nonetheless, be taken seriously.

The coded terror alerts and "terror events" which have been announced by DHS are part of a disinformation campaign carried out by the CIA, the Pentagon, the State Department and Homeland Security.

US intelligence is not only involved in creating phony terror warnings, it is also firmly behind the terror groups, providing them with covert support.
(See: http://www.globalresearch.ca/articles/CHO301B.html )

Media Disinformation

A coup d'etat which suspends civilian institutions is not only contemplated, it has become a talking point on network TV; it is openly debated as a "solution" to "protecting American democracy" which is said to be threatened by Islamic terrorists.

The implications of a red code alert are trivialised. Through media disinformation, citizens are being prepared and gradually conditioned for the unthinkable.

The "war on terrorism" is part of a bipartisan agenda. Successive US administrations since Jimmy Carter have supported the Islamic brigades and have used them in covert intelligence operations.

"Triggering Civilian Casualties"

In 1962, the Joint Chiefs of Staff had envisaged a secret plan entitled "Operation Northwoods," to deliberately trigger civilian casualties to justify the invasion of Cuba:

Both "the war on terrorism" as well as the domestic war on terrorism are consistent, from the point of view of military planning, with the logic of Operation Northwoods. Civilian casualties are used as "a war pretext incident," to galvanize public support for a military intervention.

Mentioned time and again by DHS Secretary Tom Ridge, a "second 9/11 attack" is contemplated; Al Qaeda, we are told, is preparing "a large-scale attack in the United States in an effort to disrupt our democratic process."

What we are not told is that Al Qaeda is a creation of the CIA, and that Al Qaeda remains a US sponsored "intelligence asset."

"Useful Crisis"

The assumptions and rhetoric behind Homeland Security are nothing new. They echo an earlier statement by David Rockefeller to the United Nations Business Council in 1994:

Similarly, in the words of Zbigniew Brzezinski in his book, The Grand Chessboard:

It is worth mentioning that Zbigniew Brzezinski, who was National Security Adviser to President Jimmy Carter, was one of the key architects of the Islamic brigades created by the CIA at the onslaught of the Soviet Afghan war (1979-1989). (See Brzezinski at http://www.globalresearch.ca/articles/BRZ110A.print.html )

Franks identifies with cynical accuracy the precise Homeland Security scenario whereby military rule might be established in America using, as in Operation Northwoods, civilian casualties as a trigger mechanism:

General Franks' statement seems to accurately reflect the mood within the US Military and Homeland Security as to how events ought to unfold. The "war on terrorism" is to provide a justification for repealing the Rule of Law, ultimately with a view to "preserving civil liberties."

This statement, from an individual who was actively involved in military and intelligence planning at the highest levels, suggests that the "militarization of our country" is an ongoing operational assumption. It has become part of the broader "Washington consensus." It is a "talking point" not only in the corridors of the Pentagon, Langley and Homeland Security, but also in the mainstream media.

Democrats and Republicans

Some people think that a change in direction will occur if the Democrats win the 2004 presidential elections. Yet the Democrats are not opposed to the illegal occupation of Iraq and Afghanistan. Nor are they opposed to the militarization of civilian institutions, as evidenced by their initiative to repeal the Posse Comitatus Act.

While there are substantive differences between Republicans and Democrats, Bush's National Security doctrine is a continuation of that formulated under the Clinton Administration in 1995, which was based on a "strategy of containment of rogue states."

In Fall 2003, the Democrats released their own militarization blueprint, entitled Progressive Internationalism: A Democratic National Security Strategy. It calls for "the bold exercise of American power, not to dominate but to shape alliances and international institutions that share a common commitment to liberal values."
(See Mark Hand, http://www.globalresearch.ca/articles/HAN403A.html)

The militarization of America is a project of the US corporate elites, with significant divisions within the corporate establishment on how it is to be achieved.

The corporate establishment, with its associated think tanks and semi-secret societies (The Bilderberg, Council on Foreign Relations, Trilateral Commission, etc.), is by no means monolithic.

Influential voices within the elites would prefer a "softer" police state apparatus, a "democratic dictatorship" which retains the external appearances of a functioning democracy.

The Democrats' "Progressive internationalism" is viewed by these sectors as a more effective way of imposing the US economic and military agenda Worldwide. For instance, the Kerry-Edwards ticket is supported by billionaire George Soros, who has waged a scathing denunciation of George W. Bush and the Neocons.

While the US Congress and the bi-partisan consensus constitutes the facade, the Military (and their Intelligence counterparts) are, from the point of view of the corporate elites, mere foreign policy "pawns," to use Henry Kissinger's expression, acting on behalf of dominant business interests.

The Wall Street financial establishment, the military-industrial complex led by Lockheed Martin, the big five weapons and aerospace defence contractors, the Texas oil giants and energy conglomerates, the construction and engineering and public utility companies including the biotechnology conglomerates, are indelibly behind the militarization of America.

Elections or no Elections?

The "war on terrorism" is a war of conquest, which supports American (and British) economic and strategic interests. Its underpinnings are supported by both Democrats and Republicans.

While a coup d'etat triggered by a code red alert is a distinct possibility in the months ahead, we must understand that the militarization of civilian institutions in America is an ongoing process.

The coup d'etat entrenches the militarization process. It suspends civil liberties and the antiwar movement outright. It makes any form of reversal back to civilian forms of government much more difficult to achieve.

Militarization, however, as distinct from an outright military coup d'etat, does not exclude the electoral process.

Under a Kerry-Edwards administration, the military-intelligence apparatus - which constitutes the backbone of the "war on terrorism" and of the police state - would remain functionally intact. So would Northern Command and the various Big Brother functions of the Department of Homeland Security.

One can indeed speculate on what might happen from now until the November presidential elections.

Whether the elections take place or not, the contours of a functioning police state under the facade of Constitutional government have already been defined:

On the economic front, we can expect militarization to accelerate the gamut of neoliberal economic reforms both nationally and internationally (in the later case, they would be implemented under the auspices of the IMF, World Bank and World Trade Organisation).

Militarization will be accompanied by a new deadly wave of privatization of public services, urban infrastructure would be transferred to private companies, local economies including small scale enterprises and agriculture would be further destabilized and deregulated, etc., leading to increased levels of unemployment and the impoverishment of millions of people.

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© Copyright MICHEL CHOSSUDOVSKY 2004.

Notes

¹"As DoD reorganizes the civil support mission, it should consider carving out a significant role for NORTHCOM in the planning, training, and day-to-day management of operations. This would allow the assistant secretary to focus more of his primary effort on policy issues, a more appropriate role for the secretariat than managing field operations. In addition, placing NORTHCOM in the routine business of coordinating these missions, even when a large federal military presence is not required, will allow the command to establish solid working relationships with the other federal agencies and state and local governments with which it will have to work intimately in responding to a large-scale disaster or terrorist attack. Placing NORTHCOM in the routine civil support chain of command will help its staff develop trust and confidence with other agencies. This will be needed to operate effectively under the stressful demands and pressing time-constraints of a major national response. In particular, expanding NORTHCOM's responsibilities for planning support for a range of operations, such as preparation for the annual forest fire season where military forces support state fire fighting missions, might provide important dividends in preparing to respond to more dramatic future tasks."
See: http://www.csbaonline.org/4Publications/Archive/B.20030429.NORTHCOM/B.20030429.NORTHCOM.pdf
[editor's note]

²The beauty of this de facto liaison is that its existence is expressly forbidden, but just as expressly provided for: out of vestigial respect for Posse Comitatus, Northcom is forbidden to liaise directly with Homesland Security - but the Defense Department liaises with both, and in this capacity is essentially a high-powered conduit between them. "DoD's role in border security involves providing support, particularly to the Department of Homeland Security, when appropriate. DoD maintains
quick- and rapid-reaction forces for this purpose, he added, and these Army and
Marine forces would operate under NORTHCOM's command and control." Peter F. Verga, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary Of Defense For Homeland Defense, quoted in "DoD Ready to Assist in Event of Homeland Attack," by Gerry J. Gilmore, American Forces Press Service, April 12, 2004. See:
http://www.voicesofsept11.org/security_issues/archive/2004/041204b.html

"NORTHCOM's relationship with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) runs through DoD. A DoD representative noted that NORTHCOM is not intended, and lacks the capacity, to infringe on the role of local first responders. This relationship is governed by the Federal Emergency Response Plan." See:
Matthew Foley, "The Role of the Military in Securing the Homeland: A McCormick Tribune Foundation Cantigny Conference Series Post-Conference Report," National Strategy Review, Volume 13, Issue 2, Winter 2003.
http://www.nationalstrategy.com/Winter2003/Role%20of%20Military.html
[editor's note]

³"NORTHCOM has the primary mission of 'homeland security' with a focus on coordinating with local, state, national and international agencies rather than commanding large combat forces as the other nine unified commands do. It will undertake the land, aerospace and sea defense of the continental United States, as well as command U.S. forces operating in support of civil authorities on 'homeland security' tasks. It is located at Peterson Air Force Base, in eastern Colorado Springs, Colorado. Under NORTHCOM's jurisdiction are the continental U.S., Alaska, Canada and Mexico, plus two portions of the Caribbean, and the five hundred mile coastal area. NORTHCOM provides assistance to civil authorities when directed by the President or Secretary of Defense… Although the Department of Homeland Security has been created with Tom Ridge as its director, a functioning military 'homeland security' department is neatly tucked away inside NORTHCOM. The Joint Force Headquarters Homeland Security, established in January 2002, has 500 personnel assigned to NORTHCOM, but remains stationed in Norfolk, Virginia. It coordinates the land and maritime defense of the continental U.S. as well as military assistance to civil authorities." Marti Hiken, "Military Reorganization: NORTHCOM - The New Designer Military," Guild Practicioner, a publication of the National Lawyers Guild (Volume 59, Number 4, Fall 2002).
archived at: http://www.nlg.org/mltf/northcom.html.
[editor's note]

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