Trump’s Second Term Framed as a Campaign of Retribution, Column Says

Overview

• The Justice Department has asked an appeals court to reinstate charges against Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia after a judge dismissed the case in May, continuing a litigation cycle that began when Garcia was deported despite a unanimous Supreme Court order.
• Prosecutors dropped the case against David Hearn after the Justice Department acknowledged the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool damage resulted from a flawed installation rather than deliberate vandalism.
• The column and related coverage trace a pattern that began in the first hours of the term, when President Trump removed protective details from officials he viewed as disloyal, as a signal that retribution is shaping personnel and enforcement choices.
• The author warns that the same impulse driving domestic retaliation is affecting foreign policy toward Iran, where ongoing strikes and negotiations reflect an effort to avoid the appearance of defeat rather than a clear exit strategy.
• Commentators link the actions to a broader erosion of norms, note the role of executive-power allies inside the administration, and point out that court rulings and legal pushback remain key checks on the administration’s tactics.