Throughout the 2024 presidential campaign season, Donald Trump accused his Democratic opponents—President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris—of using the levers of power against him.
"The Biden regime's weaponization of our system of justice is straight out of the Stalinist Russia horror show," he told rallygoers in March 2023 after being indicted in Manhattan for violating election law. In a September 2024 debate against Harris, Trump even blamed Democrats' rhetoric for the assassination attempt he survived weeks earlier, saying "I probably took a bullet to the head because of the things that they say about me."
But now that Trump is firmly ensconced back in office, his administration seems to have no interest in stopping government weaponization. Rather, it seems keen to wield that power for itself. Looking back now on Trump's complaints, it appears less that he was upset than that he was jealous.
