Almost a month ago (see archives for Dec. 12), I wrote a guest commentary for this paper listing 16 unconstitutional, illegal or simply outrageous recent actions by the Trump administration, asking whether my fellow Americans had had enough yet. It is amazing to me that in less than a month, that list has grown dramatically.

For example: The International Court of Justice has held that a sitting foreign head of state cannot be arrested or prosecuted by another state while in office. Despite this, the Trump team attacked targets near Caracas, killing over 80 people, including civilians, then snatched the president of Venezuela and his wife and brought them to New York to be tried on an old drug smuggling charge. Under Article 2 (4) of the United Nations Charter, all U.N. member states must refrain from using force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state, unless: (1) there is authorization by the U.N. Security Council, or (2) the force is in legitimate self-defense following an armed attack. Neither condition was met.

Congress has the power to declare war or authorize military force. Presidents may only use force without prior approval in limited circumstances, typically to repel sudden attacks or imminent threats. Congress was not consulted about or asked to approve the Venezuelan attacks.

Donald Trump just froze development on offshore wind projects on the East Coast, only weeks after a federal judge ruled that his initial attempt to pause development was “arbitrary and capricious.” Wind and solar threaten his emphasis on burning fossil fuels for energy. But electricity generated from wind and solar energy is now cheaper and cleaner than energy from fossil fuels.

Venezuelan crude is heavy, sulfurous, gunk that can only be refined in two Louisiana refineries built for that purpose. Those refineries are owned (surprise!) by one of Trump’s largest donors.

The administration is freezing over $10 billion in childcare funds for California, Colorado, Illinois, Minnesota and New York, all states with Democratic majorities.

The Corporation for Public Broadcasting is going out of business after government de-funding. CPB funds supported public radio stations, some of which provided critical emergency broadcasts throughout rural areas as well as other essential news and weather services.

Trump has threatened to annex Greenland, a semi-autonomous part of the Kingdom of Denmark, a founding NATO member. Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen warned that a U.S. military attack on Greenland “would mean the end of NATO” and the broader post-World-War II security framework.

Greenland’s citizens have the right of self-determination and do not want a U.S. takeover. The claim that the U.S. needs to “own” Greenland for security reasons is a sham since, under existing treaties, the U.S. has the right to as many military bases there as it wants.

The official White House page now portrays the Jan. 6 Capitol attack as a “peaceful patriotic protest.” It claims that by certifying the 2020 election results, Democrats “staged the real insurrection,” a claim with no basis in fact. It omits any mention of the large number of law enforcement officers injured and accuses former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of being to blame for the riot. It says that rioters were peaceful and “patriots,” rather than participants in a violent, unlawful attack.

Special prosecutor Jack Smith was subpoenaed to give closed-door testimony before the House Judiciary Committee, and the public transcript was released on Dec. 31, 2025. His assertion was that the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol would not have occurred without Trump’s actions, including spreading false election claims and inviting supporters to Washington.

In Minneapolis last week, masked ICE agents killed a defenseless 37-year-old mother who was trying to drive away from them. Kristi Noem, the Homeland Security secretary, and Tricia McLaughlin, a department spokesperson, then tried to convince us not to believe our own eyes. Noem accused the woman of “domestic terrorism” and of “stalking” immigration officers without any basis for either claim.

Trump has repeatedly blamed Barack Obama, Joe Biden and Hillary Clinton, claiming without evidence that they created or manipulated issues to undermine him, including the Epstein files and other disputes.

These events all happened within the last month. One could be forgiven for thinking that these outrages are just to divert our attention away from the still-unfolding Epstein scandal.

When we have finally had enough, perhaps we will, as the old saying goes, throw the bastards out. Midterms are coming up.

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Lee Keet lives in Saranac Lake