Earlier this summer, a historic uprising against racist police violence occurred in response to the murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and countless other Black Americans killed by police. As millions across the nation protested the injustice, some Americans saw for the first time the lengths that President Donald Trump's administration was willing to go to suppress opposition.
As peaceful protesters gathered outside the White House this past June, Americans were horrified to see law enforcement officers gas and beat them to clear a path. Minutes later, the President walked to the historic St. John's Episcopal Church where he posed for photos with a borrowed Bible.
But according to a new whistleblower report, the administration's plans to clear the protesters were even more insidious.
CNN has obtained documents reported by NPR that show D.C. National Guard was asked by military officer whether his unit had a “heat ray" that could be used on protesters at Lafayette Square on June 1, when Trump held Bible outside church. w/ @mkraju pic.twitter.com/QKIWAwjesx
— Jim Acosta (@Acosta) September 17, 2020
National Guard Maj. Adam DeMarco wrote to a House committee that the National Capital Region's chief military police officer inquired about the availability of an "Active Denial System," colloquially known as a heat ray used for crowd control.
The Active Denial System uses concentrated beams of energy to create a painful burning sensation for its target, but questions remain as to the long term harm caused by the device. As a result, the device was largely sidelined in the 2010s.
In addition to the Active Denial System, the lead officer requested a long-term acoustic device, or sound cannon, also designed to forcibly remove crowds.
People were unsettled by DeMarco's revelations.
The news can be depressing these days, so take a mental wellness break from reading about how the president sexually assaulted someone to read about how he tried to use a heat ray against his own citizens.
— Stephen Colbert (@StephenAtHome) September 18, 2020
REMINDER: Our government shouldn't be conspiring to use heat rays against us for exercising our constitutional rights. https://t.co/8JKeCoGWS2
— ACLU (@ACLU) September 17, 2020
Vote Biden. He'll never attack us with heat ray devices.
— Scott Dworkin (@funder) September 17, 2020
White House sought 'heat ray' device before clearing Lafayette Square
We've been watching an excruciatingly slow super villain origin story https://t.co/vuE27zb8rp
— Diedrich Bader (@bader_diedrich) September 17, 2020
When buzzing protestors with a Blackhawk helicopter just won't do. When tear-gassing them is so Portland but you are in DC, why not microwave them? Cook 'em without leaving a government mark. https://t.co/PKTER9JoLg
— Barbara Malmet (@B52Malmet) September 18, 2020
What's more, Trump's photo op—designed to reinforce the notion that Trump is a biblical, law and order President amidst overwhelming chaos—largely made things worse.
Not only did clergy from St. John's church vocally disavow the move, but the photoshoot largely highlighted what critics say is insincerity on Trump's part regarding his religious beliefs.
Donald John Trump, who was impeached and hid in a bunker like a punk, gassed protesters and posed with a Bible like some kind of fascist goofball. The End.
— Oliver Willis (@owillis) June 2, 2020
Trump after he posed with that Bible pic.twitter.com/3fQdHoZ8yF
— Dillon Wood (@dillonwd13) June 2, 2020
Despite what you might hear from some well-meaning folks, the problem is definitely NOT that Trump failed to read the Bible he posed with. The problem is that he used it to cloak himself in religious pageantry to justify his obliteration of our rights. https://t.co/PTZK3pVwxT
— Center for Inquiry (@center4inquiry) June 2, 2020
@realDonaldTrump/Truth Social
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