This afternoon, former President Donald Trump signed an executive order directing the Department of Justice to investigate two former White House officials, including Miles Taylor, who previously admitted to being part of the internal “resistance” during Trump’s first term in office.
Taylor, a former intelligence official, served in the Department of Homeland Security from 2017 to 2019, including as Chief of Staff. In 2018, he anonymously authored a New York Times op-ed titled “I Am Part of the Resistance Inside the Trump Administration”.
Trump’s order also included the revocation of Taylor’s security clearance. Speaking about the action, Trump said, “It’s time to find out whether or not somebody can do that. I think he’s guilty of treason.”
Taylor faced significant backlash after the op-ed’s publication and later revealed his identity in his 2020 book, A Warning. He was also the first former Trump official to publicly endorse Joe Biden in the 2020 election.
In a 2023 interview with MSNBC, Taylor commented, “Several folks who worked in the Trump administration with me and have since spoken out against the ex-president, we joke darkly about the fact that in a second term, a number of us will be in orange jumpsuits in Guantanamo Bay.”
Alongside Taylor, Trump also signed an executive order targeting Chris Krebs, the former Director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA).
Trump accused Krebs of misusing his position, especially regarding statements made about election security. An advisor to Trump said, “Chris Krebs… this is a man who weaponized his position against free speech in the election context… this instructs your Department of Justice to investigate.”
Trump chimed in with criticism, mocking Krebs for his claim that the 2020 election was “the most secure in American history,” to which Trump responded, “No, this was a disaster.” He went on to label Krebs a “fraud” and a “disgrace.”
The executive orders came shortly after Trump announced a steep increase in reciprocal tariffs on China, raising them to 125%, along with a 90-day pause on all other trade tariffs.