SEN. ANGUS KING: A 'Declaration of Conscience' on Donald Trump's 100th day

Almost 75 years ago, the inferior Republican Senator from Maine, Margaret Chase Smith, delivered a code from her bosom astir a situation past facing our country: a situation not arising from a overseas adversary, but from within. A situation that threatened the values and ideals astatine the basal of the American antiauthoritarian experiment. 

Her ‘Declaration of Conscience’ turned retired to beryllium 1 of the astir important speeches of the 20th Century and defined Smith arsenic a idiosyncratic of bonzer courageousness and principle.

Reflecting backmost connected the speech, she aboriginal told maine that she was truthful tense astir the speech—this was the tallness of the Red Scare of the aboriginal fifties—that she told her main aide, Bill Lewis, not to manus retired the copies of the substance to the property until she really started talking connected the floor, due to the fact that she was acrophobic she mightiness suffer her nerve.

But she went done with it, and the remainder is, literally, history.

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Here is however she began that speech:

"Mr. President, I would similar to talk concisely and simply astir a superior nationalist condition. It is simply a nationalist feeling of fearfulness and vexation that could effect successful nationalist termination and the extremity of everything that we Americans clasp dear. It is simply a information that comes from the deficiency of effectual enactment either successful the legislative subdivision oregon the enforcement subdivision of our government."

Maine Republican Senator Margaret Chase Smith successful her office, Washington D.C., successful 1948.  (PhotoQuest/Getty Images)

She continued,

"I deliberation that it is precocious clip for the United States Senate and its members to bash immoderate existent psyche searching and to measurement our consciences arsenic to the mode successful which we are performing our work to the radical of America and the mode successful which we are utilizing oregon abusing our idiosyncratic powers and privileges."

Later successful the speech, Smith concluded,

"It is precocious clip that we stopped reasoning politically arsenic Republicans and Democrats astir elections and started reasoning patriotically arsenic Americans astir nationalist information based connected idiosyncratic freedom. It is precocious clip that we each stopped being tools and victims of totalitarian techniques – techniques that, if continued present unchecked, volition surely extremity what we person travel to cherish arsenic the American mode of life."

Sen. Margaret Chase Smith (R. Maine) walks crossed the Capitol Plaza successful this undated photo.  (Getty Images)

I fearfulness that we are astatine a akin moment. 

Echoing Senator Smith, the ‘serious nationalist condition’ we are facing contiguous should not beryllium viewed arsenic a partisan issue; it’s astir the thought of America and the strategy of authorities that has sustained america for much than 2 centuries. It’s not astir the president’s docket (and yes, I disagree with astir of it), but it’s astir the mode successful which helium is pursuing it. This roughshod non-process endangers each of us, his detractors and supporters alike.

Although galore of my colleagues look determined to disregard it, this president is engaged successful the astir nonstop battle connected the Constitution successful our history, and we successful this body, astatine slightest frankincense far, are inert. And truthful complicit.

It’s worthy pausing for a infinitesimal to look astatine the presumption of Article II, which outline the powers and responsibilities of the president: the powerfulness to contented pardons and the relation of commander-in-chief of the equipped forces successful wartime. But adjacent this second powerfulness is constrained by the preservation to the Congress of the powerfulness to state warfare successful the archetypal place.

The United States Constitution  (iStock)

The main work of the president, however, is spelled retired explicitly: the main enforcement "shall instrumentality attraction that the laws beryllium faithfully executed." The occupation of the president is simply to execute the laws passed by Congress, without exception—a work this president is spectacularly failing to meet.

The medication has besides taken a bid of seemingly unconnected actions which, taken together, spell retired our accelerated way toward one-man rule.

While this is the astir superior breach, the medication has besides taken a bid of seemingly unconnected actions which, taken together, spell retired our accelerated way toward one-man rule.

Here’s a partial list:

• He has enabled the dismemberment of agencies providing indispensable services to the American people, astir peculiarly successful the Social Security and Veterans Administrations;
• He has attempted to chopped disconnected funds to a azygous state—my own—because helium took idiosyncratic umbrage astatine our governor’s refusal to crook to his argumentation preference, which was inconsistent with authorities law. Tellingly, during that exchange, helium said, "We are the law," a connection which is wholly inconsistent with our signifier of government.
• He has compromised nationalist information by dismantling agencies charged with defending our federation against the wide and contiguous information of cyberattacks and firing galore of those individuals;

This is not a implicit list, but it does contiguous a disturbing pattern—that this president is attempting to govern unbound by instrumentality oregon Constitutional restraint.

To those who similar the policies of the president and are truthful consenting to disregard the unconstitutional means of effectuating them, I (and history) tin lone say: ticker out. Today, the people whitethorn beryllium national workers, but time (perhaps nether a antithetic president), it could beryllium you.

President Donald Trump astatine the White House connected April 21, 2025, successful Washington, D.C. (BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images)

So what tin we do? 

The archetypal guardrail is the Congress itself. But unfortunately, the bulk successful Congress has wholly abdicated these cardinal responsibilities.

The 2nd guardrail is the courts, which are mostly holding up their extremity of the law bargain. As casual arsenic it whitethorn beryllium to trust wholly connected the courts, that’s a cop-out; reclaiming powerfulness indispensable beryllium a associated project.

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The last guardrail is the people, who much and much are speaking up—in rallies, successful correspondence, successful municipality halls, and successful conversations astatine the market store.

We can’t flight the work of our oath to "support and support the Constitution of the United States against each enemies, overseas and domestic;" [and that we would] "bear existent religion and allegiance to the same." 

So, with acknowledgment to Margaret Chase Smith for her illustration and inspiration, this is my ‘Declaration of Conscience.’ I don’t relish this moment, but consciousness I person nary prime but to telephone retired the wide implications and dangers of President Donald Trump’s archetypal 100 days.

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Many years ago, President Abraham Lincoln came to the Congress astatine a clip erstwhile our forebears—like us—were reluctant to look the responsibilities that had been thrust upon them. At that captious moment, this is what helium said,

"Fellow citizens, we cannot flight history. We of this Congress and this Administration volition beryllium remembered successful spite of ourselves. No idiosyncratic value oregon insignificance tin spare 1 oregon different of us. The fiery proceedings done which we walk volition airy america down successful grant oregon dishonor to the latest generation."

I profoundly anticipation that amid our fiery trial, we volition take honor—and the Constitution.