Is Donald Trump using his second term to turn a campaign pledge into governing practice?
What began in March 2023 as a rally line (he said he was people’s retribution) has hardened into a hunt for enemies, according to news agency Reuters.
The media house counted 470 targets and perhaps more in an exhaustive report. Foreign targets and routine job cuts were not included.
According to the report, the effort mixes grudges and ideology. The administration fired prosecutors. It pressured media outlets, punished law firms, and sidelined civil servants. Many cases are now in court.
The government also imposed ideology. Trump called some military leaders “woke.” They were pushed out. Cultural groups lost funds. Research grants tied to diversity work were frozen. These actions, it’s reported, formed part of a wider pattern.
The agency reviewed records and contacted every named target. Two groups emerged. This division helped explain how the campaign spread across agencies.
In the first, 247 individuals and entities named directly. The intent was punitive. Reuters spoke with more than 150 of them.
In the second, 224 people swept into wider purges. Nearly 100 prosecutors and FBI agents were forced out. Some were accused of being woke. Sixteen FBI agents had kneeled at a 2020 BLM protest. Others were civil servants punished for opposing policy. Together, both groups showed how personnel actions expanded far beyond political appointees.
Retribution came in three forms. The report breaks these into punishments, threats and coercion to show escalating pressure.
The punishments include firings, suspensions and investigations.
Among the threats, at least 46 people and entities faced threatened investigations or penalties. Funds for cities like New York and Chicago were frozen.
Trump told aides he considered firing Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell.
Last week, he reportedly said six Democratic lawmakers should face sedition charges. He said the crime carried the death penalty. This week the Defense Department threatened to court-martial Senator Mark Kelly. These examples, the agency noted, showed how threats often accompanied public statements.
The third: coercion. At least a dozen law firms and universities changed policies after threats involving money, contracts or clearances.
The White House drove much of this, it’s alleged. The agency found at least 36 orders targeting more than 100 people and entities.
Revenge, the motive?
The report suggests that Trump campaigned on revenge. The White House has however rejected the claims. It says Trump is restoring a justice system weaponised under former President Joe Biden. This disagreement has become a defining part of how the campaign is interpreted.
Allies also cite Biden’s early actions. Biden apparently revoked Trump’s classified access. He won a fight to dismiss independent-agency directors. He removed Trump-era advisory board members. Trump allies use these steps to argue that retribution did not begin in 2025.
Experts say Trump’s campaign breaks US norms. Thirteen scholars told the media outlet that Nixon is the closest parallel. Since May, officials across agencies have worked in a task force to advance Trump’s agenda. This task force, experts said, signals institutionalisation rather than isolated retaliation.
The agency found 112 revoked clearances. In August, the Director of National Intelligence (DNI) Tulsi Gabbard reportedly revoked 37 more. A spokesperson said the goal was to ensure the government was not used against the public. The spokesperson echoed Trump’s line that success was the ultimate retribution. Clearance actions became one of the most visible tools.
Leon Panetta, CIA director and defense secretary under former President Barack Obama, had his security clearance revoked in January along with others who, five years ago, signed a letter suggesting Russia may have been behind reports about emails on “Hunter Biden’s laptop.” This marked a shift from targeting current officials to revisiting past disputes.
Zero tolerance for undermining policy
Furthermore, at the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency), hundreds signed a letter opposing cuts to pollution programs. More than 100 were put on leave. At least 15 were told they would be fired. At least 69 were suspended without pay.
Nicole Cantello said workers followed the rules. She said the punishments were meant to scare staff. The EPA said it had zero tolerance for undermining policy. The agency became one of several civilian departments facing internal purges.
At FEMA, about 20 employees were put on leave after criticizing the rollback of reforms. Cameron Hamilton was fired after telling Congress he opposed shutting the agency down. He said officials were trying to impress the White House.
Homeland Security said it is building a new FEMA and that resistant employees were not a good fit. The same pattern (pushback followed by removals) appeared across multiple agencies.
At NIAID, Dr Jeanne Marrazzo was reportedly fired three weeks after filing a whistleblower complaint. She said the purge created anticipatory obedience. She said workers self-censored to avoid being targeted. She described a workplace climate shaped by fear rather than policy debate.
Other officials were allegedly dismissed for DEI or transgender-related work.
Among other claims, the administration froze over $4 billion in grants and research funding to at least nine schools. Universities were told to drop DEI programmes, bar transgender athletes from women’s sports, and address alleged antisemitism. Five schools agreed to restore funding. Harvard sued and blocked a freeze on $2.2 billion. Education became another front where funding pressure produced rapid compliance.
Education spokesperson Julie Hartman said the moves were necessary, adding it’s wrong to call them retribution.
Historians see echoes of Nixon. Nixon kept an enemy list. His aides planned audits and wiretaps. Many efforts collapsed under internal resistance. In contrast, historians noted, Trump’s actions have met less institutional pushback.
Other presidents faced smaller retaliation claims. Obama pursued leak cases. Two IRS employees said they faced retaliation under Biden.
Nixon kept his list secret. Trump names targets openly. He pushes for prosecutions in public. He treats payback as a promise. This openness, experts said, makes the campaign more visible.
Some historians have warned that this normalises retribution.
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