It’s been a busy week and a half for Donald Trump. And now, Anonymous has him on its radar.
It hasn’t been a good week and a half for Trump. The minority bloc of galvanized Trump supporters aside, for many, his actions scream chaos, confusion and bizarreness, and they’re not letting him forget it. Every day since his inauguration on Jan. 20 has brought significant protests around the country.
From claiming that he lost the popular vote in the US election because 3 million to 5 million people voted fraudulently, to insisting that his inauguration drew the biggest-ever crowds to the DC mall, Trump’s penchant for hyperbole is alive and well. Offering such easily discounted (and frankly petty) claims right off the bat immediately created a culture of ridicule within the opposition.
Then there was the Women’s March, which saw nearly 3 million people peacefully demonstrate in cities throughout the United States—a massive statement that showed the depth of the conflicting ideologies within the collective American mind. Then came the Wall fiasco—Trump’s rhetoric has gone from “Mexico is going to pay for it” to “we’re going to pay for it and have them pay us back.” The reality though is of course, American taxpayers will be ponying up $15 billion while the relationship we have with one of our most important allies deteriorates.
Meanwhile, in Britain, a petition with nearly 2 million signatures has prompted Parliament to take up debate on whether Trump should be allowed to meet the Queen during an official state visit. A lot of Britons think meeting him would be beneath her. It’s the kind of sideshow stuff that is poised to become the outside-the-norm norm for this president.
The “not-normal”-ness of it all doesn’t stop there, either: There was also the Celebrity Apprentice-style reveal of Trump’s Supreme Court nominee last night (prime time, baby!), noted alt-right political operative and West Wing insider Steve Bannon being given a permanent position on the National Security Council, Trump firing the acting Attorney General for refusing to defend the Muslim ban…and oh yeah, the Muslim ban and its botched rollout.
It’s this executive order on immigration—which halts refugees from Syria from entering the country indefinitely, among other things, that has captured Anonymous’ attention.
The group posted a video on YouTube announcing an open call to ‘#BDStheUS.’
“As citizens of the world we must unite against tyranny wherever it emerges and challenge it,” the message reads. To US citizens, it said, “this is not an attack on you, but firm and necessary action against the rising tyranny that today befalls you.”
The hackers are calling on the global community to join in an international ‘Boycott, Divestments and Sanctions’ campaign against the US—including implementing a travel ban on those from the United States and a boycott on US products.
On Twitter, the group alleged Trump has "financial and personal ties with Russian mobsters, child traffickers, and money launderers."
Of course, Anonymous has declared war on Trump before, and never followed through. Regardless, Trump is likely to do one of two things—ignore the taunts, or throw a tweetstorm tantrum. My money’s on the latter—a reaction that would be par for the course in this circus.