A group of Donald Trump's outside advisors have been pushing him to declare martial law to take over the midterm elections.
Posted by The Briefing with Jen Psaki, Checked
- Sources
- 4 support2 context
- Said
- 1 time·
- Confidence
- 68%
The Briefing with Jen PsakiSep 24, 2026
The Atlantic's September 23, 2026 report, which the claim attributes, states that outside advisers such as attorney Peter Ticktin were urging Trump to seize control of the midterm elections, with martial law as a stated scenario.
This claim is about the present, so it is judged as of the day it was checked.
What was said
… I mean, one of my favorite things in this media case is that one of the examples they give is a Politico story where the sourcing was a White House call, which is just tells you just the idiocy of it. Okay, we i have one more thing I want to ask you about. According to new reporting from The Atlantic, a group of Trump's outside advisors have been pushing Trump to declare martial law in order to take over the midterm elections. We got to take a quick break, but that's a big media topic I want to talk about when we come back. You got it. Donald Trump's attempts to assert control over our elections have fallen apart. …
The Briefing with Jen Psaki · · from the transcriptPost →What we found
Supports. The Atlantic reported that outside advisers were urging Trump to seize control of federal elections this fall, and Ticktin said 'Either martial law, or step aside' regarding Trump's choices around November 3.[1]
Supports. Tier3 and other outlets report the same Atlantic finding that some of Trump's most devoted outside allies are urging him to take control of the midterms, even through martial law; these trace back to The Atlantic's reporting rather than independent confirmation.[2][3][4]
Context. A September 27 report says no official step toward declaring martial law had followed, and a White House official said the most prominent outside allies have no role in election policy; this does not refute that the advisers were pushing for it.[5]
Context. Reporting on the Atlantic story notes that the advisers' push is framed as a scenario Ticktin described, not a documented formal request to Trump, so the strength of the 'pushing' characterization rests on the Atlantic's sourcing.[1][6]
Sources
6 sources: 1 tier 2, 1 tier 3, 4 not rated
- 1The Supporters Urging Trump to Declare Martial Law for the ...theatlantic.com · tier 2 · cited for: supports, context
- 2White House desperate to distract Trump as outside allies clamor for 'martial law': reportrawstory.com · tier 3 · cited for: supports
- 3'Constant threat': Insider unveils Trump's plan to declare 'martial law'alternet.org · not rated · cited for: supports
- 4Trump Allies Urge 'Martial Law' for Midterms: Atlanticunusualwhales.com · not rated · cited for: supports
- 5Trump Urged to Declare Martial Law as Republicans Face Concerns ...ibtimes.co.uk · not rated · cited for: context
- 6Why are some Trump supporters urging him to declare martial ...europesays.com · not rated · cited for: context
Where this claim was made
Said in 1 published post
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