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We live in a time in which people angry at Elon Musk and his actions at the Department of Government Efficiency have torched and vandalized random Teslas, and felt justified doing so. The murder of United Health care CEO Brian Thompson did engender a sense of outrage — not at the act, but at the arrest of alleged shooter Luigi Mangione. Mangione has achieved folk hero status, a grotesque development.
And now, after posing as representatives of the “friendly foreign government” and receiving material from Laatsch, the FBI arrested him in northern Virginia. The kicker: Laatsch worked in the DIA’s Insider Threat Division, a unit devoted to detecting employees who might be disclosing or prone to disclose sensitive information.
He allegedly told authorities he was requesting citizenship in the foreign country because of conditions in the U.S.
Laatsch could have acted on those feelings by joining the “if Trump wins, I’m leaving the country” crowd and booked a ticket to virtually anywhere. Laatsch didn’t need to allegedly share classified material with a foreign entity to get on a plane. Apparently it’s not enough to vote with your feet, one must betray the country on your way out.
“I’ve given a lot of thought to this before any outreach, and despite the risks, the calculus has not changed,” the documents quoted him as writing. “I do not see the trajectory of things changing, and do not think it is appropriate or right to do nothing when I am in this position.”
Here’s what Laatsch could have done to channel his displeasure with the administration: vote for Democratic candidates. Leave his government job to work on Democratic campaigns and causes. That’s how citizens effect change in America.
“This case underscores the persistent risk of insider threats,” FBI Director Kash Patel wrote on X. Fortunately, the FBI flushed this one out.
There are many who share Laatsch’s views on the “trajectory of things changing” under Trump, just as a poll found most Americans believing the country was headed in the wrong direction in 2024.
Law-abiding Americans express their approval or disapproval at the ballot box. Betraying your country is not resistance, it’s a crime.

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