When Skepticism Picks a Favorite

A Tragic Story…and a Bigger Question

By LONNIE KING

The fatal shooting of Johan Sebastián Guerrero in Biddeford, Maine has understandably focused attention on the ICE officer believed to have fired the shots and on the disturbing allegations that have surfaced about his past.

Those allegations deserve to be investigated thoroughly. So do the circumstances surrounding the shooting itself.

If government agents exercise the authority to use deadly force, the public deserves more than assurances that everything was handled appropriately. We deserve transparency. We deserve evidence. We deserve accountability.

That isn’t anti-law enforcement. It’s pro-democracy.

But as I followed the reporting, I found myself thinking about something even bigger than this one tragic case.

I Used to Hear This All the Time

For much of my adult life, I heard a consistent message from many conservatives: “Don’t trust the government.”

Question official narratives. Be skeptical of federal agencies. Demand accountability from people who hold power.

And, honestly? I agreed with much of that.

Government is made up of human beings, and human beings are capable of making mistakes, abusing authority, protecting their own interests, and withholding information. That’s true regardless of which party controls Washington.

Healthy skepticism isn’t cynicism. It’s one of the responsibilities of citizenship.

So What Changed?

But, this is where I find myself genuinely puzzled in 2026. The movement that became known as MAGA didn’t simply distrust Democratic administrations. Many of its supporters were deeply skeptical of Republican leaders too.

George W. Bush was criticized. The so-called Republican establishment was criticized. Career bureaucrats were criticized. Federal agencies were criticized. Congress was criticized.

The message was clear: Don’t blindly trust powerful institutions.

Yet today, many of those same voices seem far more willing to accept the government’s explanations with little curiosity, provided the government is being led by Donald Trump.

I have come to believe that isn’t true of every Trump supporter, and I don’t want to paint millions of people with the same brush. And, the façade may be beginning to crack because I also think we’ve begun to see more conservatives publicly question some of this administration’s decisions than we did a year ago.

But enough has remained unchanged to leave me asking a question I can’t easily answer: how did a movement built on skepticism become so comfortable placing extraordinary trust in one extraordinarily powerful individual?  And one who is so obviously corrupt and immoral.

Loyalty Is Not the Same Thing as Accountability

One of the things that concerns me most isn’t simply support for President Trump. I may not like it or understand it, but people are free to support the candidates they believe are best for the country.

What concerns me, though, is the growing impression that loyalty to the leader has become more important than accountability. When a member of Trump’s own party raises concerns, they are often treated not as someone offering constructive criticism but as someone committing betrayal.

We’ve seen Republican governors, members of Congress, judges, cabinet officials, and even former vice presidents become targets of intense criticism after disagreeing with him.

The dividing line often seems less about ideology than about loyalty, and that should concern all of us, regardless of party.

Transparency Matters Even More When We Agree

Every administration deserves scrutiny. Every administration should welcome oversight. Every administration should understand that public trust is earned through transparency, not demanded through authority.

When an administration resists oversight, limits transparency, raises recurring ethics questions, or appears to value personal loyalty over independent judgment, citizens shouldn’t stop asking questions.

They should ask more.

Not because they hate the administration. Because they love their country. Our skepticism shouldn’t disappear simply because our preferred candidate won an election. In fact, that’s when it matters most.

I Hope I’m Wrong

I’ll admit something, and if you read much of my stuff, this won’t shock you: I worry about where our country is headed.

Not because I believe we’ve already crossed some irreversible line. I don’t think we have. Not because I think every Trump supporter wants authoritarian government. I don’t believe that either.

But history teaches that democratic erosion rarely begins all at once. It often begins when citizens become more committed to defending leaders than preserving principles. When accountability becomes optional. When transparency becomes inconvenient. When loyalty outweighs truth.

I hope I’m wrong.

I sincerely hope that years from now I’ll look back on these concerns and conclude they were overstated. Nothing would make me happier. But hoping I’m wrong doesn’t relieve me of the responsibility to ask difficult questions while there’s still time to ask them.

Because if previous generations taught us anything, it’s that democracies aren’t preserved by people who stop paying attention. They’re preserved by citizens who continue asking questions—even when those questions are directed at leaders they admire.