US could have snatched Trotsky in 1917

Why deportation matters: Imagine if the US could have bagged Bolshevik leader and future Red Army founder Leon Trotsky while he was agitating in New York City early in 1917.

From my book Big Intel:

“A New York police agent wrote down the angry revolutionary’s words: ‘I am going… pic.twitter.com/Z6os9v6qMb

— J Michael Waller (@JMichaelWaller) February 3, 2026

Why deportation matters: Imagine if the US could have bagged Bolshevik leader and future Red Army founder Leon Trotsky while he was agitating in New York City early in 1917.

From my book Big Intel:

“A New York police agent wrote down the angry revolutionary’s words: ‘I am going back to Russia to overthrow the Provisional Government there and stop the war with Germany. I want you people here to organize and keep organizing until you are able to overthrow the damned rotten capitalistic government of this country.’

“New York City police had no arrest or deportation authority for matters like this. No federal institution existed to arrest Trotsky in New York for sedition or conspiracy to overthrow the Constitution, and turn him over for prosecution and judgment. Indeed almost no federal law existed in this regard.

“The Justice Department had some small offices far off in Washington: An Alien Enemy Bureau with the colossal job of identifying and rounding up hundreds of thousands of German nationals; and a handful of detectives in a little unit called the Bureau of Investigation The Federal part would come much later.

“Had there been a full-fledged FBI and a proper set of laws to enforce, the Bureau could have changed history by nabbing the most important Russian Communist leader next to Vladimir Lenin before their revolution could take place. The would-be founder of the Red Army might have served a long sentence up the Hudson River at Sing Sing.

“With the ultimate overthrow of the United States government still on his mind, Trotsky steamed back to Europe, via Nova Scotia, to wage his promised revolution.”
https://amazon.com/Big-Intel-Hero

By NC ScoutPublished On: February 4, 2026Categories: Uncategorized0 Comments

About the Author: NC Scout

NC Scout is the nom de guerre of a former Infantry Scout and Sergeant in one of the Army’s best Reconnaissance Units. He has combat tours in both Iraq and Afghanistan. He teaches a series of courses focusing on small unit skills rarely if ever taught anywhere else in the prepping and survival field, including his RTO Course which focuses on small unit communications. In his free time he is an avid hunter, bushcrafter, writer, long range shooter, prepper, amateur radio operator and Libertarian activist. He can be contacted at [email protected] or via his blog at brushbeater.wordpress.com .