Trump Authoritarianism

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Russ Vought now runs the Office of Management & Budget https://www.salon.com/2025/02/07/dystopian-and-authoritarian-project-2025-architect-russ-vought-confirmed-as-head-of-omb/. He claims Trump can “control federal spending absolutely”.

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JD Vance wants POTUS to “fire every single mid-level bureaucrat, every civil servant in the administrative state. Replace them with our people” https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/week-transcript-2-4-24-white-house-national/story?id=106926540

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Another voice agreeing that President Trump should not be bound by the law https://apnews.com/video/speaker-johnson-says-courts-should-take-a-step-back-and-allow-musks-doge-plan-to-slash-government-472f10f2254040508c4847e5fc2d7fd0

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JD Vance thinks that the greatest threat facing the continent was not from Russia and China, but "from within" https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/ceve3wl21x1o.  He criticises opposition to fascism. And does he condone Russian aggression?

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AfD co-leader says Elon Musk called to congratulate party on results: support for the far right rather than the CDU election winner https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/ckg82wwrwy6t?post=asset%3A2eb694ac-277e-41c0-a52f-d2c082b85b19#post

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The Administration agenda is explicitly ‘Make Trump Great Again’ – feeding his vanity, not working for the US interest or world peace https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2025/02/26/donald-trump-ai-video-vision-gaza-elon-musk/. 

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Trump wants total control of the law - a move that every dictator makes, together with suppressing press criticism www.aol.com/news/maga-ta...

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Trump is now suppressing free speech – taking another leaf from Putin’s playbook.  open.substack.com/pub/robertre...

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Greenland’s politicians are united against Trump https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c2ljrjeqzq4o. The Liberals in Canada are similarly gaining support. His attempts at expansion have backfired - he should try cooperation, not confrontation.

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The arrest of Mahmoud Khalil www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025... breaches the First Amendment. Donald Trump's disregard of the Constitution is a threat to American democracy

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“The Trump regime is on the cusp of a showdown with the Supreme Court”, which would be another step on America's slide into autocracy, as Robert Reich notes: https://robertreich.substack.com/p/the-two-tipping-points-for-when-we

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Harvard is contesting Trump’s attempt to control who it can hire and what it can teach, resisting his attempt to become an absolute dictator: https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/14/us/politics/harvard-trump.html

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Trump chooses cabinet members for loyalty and television ratings, not for competence and experience. Racist conspiracy theorists like Jeanine Pirro should not hold public office https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/jeanine-pirro-us-attorney-nomination-donald-trump-rcna205791

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The rule of law is a keystone of democracy, and habeas corpus is an important component of that. Trump is not even trying to hide his desire to be an autocrat: exactly what the US Constitution was intended to prevent https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c0qgz18glljo

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Donald Trump’s supporters and Republicans in Congress might not stop him from getting his ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ signed but, like Liz Truss, he might be brought to heel by the bond markets https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2025/05/20/donald-trump-is-heading-for-his-own-liz-truss-moment/

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Thomas Massie, one of two Republicans to vote against Trump's ‘Big Beautiful Bill’, pointed out that Congress can't fool the bond markets. The cost of servicing the extra $3.82 trillion debt will be exorbitant https://edition.cnn.com/2025/05/22/politics/video/thomas-massie-bashes-trump-budget-bill-digvid

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As noted by BK. Titanji, CDC has no evidence for not vaccinating pregnant women against COVID-19 but the UK NHS has statistical data https://www.nhs.uk/pregnancy/keeping-well/pregnancy-and-covid-19/

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The National Guard should only be used against civilians in an emergency. The LA demonstrations were largely peaceful and the California government had not asked for help. Trump was just looking for headlines again https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c628vwq9z9zo

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Trump abuse of presidential power, declaring bogus emergencies, “begins to move us in the direction of allowing the use of government force and violence against people you don’t like” https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/10/us/politics/trump-emergency-powers-invasion.html

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Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem did not allow a Democrat senator to ask her a question in a press conference. This is autocratic behaviour https://edition.cnn.com/2025/06/12/politics/alex-padilla-removed-noem-press-conference

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Trump’s army parade was flashy, aimed at a Fox News audience. Major TV channels paid more attention to the millions who demonstrated against him: the “No Kings” protests across the US. A sharp contrast in a deeply polarised America https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/15/arts/television/trump-parade.html

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Trump seeks “to achieve the very important goal of delivering the single largest Mass Deportation Program in History” in Democrat States.  He wants the headlines and he wants a confrontation so that he can clamp down on dissent https://www.vanityfair.com/news/story/trump-orders-ice-to-go-after-democrat-power-centers

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Elon Musk has once again condemned Trump's ‘Big Beautiful Bill’. He is worried about the US deficit. https://x.com/elonmusk/status/1934630653729046872 The solution is for rich men like himself to pay more tax – he knows how hard it is to cut spend (and it’s unfair)

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The Supreme Court cannot rule fast enough on the number of cases of Trump bypassing the Constitution. He can now do whatever he likes until (if ever) they catch up with him https://www.axios.com/2025/06/27/supreme-court-trump-birthright-citizenship-ruling

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This article itemises Trump’s unconstitutional seizures of powers, which might be setting a precedent that a future Democrat president could use against Republicans https://www.axios.com/2025/06/28/trump-precedents-executive-power

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Trump’s "Big Beautiful Bill" will be unpopular when voters they realise that it is taking money from the poor to give to the rich. Musk is right to draw attention to the need for public support, but cutting spending isn't the answer https://www.axios.com/2025/06/30/musk-trump-big-beautiful-bill-new-political-party

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Billionaires like Trump benefit immediately from his ‘Big Beautiful Bill’. Voter anger at benefit cuts will not be felt until after the 2026 midterm elections, to let Republicans keep their seats for now https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/02/us/politics/tax-cuts-benefit-cuts.html

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The signing of the ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ is Trump's crowning moment as US President and the demonstration of his total grip on the Republican Party. It is also a victory of the rich over the poor and a probable electoral liability https://www.axios.com/2025/07/04/trump-big-beautiful-bill-democrats-2026

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Trump will now make the rich richer, increase America's national debt for future generations to pay, and deport more immigrants. He will also make the poor poorer, but they won't find that out until after the next election https://www.patternsofpower.org/big-beautiful-bill/

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This beggars belief

https://x.com/PatternsofPower/status/1943714667521626393

The White House @WhiteHouse

THE SYMBOL OF HOPE.

TRUTH. JUSTICE. THE AMERICAN WAY.

SUPERMAN TRUMP

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Trump wants to win more seats with fewer voters supporting him. This is not how democracy is supposed to work. It's easy to see what he wants, but he should be punished at the polls for such obvious cheating https://apnews.com/article/trump-congress-house-republicans-texas-redistricting-d18e8280a32872d9eefcbb26f66a0331

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Using insults on social media to attack Trump might gain readership, but slogans are also important: to highlight his privileging the wealthy at the expense of everyone else, making America despised, and behaving like a king https://www.axios.com/2025/07/18/gavin-newsom-trump-trolling-social-media

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Mike Johnson’s early adjournment of the chamber stalls efforts to force the release of documents related to disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein. This action will heighten suspicion that there is something embarrassing to hide https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cgjg9j0l7j9o

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It’s an irony that Trump himself fed the interest in Epstein before now being stung by it. His base won’t buy his usual line that he’s being persecuted. The more he tries to dodge the issue, the worse it looks https://www.reuters.com/world/us/trumps-distraction-methods-fall-flat-against-epstein-uproar-2025-07-26/

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Senate Republicans are planning to give up congressional oversight of Administration appointments in favour of increasing the power of a US President who is already showing disturbingly authoritarian tendencies https://www.axios.com/2025/08/02/senate-republicans-recess-appointments-trump

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The GOP 2024 platform claims that “Republicans will ensure election integrity”. Redistricting to create safe seats for themselves is the opposite. Greg Abbott and others are trying to corrupt America’s democracy  https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/aug/06/greg-abbott-lawsuit-texas-democrats-redistricting

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Deployment of the National Guard in DC wasn't an emergency response, because crime is falling there. Is it another clumsy attempt to divert attention away from the Epstein files, or a dangerous authoritarian power grab? https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/trump-national-guard-washington-1.7605793

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Trump is adding more troops from a neighbouring State, to a deployment which was already unnecessary, in the name of law and order. And they are now to carry firearms. He's testing how far he can go https://www.reuters.com/world/us/west-virginia-governor-deploy-national-guard-troops-us-capital-2025-08-16/

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Greg Abbott, prompted by Trump, is planning a redistricting that would let Republicans win future elections even when they are in a minority among voters. This is not how democracy was intended to work: it’s a power grab https://www.axios.com/local/houston/2025/08/18/texas-democrats-return-abbott-republicans-redistricting

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Trump is targeting people who disagree with him, trying to silence them. This is characteristic behaviour for an authoritarian strongman – comparisons with Putin spring to mind  https://apnews.com/article/trump-security-clearances-russia-262fcd2766a22ea39968abda9ecb0d50

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This Trumpian attempt to rewrite history, by controlling what can be shown at the Smithsonian, is yet another prime example of how dictators behave – as with Putin’s playbook https://bsky.app/profile/patternsofpower.bsky.social/post/3lwzgwo7x3s2b

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CDC officials are resigning because they can’t accept “policies and materials that do not reflect scientific reality and are designed to hurt rather than to improve the public's health”. Trump wants yes-men rather than experts https://www.axios.com/2025/08/28/kennedy-cdc-vaccine-chief-resignation-post

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Trump is trying to further increase his power to govern the US without any checks and balances https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2025/08/29/trump-cancels-international-aid/

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Trump is proud of his use of the National Guard, but perhaps the judge’s ruling that the Los Angeles deployment was illegal will will give Chicago a precedent for resisting a deployment there https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c5ylyd9lkkqo

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Governor JB Pritzker. @govpritzker.illinois.gov
govpritzker.illinois.gov/post/3ly6mbwbujk2i

The President of the United States is threatening to go to war with an American city.

This is not a joke. This is not normal.

Donald Trump isn't a strongman, he's a scared man. Illinois won’t be intimidated by a wannabe dictator.

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Bolsonaro has been convicted of attempting to overthrow Brazil’s democracy. Donald Trump's support for Bolsonaro shows his admiration for wannabe dictators https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/brazils-bolsonaro-guilty-coup-charges-court-majority-decides-landmark-trial-2025-09-11/

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Trump is trying to capitalise on the Charlie Kirk murder, hoping that voters will see Republicans as the law and order party in the 2028 midterms. He isn’t asking for calm, though, as Utah’s governor did https://www.axios.com/local/salt-lake-city/2025/09/12/trump-charlie-kirk-shooting-spencer-cox-utah

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Trump alleges that Democrats are the party of political violence, but the ADL report on murder and extremism in the US shows that the right wing are responsible for 76% of extremist-related murders https://www.thedailybeast.com/donald-trump-cornered-with-list-of-right-wing-attacks-on-democrats/

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There is a fine line to be drawn between the right to protest against Trump's visit and the desire not to be discourteous to an important guest. Arrests are only justifiable if the men are later released without charge https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c78n455mj08o

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The Trump Administration Is “pressuring broadcasters with threats of investigations and warning of other actions” to weaponise the Charlie Kirk murder. This is unconstitutional https://www.axios.com/2025/09/18/fcc-jimmy-kimmel-carr-gomez

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Charlie Kirk's widow is renewing evangelical enthusiasm for Trump. Republicans can benefit from that support in 2026 and 2028 – even if the economy is lacklustre https://www.axios.com/local/phoenix/2025/09/22/charlie-kirk-memorial-state-farm-stadium

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Trump’s deployments of federal troops in Democrat States are intended to accustom populations to a military presence. It paves the way for Trump to declare a state of emergency during the next election and impose martial law https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cddmn6ge6e2o

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Trump talked of being “under invasion from within” and using “cities as training grounds for our military". He wants to practice imposing military law: a big threat to US civil liberties https://www.reuters.com/world/us/trump-preside-over-unusual-military-gathering-virginia-2025-09-30/

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Trump engineered a government shutdown by refusing to negotiate with Democrats. He is taking the opportunity to implement much of the Project 2025 document that he disavowed in the 2024 election https://www.axios.com/2025/10/03/trump-government-shutdown-firings-executive-power

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As Illinois Governor JB Pritzker said, Trump is "attempting to manufacture a crisis" in Chicago so that he can take control. A judge has blocked a National Guard deployment in Portland and Chicago will likely mount a similar legal challenge https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c2dnk0ee6pyo

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As Illinois Governor Pritzker said, "Trump is now calling for the arrest of elected representatives checking his power. What else is left on the path to full-blown authoritarianism?"  https://www.reuters.com/world/us/trump-calls-chicago-mayor-illinois-governor-be-jailed-2025-10-08/

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GOP lawmakers condemned the 'No Kings' protest as "a hate America rally".

It’s the opposite, trying to save US democracy.

Trump is flouting the Constitution. He's controlling funds as he wants, without congressional approval, and militarising the police https://www.axios.com/2025/10/18/no-kings-protests-october-18-turnout