Trump's Moves Test The Limits Of Presidential Power And The Resilience Of Us Democracy

During his first six weeks in office, President Donald Trump has embarked on a dizzying teardown of the federal government and attacks on long-standing institutions in an attempt to increase his own authority.

He has pardoned those who attacked the U.S. Capitol to overturn his 2020 election loss , placed loyalists atop the FBI and military , and purged the Department of Justice , which dropped investigations against Trump allies . He declared control over independent agencies such as the Federal Elections Commission, punished media outlets for coverage he dislikes and his allies suggested he could defy court orders .

Those who monitor democracy across the globe had warned that a second Trump term could endanger America's 240-year experiment with democracy. His opening weeks in office have done nothing to dispel those concerns.

"Trump is using the classic elected authoritarian playbook," said Brendan Nyhan of Dartmouth College, who joined more than 800 other political scientists in signing a letter warning that Trump is undermining the rule of law and the basic constitutional principle of checks and balances. "It's almost embarrassing how crude it is."

Nyhan said some of Trump's moves echo those made by others who won democratic elections and then moved to centralize control, such as Hungary's Viktor Orban . Those who have resisted authoritarians in other countries say they are alarmed by what is happening in the United States.