Category Archives: authoritarian threats in US

“Trump calls his opponents ‘scum’ and lawbreakers in bellicose speech at Justice Department”

March 14, 2025, 3:36 pmauthoritarian threats in US, Department of JusticeRick Hasen

Politico: President Donald Trump on Friday walked into the Department of Justice and labeled his courtroom opponents “scum,” judges “corrupt” and the prosecutors who investigated him “deranged.” With the DOJ logo directly behind him, Trump called his political opponents lawbreakers… Continue reading

“Under G.O.P., Congress Cedes Power to Trump, Eroding Its Influence”

March 14, 2025, 7:21 amauthoritarian threats in US, legislation and legislaturesRick Hasen

NYT: The Republican-led Congress isn’t just watching the Trump administration gobble up its constitutional powers. It is enthusiastically turning them over to the White House. G.O.P. lawmakers are doing so this week by embracing a stopgap spending bill that gives… Continue reading

“Judge blocks key provisions of Trump’s bid to punish Democratic-linked law firm”

March 12, 2025, 4:48 pmauthoritarian threats in US, election law bizRick Hasen

Politico: President Donald Trump’s retaliation against a prominent Democratic-linked law firm is likely unconstitutional, a federal judge ruled Wednesday. U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell blocked the Trump administration from enforcing central provisions of an executive order that seeks to… Continue reading

Perkins Coie Web Page on Its Lawsuit Against the Trump Administration

March 12, 2025, 9:06 amauthoritarian threats in US, election law bizRick Hasen

You can find relevant documents here.

“Can We Save American Democracy?”

March 12, 2025, 7:33 amauthoritarian threats in US, election subversion riskRick Hasen

March 26 online event at the Ash Center (Harvard): In a recent article, Steven Levitsky, Professor of Government at Harvard University and co-author of How Democracies Die, predicts that “U.S. democracy will likely break down during the second… Continue reading

“Firm Targeted by Trump Over Clinton Campaign Work Hires Top Litigators”

March 11, 2025, 6:38 amauthoritarian threats in US, election law bizRick Hasen

NYT: Perkins Coie, the law firm that President Trump targeted for punishment with an executive order last week for its role representing Hillary Clinton’s 2016 campaign, has hired an elite Washington firm, Williams & Connolly, to fight the order,… Continue reading

“Trump expands clash with law firms with order against Perkins Coie”

March 6, 2025, 3:24 pmauthoritarian threats in USRick Hasen

Reuters with this chilling story: U..S. President Donald Trump on Thursday said he would strip Perkins Coie employees of federal security clearances over the law firm’s diversity practices and political activities, as he launched a probe into other legal firms.… Continue reading

“‘People Are Going Silent’: Fearing Retribution, Trump Critics Muzzle Themselves”

March 6, 2025, 11:37 amauthoritarian threats in USRick Hasen

NYT: The silence grows louder every day. Fired federal workers who are worried about losing their homes ask not to be quoted by name. University presidents fearing that millions of dollars in federal funding could disappear are holding their fire.… Continue reading

“Democracy Reform for Donald Trump’s America: A Review Essay” (Reviewing My Book, “A Real Right to Vote”)

March 3, 2025, 8:33 pmauthoritarian threats in US, Real Right to VoteRick Hasen

Corey Brettschneider and Aidan Calvelli have posted this draft on SSRN (forthcoming, Political Science Quarterly). Here is the abstract: Richard Hasen’s A Real Right to Vote powerfully critiques barriers to voting and persuasively defends a proposed constitutional amendment to address… Continue reading

“Can the Media’s Right to Pursue the Powerful Survive Trump’s Second Term?”

March 3, 2025, 1:27 pmauthoritarian threats in US, First Amendment theory, Supreme CourtRick Hasen

David Enrich in NYT Magazine.

“Donald Trump’s Authoritarian Playbook Is Based on Failures of US Corporate Democracy, not Foreign Dictators”

March 3, 2025, 7:10 amauthoritarian threats in USRick Hasen

Sarah Haan: Six weeks into President Donald Trump’s second term, experts are sounding the alarm for democracy. Trump quickly followed his inauguration with an attack on the bureaucratic state, threats to the rule of law, and the invitation of… Continue reading

“Musk and Republican Lawmakers Pressure Judges with Impeachment Threats”

March 1, 2025, 4:22 amauthoritarian threats in USRick Hasen

NYT: Congressional Republicans, egged on by Elon Musk and other top allies of President Trump, are escalating calls to remove federal judges who stand in the way of administration efforts to overhaul the government. The outcry is threatening yet another… Continue reading

“White House Correspondents’ Association cedes control of pool reports to Trump administration”

February 27, 2025, 7:00 amauthoritarian threats in USRick Hasen

Politico: Reversing decades of precedent, the White House Correspondents’ Association announced Wednesday that it would no longer coordinate shared coverage of President Donald Trump in an escalating dispute over press access to official events. The association, which represents more than… Continue reading

“Trump again raises idea of running for an unconstitutional third term”

February 23, 2025, 4:28 pmauthoritarian threats in USRick Hasen

Washington Post: The suggestion followed a stretch of days in which Trump referred to himself as a king and quoted a dictator in suggesting that he was immune from following laws — all while his administration has continued pushing the … Continue reading