Donald Trump signs H.J. Res 41, disapproving a rule mandated by the Dodd-Frank legislation in the Oval Office of the White House, February 14, 2017. Olivier Douliery/ Press Association. All rights reserved. In the three weeks since Donald Trump took the oath of office he has set out on a dizzying path of Executive Orders, openly challenged fundamental principles underpinning the US constitution and sparked diplomatic clashes with many, including long-time US allies.
Trump has already been referred to as a demagogue, authoritarian, and even a fascist. While time will tell whether he is able to surmount all institutional limits, weaken and bypass constitutional constraints, and abdicate all responsibilities under international law, the principles and means that guide his politics reveal, at the very least, an aspiration to authoritarianism.
His victory late last year, and actions since taking office, set out a framework for how authoritarianism can re-emerge in the west in the twenty-first century, in defeat of the very institutions designed to prevent its resurgence.
