***”The accumulation of all powers, legislative, executive, judiciary, in the same hands, whether of one, a few, or many, and whether hereditary, self-appointed, or elective, may justly be pronounced the very definition of tyranny.”
[ James Madison, Founding Father, Fourth U. S. President; Federalist #47 ]
[NOTE: This post is from a New York Times editorial, 11/2/25; “Are We Losing Our Democracy” – excerpts presented here. READ THE ENTIRE EDITORIAL – if YOU care about whether America will have a REAL democracy on January 20, 2029. If TYOU happen to be a Trump supporter, then YOUR challenge is to examine each accusation – WHY is this said, what are the undisputed facts of consensus Americans – not just in your bubble?
“Countries that slide from democracy toward autocracy tend to follow similar patterns. To measure what is happening in the United States, the Times editorial board has complied a list of 12 markers of democratic erosion, with help from scholars who have studies this phenomenon. The sobering reality is that the United States has regressed, to different degrees, on all 12.
“No. 1 An Authoritarian Stifles Dissent And Speech. Trump Has Started To……The Bottom Line…His evident goal is to cause Americans to fear they will pay a price for criticizing him, his allies or his agenda.”
“No. 2 An Authoritarian Persecutes Political Opponents. Trump Has……The Bottom Line…he has already targeted his opponents with legal persecution in shocking ways.”
“No. 3 An Authoritarian Bypasses The Legislature. Trump Has Started To……The Bottom Line. Mr. Trump has defied the Constitution by trampling on Congress’s power of the purse.”
“No. 4. An Authoritarian Uses The Military For Domestic Control…..The Bottom Line…..his willingness to use it as he has – and his threats to expand that use….”
“No. 5. An Authoritarian Defies The Courts. Trump Has Started To……The Bottom Line…the court’s reluctance to restrain him appears to have emboldened him to sidestep lower court orders he does not like.”
“No. 6. An Authoritarian Declares National Emergencies On False Pretenses. Trump Has……The Bottom Line Mr. Trump’s willingness to kill people without due proces…represents one of his most extreme abuses of power. It raises the prospect that he may expand the use of emergency power to other areas, including domestic law enforcement.”
“No. 7. An Authoritarian Vilifies Marginalized Groups. Trump Has. The Bottom Line. Mr. Trump is borrowing from the autocrat’s playbook by suggesting that some citizens are legitimate and others are second-class.”
“No. 8 An Authoritarian Controls Information And The News Media. Trump Has Started To……The Bottom Line. In place of an independent and free press, Mr. Trump evidently hopes to create a shadow ecosystem willing to promote his interests and talking points.”
“No. 9 An Authoritarian Tries To Take Over Universities. Trump Has Started To……The Bottom Line….Initially, some universities seemed as if they might simply submit to Mr. Trump’s demands. More recently, several showed more willingness to resist, rejecting a proposal that would have rewarded them financially for adopting Trump-friendly policies.”
“No. 10 An Authoritarian Creates A Cult Of Personality……The Bottom Line. The Trump cult of personality plays into his claims – common among authoritarians – that he possesses a unique ability to solve the country’s problems.”
“No. 11 An Authoritarian Uses Power For Personal Profit. Trump Has……The Bottom line. Mr. Trump’s culture of corruption may resemble the behavior of foreign autocrats more closely than any other category on this list. he is using what rightly belongs to American citizens – the power and resources of our democratic government – to enrich himself, and he is not trying to hide it.”
“No. l2 An Authoritarian Manipulates The Law To Stay In Power. Trump Has Started To…….The Bottom Line. Even if he backs away from any scheme to serve more than two presidential terms, Mr. Trump’s attempts to tilt the electoral field in favor of Republicans is anti-democratic and could pervert American elections for years.”
*** “Liberty lies in the hearts of men and women; when it dies there, no constitution, no law, no court can save it…” {Judge Learned Hand]
***. “Eternal vigilance is the price of liberty; power is ever stealing from the many to the few.” [ Wendell Phillips ]
SO – Mr. and Mrs. American. – what are YOU. going to do about the obvious, blatant, theft of YOUR. DEMOCRACY. in plain sight??????
With Justice For All 