Trump's style of dictatorial governance: keep secret any data that would expose the Trump regime in a bad light. This is how Trump plans to fool the American people: hide the bad news. Not only did he fire the head of the Bureau of Labor Statistics who dared show unemployment is ticking up, but he tried to play keepaway from both the American public and Congress regarding executive branch expenditures It makes it easy for him to cook the books, as well. Trump's message to all government data collectors: only the good news, or the figures I like, please, if you treasure your employment. On the former, his damage to his credibility and trust, already bad, is worse, and on the latter, he got a slap down by an appeals court. Let's see how "his" Supreme Court does or does not act on these issues. Two more examples of Trump acting like a one-person rule and fooling the American people as he does it. Appeals court rules against Trump admin in big case — and gives deadline to comply "three-judge D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals panel voted unanimously to "shoot down a Trump administration bid to make secret a public database of federal spending that researchers say is crucial to ensure the administration is not flouting Congress’ power of the purse."
The constitutional powers given to the executive branch is for them to faithfully execute the laws passed by Congress. For Congress to know if the presidency is faithful, they need such data to perform any investigation into the executive branch. If successful, hiding data and expenditures cripples that ability.
The attempt to form a unitary government, eliminating the checks and balances of the legislative and judicial branch is the goal of Project 2025, and Trump is well on the way of executing that plan. From a prior posting: MUFTIC FORUM BLOG: What's the big deal about democracy? Who cares? Updated through 4/29/2025"Project 2025 unabashedly promotes the wholesale violation of norms and laws, consolidating enormous power in a president and trampling on Congress’ constitutional role—to take away Americans’ long-cherished freedoms and opportunities. Not only would this authoritarian playbook make it easier for a far-right executive branch to weaken the independence of public agencies, install political cronies the government, punish people it disagrees with, and control what news the media can report, but it would also allow the government to eliminate abortion access, health care choices, overtime pay, educational opportunities, and countless other programs that benefit communities and families." Project 2025 Would Destroy the U.S. System of Checks and Balances and Create an Imperial Presidency - Center for American Progress Such warnings were passed off as political oratory or hyperbolic fear-mongering by so many. Surprise.
Trump has not yet crowned himself emperor, but he is trying at least to be a tyrannical king and kill off democracy as we have known it for 250 years. He has whipped the GOP majority into a subservient support group in Congress using his primary weapons of fear and favor, particularly threatening to run his oligarch-funded candidates in GOP primaries who dare raise their voices against any of Trump's desires. He is now weaponizing his Department of Justice to harass, sue, and charge with crimes any judge who does not rule in his favor. He is aiming for a showdown with the Supreme Court on this issue, and his attorney general and others in his administration have said they do not have to abide by court decisions if they "disagree" with the findings. That takedown of the judicial branch is in the process now, as the courts are the only bodies still telling him "No, you can't" and braving threats of violence against them. Once the judiciary and Congress have been emasculated, he need not worry again about anyone standing in his way of carrying out his obsessions and permitting him to ignore any other considerations, including a populace trying to make ends meet in their daily lives.
For that reason, Trump is no longer the administrative branch; he is a regime, a term applied to anti democratic autocracies and dictatorships elsewhere in the world. He deserves to be called the Trump regime, not the Trump administration. He does not need to call a new constitutional convention to change the form; he can do it as laid out by Project 2025...fill all appointed positions by those sworn to loyalty to him or vetted by the Heritage Foundation, and for those positions needing advice and consent by the Senate, control the Senate majority, too. It is a de facto unitary government, with so much power vested in the executive branch, they need not worry about being stopped by judges or legislators.
Trump likes to boast that he has the most successful administration in history in such a short time. He has, if his definition is seizing power of all of the parts of the government, and he can now meet the criteria and definition of a fascist dictator, accomplishing it in 6 months. That is so fast, that most voters are either unaware or do not care until after they find consumer products are unsafe, they got screwed by their finance company or investments, or they are victimized by false advertising and unfair business practices. These consumer protection agencies either no longer exist or are being run by appointees whose allegiance is not to consumers but to the business interests that support Trump.
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