Me The People REDUX (Part 1)
Authoritarian tendencies erode democratic institutions and the rule of law by undermining established norms, shifting power, and challenging fundamental rights, often through a series of incremental steps.
Key ways this erosion occurs include:
Erosion of Institutions and Checks and Balances This involves the gradual weakening of governmental institutions, the media, and regular checks and balances, leading to a shift from shared governance to the rule of a single person, party, or governing body. Such actions align with a "playbook" for how to rule in an authoritarian manner, like Project 2025, which anticipates these steps.
Testing of Legal and Constitutional Systems The design of the U.S. system, which aims to protect individual states from an overreaching federal government, is being tested. There are efforts to "unravel" the legal system, though legal challenges from groups like the ACLU and state attorneys general currently serve as the primary resistance. A significant concern is the challenge to "settled law," such as birthright citizenship, which could be revoked "with a stroke of a pen," forcing constitutional rights to be litigated up to the Supreme Court. This demonstrates a willingness to declare established constitutional rights as no longer valid, raising concerns for constitutional lawyers and citizens alike.
Infringement on Rights and Funding The erosion manifests in tangible ways, such as the suspension of funding for research institutions, the loss of sanctuary for individuals in churches and schools from immigration enforcement, and the potential infringement on the right to education. Policies like mass deportation reclassify people who were previously in the country legally, such as those with temporary protected status, as criminals, instilling fear and aligning with a political narrative of "promises made, promises kept" by "catching these bad guys".
Ambiguity of Citizenship and Voting Rights Challenges to birthright citizenship and the eligibility to vote contribute to this erosion. If a government becomes comfortable revoking citizenship, it creates uncertainty about how individuals can prove their American identity, potentially leading to definitions based on race, language, or culture rather than being born in the U.S.. This is often a "power play" to keep certain people from voting by questioning their citizenship.
Shifting Power to States A hypothetical but concerning scenario involves the federal government deferring citizenship criteria to individual states. This would be dangerous, creating "mayhem across states" and potentially allowing states to reinstitute discriminatory practices like poll taxes or other restrictive requirements that violate national guarantees. This shift is seen as an incremental step towards a broader power play.
Defining Who Belongs Ultimately, these actions serve to define "whose country this is" and "who belongs in this country," sending a message that the U.S. is primarily for "white America and white immigrants," while the citizenship of others, including those with Latin American or African heritage, becomes suspect.
Lack of Effective Opposition The Democratic Party's "incredibly reactive" response and lack of a cohesive plan or unified message have been noted as contributing factors, allowing these erosions to proceed largely unchallenged through party politics, leaving the legal system as the main source of resistance.
Professor Miguel Laserna highlights that the U.S. is not immune to such developments; similar instances of revoking citizenship and declaring people "persona non grata" have occurred in other countries, particularly in Latin America, like the attempted revocation of citizenship for Japanese Peruvians during World War II. He notes that the U.S. only adheres to its Constitution and laws "to the extent that that we allow our leaders to do so," implying that if leaders are permitted to disregard these fundamental principles, the U.S. becomes indistinguishable from other nations that have "thrown out their constitutions".
