President Donald Trump’s second term in office has marked a significant authoritarian turn in the operation of the executive branch. “Fundamentally, it’s rule by the whim of the president,” said John Dearborn, a professor at Vanderbilt University and an expert on presidential power. “It’s a sort of mini-absolutist monarchy.”AdvertisementPresident Donald Trump is transforming the presidency into a "mini-absolutist monarchy," Vanderbilt University professor John Dearborn said. The RatchetThe history of the expansion of presidential power has been described as a ratchet by those who study it. While presidents acted as disruptive agents increasing their own power, Congress also pushed back to defend its own powers and structure new assertions of presidential power.

Source: Huffington Post September 06, 2025 15:42 UTC