Amicus With Dahlia Lithwick | Law, justice, and the courts Trump’s American Takeover
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Feb 1, 2025 
Kim Lane Scheppele, Laurance S. Rockefeller Professor at Princeton and autocracy law expert, offers a chilling look at Trump's fast-tracking America toward autocracy. She discusses the alarming parallels between Trump's orders and global authoritarian trends. Scheppele highlights how legal frameworks can manipulate democracy, drawing on experiences from Hungary and Russia. The conversation urges communities to resist rising cruelty and protect civil rights, emphasizing the importance of empathy and ongoing electoral integrity in safeguarding democracy.
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Scheppele's Experience
- Kim Lane Scheppele has witnessed democratic decline in Hungary and Russia, now observing similar patterns in the U.S.
- Autocrats often win initial elections fairly, then dismantle checks on executive power.
Distraction and Disorientation
- The current U.S. political climate involves distractions to mask power consolidation.
- One tactic is attacking the civil service, creating fear and disorientation.
Defunding the Press
- Orban defunded Hungarian media critical of him, leading to their failure or takeover by oligarchs.
- This was masked as market forces at play.