Trump’s real agenda is autocracy. The rule of law is under assault | Opinion

Witnessing the questionable appointments and mean-spirited actions of the second Trump presidency, even people who voted for him might now be asking, “What’s this guy and his administration really about?” The answer is alarming.

There has always been a contingent in America not onboard with the liberating ideas of the Declaration of Independence and Constitution.

They don’t believe in democracy, separation of church and state, and the intrinsic equality of people. Instead, they believe that wealthy, white, Christian men are superior and hence should own and run the world. Plantation owners of the antebellum South epitomized this patriarchal worldview.

The shenanigans of these oligarchs (rule by the few) contributed to the Great Depression and hence paved the way for the social reforms of FDR: Business regulations, redistribution of wealth, minimum wage, Social Security, growing the economy from the middle out… The American society prospered tremendously, while the oligarchs fumed.

In their quest to regain power, these plutocratic (rich) oligarchs have exploited peoples’ racial and gender concerns – such as Nixon’s Southern Strategy. The Republican Party was merged with the Christian Right (circa 1980), and then Newt Gingrich ushered in the GOP tactics of deception and character assassination.

Racism, sexism, and disdain for the poor are implicit in the oligarchs’ ideology, many of whom also want to impose their fundamentalist Christian views on all. They aspire to do away with people’s rights, Medicare, Social Security, etc. Moreover, religious stories are to replace science in schools. This is their true agenda.

But to be fair, most Republicans do not share the extreme views of those who have hijacked their party, and the modern rise of the oligarchs was substantially aided by the radical over-wokeness on the American left.

Nevertheless, if you’re female, brown, black, unbelieving, LGBTQ, or poor (or even middle class) you’re to know your place in the new authoritarian society. Businesses are to operate free of consumer and environmental protection. Anti-monopoly legislation is to be discarded and taxes on the wealthy greatly reduced.

When this radically conservative movement lost to Obama (a black man) in 2008, the oligarchs and fundamentalists went berserk! They created the Tea Party, not only to attack Democrats but to slay the remaining Establishment Republicans who still believed in the Constitution.

The current unhinged actions of DOGE are not to improve governmental efficiency, but instead to attack government per se, for our government promotes civil rights, business regulations, and separation of church and state. In short, the federal government stands in the way of the MAGA agenda and is, therefore, its enemy.

Lining up billionaire businessmen at his recent inauguration, Trump made clear the oligarchic nature of his ambitions. Moreover, Trump sees himself as the head oligarch, making him an autocrat (dictator). This new king has deep admiration for menacing tyrants, such as Vladimir Putin, who seems to, shockingly, have control over Trump.

All governmental departments, including the military, now “belong” to Trump and are his personal weapons. In typical autocratic fashion, he’s exceeding his Constitutional powers and recklessly replacing skilled professionals with zealot loyalists. The rule of law is clearly under assault.

The public will suffer, as will America in general, as Trump’s damaging domestic policies, disregard for international agreements, and incessant bullying force our allies to turn away. America is losing the moral compass that has rallied the world with us since WWII. NATO, the world’s premier organization for maintaining peace, might fracture. We’re rapidly becoming a weaker nation in a more dangerous world.

Many people assume we’ll have an opportunity to vote the autocrat and his kleptocratic (stealing) oligarchs and theocrats out in future elections, but don’t count on it. Such people don’t believe in free and fair elections in which they can be removed from power.