US Democracy Is Sicker Than Many Realize. Look at These States.

Political scientists are issuing stark warnings about the way they see President Donald Trump’s second term pushing the US into authoritarianism, with its sweeping executive orders, defiance of court rulings, threats and coercion to enforce ideology, and steamrolling of a Congress that appears only too willing to give up its power.

But to focus only on the White House ignores the broader picture: the gradual rise of illiberal instincts in US politics, and especially on the right. It began with the Tea Party movement in 2010 as the Republican Party base became more radicalized. State legislatures, increasingly controlled by party extremists, worked to gradually erode voter power and consolidate theirs. From the gutting of the Voting Rights Act, to the politicizing of election administration and reducing access to citizen-led ballot measures, the slide towards authoritarianism didn’t begin with Trump and it won’t end when he leaves office. In short, Trump 2.0 isn’t happening in a vacuum.