Letter from Adrian Kuzminsi

Trump’s Actions Are Dictatorial

President Trump within his first 100 days has exercised unprecedented personal power. He has arrested and deported non-nationals, raised and lowered tariffs, fired thousands of government workers, punished independent journalists, attacked law firms, drastically reduced the federal budget, withdrew authorized funding from universities and other institutions, eliminated government agencies, repudiated military allies, materially supported genocide in Gaza, bombed Yemen, and threatened to bomb Iran.

In taking these actions, Trump has rejected established legal procedures as prescribed by the Constitution. He has chosen instead to declare ongoing problems in areas such as immigration, energy, gender, reproduction, economics, and free speech to be national emergencies to be dealt with solely at his discretion through executive orders.

In 1976, Congress passed the National Emergencies Act, which abolished the earlier practice of presidents occasionally declaring national emergencies (going back to Woodrow Wilson). In its place, Congress for the first time authorized declarations of national emergencies by presidents, but it crucially failed to define the scope or nature of a national emergency. As a result, instead of curbing abusive presidential power, Congress enabled and enhanced it. This opened the door to absolute rule which Trump’s predecessors had flirted with, but which he has embraced.

Trump’s actions are those of a dictator. Checks and balances and due process are suspended. Resources distributed by Congress are threatened and confiscated. Free speech is suppressed. Individuals running afoul of executive orders are targeted, arrested, and deported or imprisoned, overriding the Bill of Rights and suspending human freedom. The list goes on.

Congress had reasonably presumed in 1976 that a declaration of national emergency would be a recognition of an actually existing national emergency. The Merriam-Webster Dictionary, the standard of American usage, defines an emergency as “an unforeseen combination of circumstances or the resulting state that calls for immediate action” or “an urgent need for assistance or relief.” Congress unfortunately gave no definition of “immediate” or “urgent.”

None of Trump’s national emergencies are real emergencies. None are so serious or immediate as to require us to sacrifice our rights and freedoms. The only national emergency we have is Trump’s rule by decree. This should be of existential concern to all Americans, including Trump’s supporters. It demands an urgent response.

Adrian Kuzminski
Fly Creek