A letter I submitted to this newspaper titled “Autocracy Alert” was published on April 8, 2025. In it I cited signs of a coming dictatorship. I referred to “Project 2025,” written by Federalist Society authors, as the administrations’s playbook. Prior to his election in 2024, Trump denied having knowledge of the treatise. It is now clearly evident that he lied. Trump has succeeded in consolidating his absolute authority over the most important departments and operations of the federal government. Given his strong hold on six justices of the Supreme Court, the “checks and balances” once part of our former democracy no longer exist. The signs are unmistakeable; King Donald reigns. What are those signs? Here is a small sampling from among many.

Cabinet Secretaries: Trump’s cabinet is made up of the least competent department heads and advisors in recent history. What were the motives for nominating them? In Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.’s case, it was political bribery. During the the 2024 presidential race, Kennedy appeared to have support of enough voters who likely would have voted for Trump to give the election edge to Kamala Harris. Trump offered Kennedy a cabinet post if he would drop out of the race. He did, and Kennedy became Secretary of Health and Human Services. His incompetence was verified publicly during a hearing conducted by a panel of U.S. Senators on September 4.

Racism: Trump has a hard time accepting or tolerating people of color. Most of the immigrants targeted for deportation are people of color. He attempts to rid the federal government of Black administrators whenever possible. Currently, he is going after African-American Federal Reserve governor Lisa Cook, claiming that she had committed mortgage fraud. Trump mounted another racist attack against the Democratic nominee for Mayor of New York City, questioning his immigration status. Zohran Mamdani was 9 years old when he came to the U. S. from Uganda with his parents. He became a U.S. citizen in 2018.

Trump has taken over the police department of Washington D.C. and called up National Guard troops to police he city. Trump has cited Chicago, New York and Baltimore as additional central cities requiring federal military takeovers.

Censorship: Trump is out to “whitewash history” and allow only information favorable to him to be preserved as long-term history. The Trump administration recently ordered the Smithsonian Institution to review displays at eight national museums and replace “divisive ideologically driven language” with material that “celebrates American exceptionalism.”

Purging the Military Hierarchy: Trump has fired scores of senior military officers, including many African American men and women from their positions in the military command structure. In one sweeping action, he fired the Joint Chiefs chairman, the Navy’s top officer, the Air Force vice chief of staff, and the judge advocates general of three service branches. These officers swore an oath to “support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic.”

Retribution: Trump wants only good news. When he gets bad news, he fires the messenger. Recently, when the head of the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Erika McEntarfer, released data showing anemic job growth in July, Trump fired her. He accused her in a social media post of having “rigged the figures to make Republicans and me look bad.” From the time of the Soviet Union to present day, other dictators, such as those in Turkey and China, have stifled unwelcome information. He fired lawyers charged with resisting illegal presidential orders. When back in office as POTUS in 2025, he pardoned the insurrectionists, many of whom had been convicted of criminal offenses committed during the insurrection.

Trump revealed his plan to be a Dictator during a campaign rally in 2024. As reported then by CBS News, Trump told his audience, “Christians, Christians! Vote for me. If I am elected I will fix it so you’ll never have to vote again–never vote again.”

OSCAR W. KNADE

Montoursville

Submitted by Virtual Newsroom