{"id":49329,"date":"2026-07-22T14:40:43","date_gmt":"2026-07-22T21:40:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/?p=49329"},"modified":"2026-07-22T14:43:06","modified_gmt":"2026-07-22T21:43:06","slug":"senator-jeff-merkeleys-ten-rules-of-trumps-authoritarian-playbook","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/2026\/07\/22\/senator-jeff-merkeleys-ten-rules-of-trumps-authoritarian-playbook\/","title":{"rendered":"Senator Jeff Merkley\u2019s Ten Rules of Trump\u2019s Authoritarian Playbook"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.merkley.senate.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/Group-96@2x.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-145\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p id=\"breadcrumbs\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.merkley.senate.gov\/\">Home<\/a>&nbsp;\/&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.merkley.senate.gov\/connect\/\">Connect<\/a>&nbsp;\/&nbsp;<strong>Ring the Alarm Bells: The Ten Rules of Trump\u2019s Authoritarian Playbook<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Authoritarianism&nbsp;isn\u2019t&nbsp;down the street or around the corner \u2014 it is here right now. We are at the most perilous moment for our democracy since the Civil War.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&nbsp;We now have all three ingredients of&nbsp;a strongman state&nbsp;in the United States:&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul>\n<li>a rubber-stamp Congress doing the President\u2019s bidding<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>a Supreme Court finding \u201cinvisible ink\u201d in the Constitution to enhance the President\u2019s powers; and<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>a power-hungry president behaving like a king, breaking the law and violating the checks and balances of our Constitution.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>People think of democracies dying at the hands of men with guns. But, in the modern era, they more often die at the hands of elected officials who erode the separation of powers to solidify a strongman state.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.merkley.senate.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/Authoritarianism-Book_FINAL.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">I outlined the 10 rules of Trump\u2019s authoritarian playbook because&nbsp;it\u2019s&nbsp;critical that we all understand what&nbsp;we\u2019re&nbsp;up against before authoritarian power becomes entrenched.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>That will require robust citizen action and an unmistakable rejection of authoritarianism at the next election. Both are essential to restore and revitalize our democracy.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong><em>Our mission is clear:&nbsp;Let\u2019s&nbsp;save our \u201cWe, The People\u201d republic!<\/em><\/strong>&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>All my best,&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Senator Jeffrey A. Merkley<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.merkley.senate.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/Authoritarianism-Book_FINAL.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Download \u201cRing the Alarm Bells: The Ten Rules of Trump\u2019s Authoritarian Playbook\u201d<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>The Ten Rules of Trump\u2019s<br>Authoritarian Playbook<\/strong><br><br>RULE ONE: Fire the Referees<br>RULE TWO: Pack the Government with Loyalists<br>RULE THREE: Demonize the Enemy Within<br>RULE FOUR: Disregard Due Process<br>RULE FIVE: Silence Free Speech<br>RULE SIX: Steal Congress\u2019 Power of the Purse<br>RULE SEVEN: Abuse Government Authorities<br>RULE EIGHT: Weaponize the Justice System<br>RULE NINE: Use the Military to Suppress Dissent<br>RULE TEN: Rig the Next Election<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Your Power as a Citizen<\/strong><br><br>1: Join an organized, nonviolent protest or<br>demonstration.<br>2: Write and call your elected officials \u2013 and share<br>personal stories!<br>3: Join an organized, nonviolent general strike or<br>boycott.<br>4: Host a monthly friends meeting to discuss policy and<br>political issues.<br>5: Help someone running for office.<br>6: Run for office!<br>7: Join an affinity group that organizes around issues.<br>8: Train as an observer of ICE operations.<br>9: Help turn out the vote.<br>10: Show support for vulnerable communities.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Home&nbsp;\/&nbsp;Connect&nbsp;\/&nbsp;Ring the Alarm Bells: The Ten Rules of Trump\u2019s Authoritarian Playbook Authoritarianism&nbsp;isn\u2019t&nbsp;down the street or around the corner \u2014 it is here right now. We are at the most perilous moment for our democracy since the Civil War.&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;We now have all three ingredients of&nbsp;a strongman state&nbsp;in the United States:&nbsp;&nbsp;&#8230; <a class=\"continue-reading-link\" href=\"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/2026\/07\/22\/senator-jeff-merkeleys-ten-rules-of-trumps-authoritarian-playbook\/\"> Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr; <\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2088,1879],"tags":[2253,2252],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49329"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=49329"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49329\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":49331,"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49329\/revisions\/49331"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=49329"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=49329"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=49329"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}