Welcome to the Trumpocracy Where the Law is Just a Suggestion
Donald Trump is back in the White House, and this time, he isn’t bothering with the usual pleasantries of pretending to govern. If his first term was an experiment in chaos, his second is a full-blown revenge tour, complete with purges, paybacks, and policies designed less for running the country and more for settling old scores. Anyone who stood in his way, questioned his actions, or—God forbid—tried to hold him accountable is now finding out what happens when you cross a man who holds grudges like they’re state secrets. And just like those state secrets, he’s not letting them go without a fight.
The most immediate casualty of his return is the federal government itself. It’s been open season on career officials at the DOJ and FBI, with Trump methodically removing those involved in investigations against him. It’s like an extended version of Nixon’s Saturday Night Massacre, except instead of one scandalous moment that ends a presidency, this one drags out indefinitely, claiming new victims every week. Prosecutors who built cases against him, FBI officials who followed the evidence, national security professionals who warned against his recklessness—they’re all being purged. The message is clear: loyalty to the law means nothing, but loyalty to Trump? That’s the only thing that guarantees job security.
The effect is already rippling through law enforcement. With entire departments gutted, key investigations are stalling, from domestic terrorism to election interference. The very agencies designed to protect democracy are now being dismantled to ensure that democracy never gets in Trump’s way again. The irony, of course, is that the people cheering the loudest for this purge are the same ones who spent the last decade ranting about “law and order.” And the moment ‘law and order’ stops being a weapon and starts being a mirror, they smash the mirror.
While he’s busy hollowing out federal agencies, Trump is also speedrunning executive orders at a rate that suggests he’s got a personal grudge against paperwork. Among his first moves was an order aimed at “ending radical indoctrination” in schools, which, in Trumpian terms, translates to cracking down on transgender students and making sure teachers act as government informants. Under the policy, schools that support gender-affirming care or even allow trans students to socially transition could lose federal funding. Teachers would also be required to report students who express a gender identity that doesn’t match their birth certificate—because nothing says “freedom” like mandatory surveillance of children.
This isn’t just cruel; it’s a logistical nightmare. School districts are already scrambling to figure out how to enforce policies that seem designed less for practical governance and more for turning the classroom into a new front in America’s culture wars. Meanwhile, civil rights groups are preparing for the inevitable legal battles, which will end up costing taxpayers millions, all because Trump can’t pass up an opportunity to target an already vulnerable group. And through it all, his supporters will celebrate it as a win against the “woke left,” blissfully unaware that their definition of “woke” now just means “acknowledging people exist.”
Of course, there’s no need to stop at domestic enemies when there are immigrants to deport. Trump’s mass removal orders have already resulted in thousands being detained and sent packing, which would be less surprising if it weren’t for the fact that some of those deported were his own voters. The Cuban and Venezuelan communities in Florida, who overwhelmingly supported him in 2024, are now finding out that “he’s only going after the bad ones” was never really the plan. Turns out, authoritarian crackdowns don’t come with fine print exclusions for people who pulled the lever for him at the ballot box.
This, naturally, is creating problems beyond just the personal betrayals. Entire industries that rely on immigrant labor are bracing for disaster. Farming, construction, small businesses—turns out, those jobs aren’t being filled by the truck-driving, flag-waving patriots Trump loves to pander to. But by the time those same people start noticing the shortages, the price hikes, and the labor crisis unfolding in real-time, Trump will already have a scapegoat lined up. Maybe it’ll be Democrats, maybe it’ll be corporate elites, maybe he’ll just start blaming the deep state for making him sign his own executive orders. The beauty of his con is that the people suffering most from his policies will always be convinced it’s someone else’s fault.
And if there’s one area where Trump truly excels, it’s avoiding responsibility. Nowhere is that clearer than in his approach to international relations, where he’s once again proving that his only real foreign policy strategy is to pull the U.S. out of anything that requires teamwork. The Paris Climate Agreement? Gone. The World Health Organization? Not our problem. Future international crises? They can figure it out themselves. America First has officially evolved into America Alone, a policy based on the belief that if you stop acknowledging global problems, they stop existing.
The consequences of this isolationism are obvious. Climate change is getting worse, and now, the world’s second-largest polluter has removed itself from any meaningful conversation about fixing it. Global health emergencies won’t wait for Trump to tweet about how unfair the WHO is, but now the U.S. won’t be at the table when the next pandemic response is coordinated. And then there’s the looming question of NATO, which Trump has already flirted with leaving before. If he follows through, the U.S. will be handing Vladimir Putin the greatest geopolitical victory of his career—all because Trump still believes allies are just people who haven’t given him enough personal praise yet.
It’s not just institutions and alliances at risk. Even individuals who worked to keep Trump in check last time are now facing direct retaliation. One of the more disturbing signs of his second term’s trajectory has been the revocation of security protections for former officials—including those who are actively being targeted by foreign adversaries. General Mark Milley and John Bolton, both of whom criticized Trump, have now had their security details revoked, despite the very real threats on their lives. This isn’t just vindictive; it’s an open invitation for hostile nations to go after American officials with impunity. If you cross Trump, you don’t just lose your job—you lose your protection, even when that means putting your life at risk.
The result of all this isn’t just a country with weaker institutions, fewer allies, and a growing list of domestic enemies. It’s a nation where governance has been fully replaced by grievance, where the entire weight of the federal government is now being used not to serve the people but to punish Trump’s personal enemies. The FBI? Purged. Immigrants? Rounded up. Teachers? Forced into compliance. The planet? On its own. This isn’t a presidency—it’s a vendetta wrapped in a red tie, being cheered on by people who don’t realize they’re just as disposable as everyone else on the list.
And by the time they do, it’ll be too late.
