Does the United States already face a constitutional crisis? At what point does a president’s "rule by decree" manner of governing take a centuries-old democracy into unchartered territory?

After one month back in office, the executive orders keep on coming. One of Donald Trump's latest states that only he and his attorney general – what we call here the US justice minister – can interpret what the law is for government bodies, even independent ones. Is the White House breaking down the firewall with the Federal Reserve, guarantor of the US dollar? What about a right to control oversight bodies like Wall Street's watchdog, the Securities and Exchange Commission?

Those who still have faith in the system insist that in the end, the courts will reject whatever's unconstitutional. But what if this White House ignores the courts? What if there is no effective pushback from lawmakers, who under the constitution still hold the power of the purse?

Trump has already pushed new boundaries by bringing in an unvetted private citizen to take an axe to what Elon Musk deems wasteful spending. For democracy to die, what if there is no need for a referendum or another January 6? What if all it takes is cherry-picking which laws you decide to enforce and which institutions you decide to dismantle?

Produced by Rebecca Gnignati, Aurore Laborie, Elisa Amiri, Ilayda Habip.

Rule by decree? Trump's executive orders and the future of US democracy

The Debate

Rule by decree? Trump's executive orders and the future of US democracy