by Wendy Via and Heidi Beirich, Ph.D.
President-elect Donald Trump’s slate of cabinet nominees represent an upending of high standards for appointments at this level and are evidence of rising authoritarianism in the U.S.
Trump has been clear in his desire to move the U.S. towards a more authoritarian system, where executive power is made as expansive as possible. As scholars on the topic have pointed out, the road to authoritarianism is paved with specific markers. These include rewarding loyalists and punishing defectors; demonizing opponents and media; destroying checks and balances; spreading lies and conspiracies; creating distrust in our institutions; and using fearmongering and hate speech to consolidate solidarity.
It should come as no surprise that many nominees have little to no experience relevant to the posts for which they have been selected, since the primary criteria for being selected is absolute loyalty to Trump. Their proposed task is not effective, constitutionally based governance; it is to remind Congress, other nations, and Americans who is now in charge, and to fundamentally refashion in an authoritarian direction the institutions they are about to run.
True to the authoritarian playbook, Trump’s nominees include many individuals who have actively spread conspiracies, like the “Great Replacement” conspiracy theory and particularly about the 2020 election. Pam Bondi, that Attorney General nominee, has been at the forefront of Trump’s election denialist movement since 2020, spreading discredited claims that the election was stolen, particularly in Pennsylvania. Bondi insisted that she had seen “evidence of cheating,” escalating her claims into threats by saying “we are not going anywhere until they declare we (Trump) won Pennsylvania.”
In her confirmation hearing, Bondi declined to say that Biden’s win was legitimate, instead stating: “President Biden is the president of the United States. He was duly sworn in, and he is the president of the United States,” thus recasting doubt on the election and reaffirming her loyalty to Trump, actions required by an authoritarian leader.
More election deniers put forward by Trump include Harmeet Dhillon for the Civil Rights Division of the DOJ, Doug Collins for Veterans Affairs, and Brooke Rollins for the Department of Agriculture. Other nominees have spread even wilder conspiracies, such as FBI director nominee Kash Patel’s embrace of the QAnon conspiracy theory. Though seemingly not an issue for this administration, these conspiracy theories are very dangerous and have motivated many acts of violence, including the January 6 insurrection and mass shootings.
A key aspect of authoritarianism is using hate speech to demonize marginalized communities and build solidarity among supporters–basically, giving them an enemy to coalesce around and to justify subsequent violence. Many nominees have repeatedly made bigoted statements against LGBTQ+ people, Muslims, immigrants, and others.
Kristi Noem, up for head of Homeland Security, has described immigrants as an “invasion,” key language for the “Great Replacement” conspiracy theory, said she’s never supported gay marriage, and signed a pledge from a group that has advocated banning LGBTQ+- affirming books. Pete Hegseth, whose confirmation hearing to head the Pentagon was held Tuesday, has a long track record of anti-Muslim bigotry including allegations of chanting “Kill All Muslims” while drunk at a work event. He has argued that a modern-day Crusade is necessary, writing in 2020, “Islam is not a religion of peace, and it never has been.” This list could be expanded to many other nominees.
Targeting political opponents is another authoritarian move. Some nominees are on record pledging to use their new offices to wreak vengeance on their or President-elect Trump’s political opponents or the press. The nominees for Attorney General and the FBI have spoken directly about targeting their political opponents.
Bondi said in 2023, “The prosecutors will be prosecuted… the investigators will be investigated.” In her confirmation hearing Wednesday, she evaded a direct question when asked whether she would use the DOJ to go after former Congresswoman LIz Cheney (R-Wyo.), who co-chaired the January 6 Select Committee, or former Special Counsel Jack Smith, who investigated Trump’s role in the January 6th insurrection. She also evaded multiple questions about whether she supported pardons for those imprisoned for violent actions on January 6th.
Patel has been more blunt about seeking revenge, saying in 2023, “We will go out and find the conspirators, not just in government, but in the media. Yes, we’re going to come after the people in the media who lied about American citizens who helped Joe Biden rig presidential elections. We’re going to come after you, whether it’s criminally or civilly. We’ll figure that out. But yeah, we’re putting you all on notice.”
Unquestioning loyalty to the leader is key to authoritarian regimes, and the senate confirmation hearings have shown that the nominees and the GOP have lined up solidly behind Trump. On Monday, Republican senators, rather than taking seriously allegations of sexual assault, bigotry, and problematic drinking by Hegseth, showed they were there to defend Trump’s nominee no matter what. Senator Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.) pointed out that senators had surely voted while drunk, and engaged in affairs, in a clear attempt to negate the relevance of these issues. They also did not seem perturbed by Hegseth declining to say if he would follow an order from Trump to shoot protesters in the legs, an idea Trump floated in 2020.
Trump’s authoritarian influence is seen plainly in the confirmation hearings. Nominees who have advocated bigotry, lies, Christian supremacy, and indicated that President-elect Trump’s will should supersede the constitution, have not disavowed any of their earlier statements. During Russell Vought’s hearing to be Director of the Office of Management and Budget, he would not answer when asked if his or Trump’s interpretation of the constitution could override the U.S. Supreme Court’s decisions. As the author of the Project 2025 chapter on the Executive Office of the President, Vought wrote that there was an “existential need for the aggressive use of the vast powers of the executive branch.” When asked in the hearing about his past statements, he replied that he was not there on behalf of his past proposals, rather he was there for the president-elect, as if his former acts and writings are irrelevant to his future acts.
None of these nominees have so far dropped a scintilla of their loyalty, and doubting Republican senators are simply falling in line, preferencing their own desire for power over that of the good of the country. And without question, we will see more of the same as the confirmation hearings progress.
All of this marks a new low in American governance, and proof that America has entered a new age. What was just a few years ago clearly disqualifying for high-level appointments by both parties–lying, calling for revenge, lack of moral values, inexperience–is no longer an issue under Trump’s leadership.
The signal Trump has sent with his “shock and awe” appointees is being heard far from Washington. Tech leaders, corporations, and others are quickly “obeying in advance,” also a key paver on the road to authoritarianism, dropping policies in conflict with Trump’s vision, praising the new leader, bowing to threats, and generously funding Trump’s upcoming inauguration. Others are simply disappearing, pulling back from the public sphere to avoid being targeted. All of which reinforces the need for civil society and all of us to name plainly what’s happening: we are on the road to authoritarianism.
