This Week in Democracy – Week 30: DC Gets Troops While Putin Gets a Red Carpet
Zeteo's project to document the ongoing, week-by-week growth of authoritarianism in Donald Trump's second term.
A Checkpoint. Humvees. Soldiers in the streets.
This isn't a war zone, folks; it's Washington, DC. Donald Trump has invented yet another fake emergency to assume unwarranted powers, taking control of the city’s police force and deploying hundreds of National Guard troops. Crime, of course, is a serious issue in the nation’s capital, but it’s not “out of control” as Trump has claimed. The violent crime rate, official figures show, was in fact at a 30-year low in 2024, and is down more than 25% from what it was at this time last year.
But made-up crises have become part of Trump 2.0’s DNA. Yell “emergency” for something he doesn’t like, or in a city led by his opponents, and Trump becomes all-powerful – it’s straight out of the authoritarian playbook.
Speaking of authoritarians, if Trump was really so concerned with catching the bad guys, then why did he welcome an indicted war crimes suspect onto US soil? That’s right, Trump rolled out the red carpet and was chumming it up with Russia’s Vladimir Putin in Alaska in the back of his presidential car, known as “The Beast”.
From Trump’s DC takeover to his summit with Putin to immigration authorities deporting a 4-year-old US citizen suffering from Stage 4 kidney cancer, here’s what Trump and his allies did this week that undermines the Constitution, harms democracy, and hurts people and free societies worldwide:
Saturday, August 9
Trump named former Fox contributor and current State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce as the US deputy representative to the UN. Bruce, who once called former President Barack Obama a “dumb bastard,” “SOB,” and “lying thief,” has said that local journalists starving in Gaza aren’t “at the top of our list” and blamed them for their situation.
On Truth Social, Trump renewed his baseless claims that former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, whom he called a “disgusting degenerate,” was involved in insider trading, and asked, “Is anybody looking into this???”
A federal appeals court ruled that the Trump administration needs to restore a public spending database, solidifying a lower court’s ruling that found the removal of the tracker violated a law passed by Congress requiring the Office of Management and Budget to make apportionment decisions publicly available within two business days.
Sunday, August 10
The Wall Street Journal reported that Nvidia and Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) reached an unprecedented agreement with the Trump administration to give the US government 15% of revenues from chip sales in China in order to obtain export licences. The agreement, which may violate the Constitution’s clause that “No Tax or Duty shall be laid on Articles exported from any State,” appears as a blatant quid pro quo.
On Fox, Vice President JD Vance claimed without evidence that there was a “major statistical error” in the 2020 Census that resulted in the overcounting of blue states and the undercounting of red states. He suggested that a new mid-decade Census would result in 10 additional seats for Republicans and nine fewer for Democrats.
Vance also said he believes that Obama and his administration “broke the law” over its intelligence assessment of Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election, predicting that “a lot of people [will] get indicted for that.”
On Truth Social, Trump lashed out at Nobel Prize-winning economist and former New York Times columnist Paul Krugman, calling him a “Trump Deranged BUM” who has “been predicting Doom and Gloom ever since my great election success in 2016.” Krugman has been critical of Trump’s claims that the most recent job report was “rigged” and warned of the impact of his tariff plans on the US economy.
For Zeteo, Peter Rothpletz reported on the Republican Party’s three-pronged approach to steal as many as 42 House seats ahead of the 2026 midterm elections and to lock Democrats out of political power “perhaps forever.”
Monday, August 11
A federal judge rejected a Trump administration request to unseal grand jury testimony from Ghislaine Maxwell’s sex trafficking case, writing that the records are “not a matter of significant historical or public interest,” that much of the sealed materials was already public because it had been testified during the trial, and suggested that some could conclude that the government’s efforts to unseal the materials “was aimed not at ‘transparency’ but at diversion – aimed not at full disclosure but at the illusion of such.”
Trump announced that he would deploy the National Guard to Washington, DC, and put the city's police department under federal control, despite violent crime in Washington hitting a 30-year low in 2024. It was the first time a president invoked a provision of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act, which allows him to seize control of the police force for up to 30 days unless Congress authorizes an extension. Trump also suggested he may deploy active-duty military members as well. In response, DC Mayor Muriel Bowser called the takeover “unsettling and unprecedented.” House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries sent a stern letter.
Trump said his administration is going to “end” the cashless bail system in Chicago (he doesn’t have the authority to do so), and added he will count on Republican lawmakers to “change the statute and get rid of some of the other things.” He also said that he would consider deploying the National Guard to Chicago, calling the city “a disaster” and Democratic Governor JB Pritzker “incompetent.”
The New York Times reported that Harvard University and the Trump administration are nearing a legal settlement that would see the school spend $500 million to restore billions in federal research funding. The framework would see the funds paid by Harvard go towards vocational and educational programs and research, ensuring the school wouldn’t pay the government directly. It would also drop the proposed monitor threatened by the Trump administration, allow Harvard to enroll international students, and end several investigations into the university, including ones by the Justice and Commerce Departments.
Trump said he would nominate E.J. Antoni, the chief economist at the Heritage Foundation, to serve as the new Bureau of Labor Statistics commissioner. Antoni, who contributed to Project 2025, told Fox last week that the bureau should suspend issuing monthly job reports “but keep publishing the more accurate, though less timely, quarterly data.” The move was panned by critics, including Harvard University professor and former Obama economic adviser Jason Furman, who called Antoni “completely unqualified,” and referred to him as “an extreme partisan [who] does not have any relevant experience.”
A federal judge ordered the Trump administration to release $95 million in federal funding to the National Endowment for Democracy, a non-profit organization created by Congress, saying the move to freeze the funds was illegal and “for impermissible policy reasons.” The nonprofit was forced to lay off staff and pause several initiatives as part of the funding freeze.
The Washington Post reported that at least four federal agencies, including the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Environmental Protection Agency, terminated contracts with unions last week, in compliance with Trump's executive order eliminating collective bargaining rights for many federal employees.
A 15-year-old boy living with disabilities in Los Angeles was pulled from a car, handcuffed, and detained by federal immigration officers outside of a school at gunpoint. The boy, a US citizen, was released after school staff and LA police intervened. The school district’s superintendent called the incident “unacceptable, not only in our community, but anywhere in America.”
On Fox, Texas Governor Greg Abbott warned he would pursue further gerrymandering of the state’s Congressional map if his California counterpart, Gavin Newsom, follows through on a plan to redistrict his state’s map to ensure there are no net gains for the GOP, saying, “We will add 10 more Republican seats.”
Tuesday, August 12
A federal judge ordered the Trump administration to restore some of the federal funding it cut from UCLA.
The White House hosted right-wing podcaster and conspiracy theorist Benny Johnson in the “new media” seat at a press briefing. Johnson, who said on his show that “entire neighborhoods” in DC “need to be bulldozed,” was fired from Buzzfeed in 2014 for more than 40 acts of plagiarism. He was also among the conservative influencers linked to a media company secretly funded by Russian state media employees, which amplified Kremlin interests.
During the briefing, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said that people who are unhoused in DC will be given the “option” to leave their encampment and go to a homeless shelter for addiction or mental health services or be "susceptible to fines or jail time.”
On Truth Social, Trump threatened Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell with a “major lawsuit,” though it’s unclear when the lawsuit would be filed or who would file it. Trump has repeatedly said he wants to fire Powell, who he first appointed in 2018, over the Fed's decision not to cut interest rates. But he legally can't do so without cause.
Also on Truth Social, Trump said Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon should replace the bank’s economist who recently spoke out about the cost of tariffs on US consumers, or leave his post and “focus on being a DJ.”
A federal appeals court ruled that the so-called Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) can access sensitive data from federal agencies, including Social Security numbers and the citizenship status of individuals.
A federal judge ordered ICE to improve conditions at a New York City holding facility for detained immigrants, which only provides detainees with two meals a day, no access to medication or in-person visits with their lawyer, and blankets without a sleeping mat.
The Washington Post reported that the Trump administration is considering establishing a “Domestic Civil Disturbance Quick Reaction Force,” a group of 600 National Guard troops who would be rapidly deployed into cities where protests or civil unrest are taking place. In a statement, the director of the ACLU’s National Security Project called the move “breathtakingly dangerous power grab.”
The Trump administration ordered a comprehensive review of exhibits and materials at the Smithsonian Institution to “ensure alignment with the President’s directive to celebrate American exceptionalism, remove divisive or partisan narratives, and restore confidence in our shared cultural institutions.” Trump later said, “We want the museums to talk about the history of our country in a fair manner, not in a woke manner or in a racist manner,” falsely claiming that they are doing so.
Democrats on the House Judiciary Committee sent a letter to Attorney General Pam Bondi and Federal Bureau of Prisons Director William Marshall demanding all documents and information related to Maxwell’s July interview with Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche and the decision to transfer her to a lower-security facility, writing that “these actions raise substantial concerns that the Administration may now be attempting to tamper with a crucial witness.”
On Twitter, California Governor Gavin Newsom announced that the state will move forward with redistricting Congressional maps, writing that the move “WILL END THE TRUMP PRESIDENCY” if Democrats regain control of the House in the 2026 midterms.
The Justice Department sent a letter to George Washington University, saying the school had been “deliberately indifferent” to allegations of antisemitic discrimination during pro-Palestinian student protests in 2024, warning that the department “intends to proceed with enforcement” and suggesting the university could resolve the dispute through a “voluntary resolution agreement.”
The Wall Street Journal reported that the Trump administration is weighing changes to how jobs data is collected and reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Wednesday, August 13
A federal appeals court overturned a lower court’s ruling, allowing the Trump administration to cut billions in federal funding for foreign aid at USAID that had already been allocated by Congress.
Speaking to reporters, border czar Tom Homan claimed that Trump “doesn’t have a limitation on his authority to make this country safe.”
Bloomberg reported that some federal agents who have been reassigned as part of Trump’s federal takeover of the DC police are doing work they’ve never done, “with little clarity on who is directing operations or what the metrics for success will be,” with a retired NYPD inspector and FBI cyber investigator saying agents aren’t trained for “car stops, dealing with emotionally disturbed persons, robberies, burglaries” or street crime. Additionally, some agents are “worried about the lack of defined rules, coordination, and clear exit timelines.”
A federal judge in Illinois rejected a request by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and House Speaker Dustin Burrows to force state Democratic lawmakers back to Texas, writing that they “failed to present a legal basis for the court” to enforce arrest warrants against the politicians who fled the state to halt Republicans’ Congressional redistricting efforts.
NBC News reported that EJ Antoni, Trump’s nominee to lead the Bureau of Labor Statistics, was outside the Capitol on Jan. 6, with footage placing him there about one hour after insurrectionists removed police barricades, as well as him appearing to leave the area as people entered the Capitol. The White House claims Antoni was a “bystander” who was “in town for meetings” and called it “wrong and defamatory to suggest [he] engaged in anything inappropriate or illegal.”
The New York Times reported that two of the law firms that made deals with Trump to prevent the enforcement of executive orders that targeted them were connected with the Commerce Department by Trump’s personal lawyer, Boris Epshteyn, about assisting on trade deals as part of their pro bono work for the president’s administration.
Fox reported that a lawyer for Melania Trump sent a letter to Hunter Biden demanding he immediately retract his “false, defamatory, disparaging, and inflammatory” claim from a recent interview that Epstein introduced her to Donald and issue an apology, or face a $1 billion defamation lawsuit. Later asked whether he would apologize for his comments, Hunter Biden said, “Fuck that, that’s not going to happen.”
Speaking to reporters, Trump floated the idea of calling a national emergency to bypass congressional authority to extend his federal takeover of the DC police department beyond 30 days, but added that he believes Republican lawmakers would approve an extension “pretty much unanimously.” He also called the prospect of statehood for DC “ridiculous” and “unacceptable.”
NBC News reported that immigration authorities deported three children who are US citizens, including a 4-year-old boy with Stage 4 kidney cancer, to Honduras. According to a lawsuit filed on behalf of the children’s families, the parents, who wanted their children to remain in the US, “were never given a choice as to whether their children should be deported with them and were prohibited from contacting their counsel or having meaningful contact with their families to arrange for the care of their children.”
A federal judge ruled that the Trump administration’s ICE arrests at immigration courts violate the due process rights of immigrants, accusing the government of engaging in a “game of detention roulette.”
Thursday, August 14
A federal judge blocked the Trump administration from moving forward with two actions designed to cut federal funding from schools and universities that don’t eliminate diversity, equity, and inclusion programs at their institutions, writing that the efforts caused “millions of educators to reasonably fear that their lawful, and even beneficial, speech might cause them or their schools to be punished.”
The non-profit watchdog organization Citizens for Responsible Ethics in Washington (CREW) sent a letter to the Office of Special Counsel requesting an investigation into Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick, arguing he may have violated the Hatch Act during a Fox Business interview last month where he urged voters in New York City to “get off their butts and get out there and vote” to ensure “communist” Zohran Mamdani doesn’t win the mayoral election.
The Pentagon claimed that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth believes that “women should have the right to vote,” after he reposted a video last week on Twitter of a pastor who endorsed the repealing of the Constitution’s 19th Amendment, which enshrined the right to vote for women.
More than a dozen masked Border Patrol agents, some carrying rifles and wearing tactical helmets, showed up outside of a Los Angeles museum where California Governor Gavin Newsom was holding a rally and press conference to announce plans for congressional redistricting in the state. Border Patrol Chief Gregory Bovino claimed agents were conducting “roving patrols” in the area. Speaking to reporters, Newsom called the move “pretty sick and pathetic,” representing Trump’s “authoritarian tendencies.” He warned that the US “will not have a country” if Trump rigs the midterm elections: “You will have a president who will be running for a third term. Mark my word.”
DC Police Chief Pamela Smith introduced a new policy that expands local law enforcement’s cooperation with federal immigration enforcement agencies like ICE as the Trump administration continues its takeover of the local police. The policy allows officers to share information about people who aren’t in custody, as well as assist with transporting immigration personnel and detainees.
Not long after, Attorney General Pam Bondi issued an order formalizing the appointment of the head of the Drug Enforcement Administration, Terry Cole, as “emergency police commissioner” of the DC Metropolitan Police Department, stripping decision-making powers away from Chief Smith and requiring approval from Cole before issuing any new directives for the force. In response, DC Mayor Muriel Bowser said, “There is no statute that conveys the District’s personnel authority to a federal official.”
The New York Times reported that Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent hasn’t complied with an agreement requiring him to divest his financial assets, including dozens of funds, trusts, and farmland investments, according to a Monday letter from the US Office of Government Ethics.
Bloomberg reported that the Trump administration is in talks with Intel Corp. to give the federal government a stake in the tech company. The move follows a meeting between Trump and Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan, whom the president said was “highly conflicted” and should resign on Truth Social last week.
Democratic Senator Dick Durbin sent a letter to the Justice Department’s Inspector General to request an investigation into the “arbitrary removals, forced retirements, and reassignments” of top FBI officials and senior agents, as well as the “disparate impact on personnel who are women or persons of color,” calling the purges at the agency “short-sighted” and “politically motivated.”
A Norwegian newspaper reported that during a call between Trump and the country’s finance minister about tariffs last month, Trump – "out of the blue” – said he wanted the Nobel Peace Prize. The accolade is awarded by the Norwegian Nobel Committee, which is made up of five members appointed by Norway's parliament.
Speaking to reporters, Trump said that the 2028 LA Olympics would’ve taken place during “what would be my third term,” if he hadn’t left office in 2021.
During a press conference marking the 90th anniversary of Social Security, Trump falsely claimed that his tax and spending bill eliminated taxes on Social Security benefits for most seniors. He also said his administration found widespread fraud within the system and improved average call wait times for recipients, neither of which is true.
404 Media reported that members of a law enforcement group chat that included ICE agents committed a serious security breach by adding a random person to a group chat that featured highly sensitive details about an active search for an immigrant convicted of attempted murder, including DMV and license plate reader data.
Rolling Stone reported that Trump has privately criticized Epstein victims and their families over their recent media appearances, suggesting they are trying to make him look bad, dismissing them as “Democrats” and questioning if they are coordinating against him with prominent liberal attorneys or organizations. A White House official said “none of this is true,” calling the reporting “another desperate attempt” by the “failing” news outlet.
Friday, August 15
About 120,000 Ukrainians who came to the US fleeing Russia’s invasion will gradually lose their legal status, beginning from this day on, leaving them open to arrest and deportation, despite the fact that the war in Ukraine is ongoing.
DC’s attorney general sued the Trump administration to block its takeover of the local police department, as well as Bondi’s order appointing the DEA administrator as “emergency” police chief. In a statement, the AG said Trump’s “hostile takeover” of the police is “unlawful” and “infringing on the District’s right to self-governance and putting the safety of DC residents and visitors at risk.”
A federal appeals court ruled that the Trump administration can move forward with dismantling the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau by firing all but roughly 200 of its more than 1,400 employees.
The Washington Post reported that Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem is living rent-free in a military home meant for the top admiral of the US Coast Guard, which the outlet calls a “highly unusual arrangement.” A department spokesperson said Noem is living there because she had been “so horribly doxxed and targeted that she is no longer able to safely live in her own apartment.”
The Post also reported that ICE is planning to open or expand 125 immigration detention facilities by the end of 2025, with a goal of roughly doubling the capacity to over 107,000 detainees, according to agency documents last updated on July 30. Among the new contracts are roughly $500 million for Geo Group, ICE’s largest contractor with close ties to the Trump administration, and another $500 million to CoreCivic, the other largest private prison operator, which donated $500,000 to Trump’s inauguration fund. In a statement, a DHS spokesperson said the documents were outdated and hadn’t been approved by the department.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations sent a letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio calling for him to clarify and retract “dangerously reckless” comments he made in a Tuesday interview where he said the State Department is working to designate the organization, along with the Muslim Brotherhood, as terrorist organizations.
On Truth Social, Trump said he had a “wonderful talk” with the “highly respected” Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko. In 2020, his State Department said it wouldn’t recognize him as the country’s legitimate president following a rigged election.
Trump welcomed Russian President Vladimir Putin, who is wanted by the International Criminal Court on war crimes charges, in Alaska. The two smiled and laughed as Trump greeted Putin after his arrival. Putin then got into Trump’s armoured presidential car, known as “The Beast” – a rare privilege for anyone, much less a longtime US adversary wanted by the ICC.
In a later interview with Fox, Trump claimed the Russian dictator agreed with him that the 2020 election was stolen and apparently told him that “you can't have an honest election with mail-in voting.”
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Each week gets worse! Yesterday, the Alaska meeting was nothing more than a photo op for the "lovers" to meet & discuss nothing! America is a like a bad dream you cannot wake up from!
Another horrifying week!