‘The authoritarian playbook’: Trump targets judges, lawyers … and law itself

Attacks on key US institutions seek to stifle dissent, exact revenge and subordinate them to the president, experts say

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As Donald Trump aggressively seeks revenge against multiple foes in the US, he's waging a vendetta using executive orders and social media against judges, law firms, prosecutors, the press and other vital American institutions to stifle dissent and exact retribution.

Legal scholars say the president's menacing attacks, some of which Trump's biggest campaign backer, the billionaire Elon Musk, has echoed, are aimed at silencing critics of his radical agenda and undercut the rule of law in authoritarian ways that expand his own powers.