Randros 
In a stunning series of moves that have stunned economists and executives alike, President Donald Trump’s second term has unleashed a barrage of interventions.
From ousting top statisticians and Federal Reserve officials to seizing stakes in major corporations and intimidating broadcasters.
Experts warn are eroding the foundations of American democracy and jeopardizing long-term economic prosperity.
On September 2, 2025, U.S. Capitol Police officers stood vigilant as protesters marched on Capitol Hill, their signs decrying what many see as an accelerating slide toward authoritarianism.
These aren’t isolated incidents in a distant regime; they’re unfolding in the heart of the world’s leading democracy, with ripple effects poised to unsettle global markets.
“I have never been this concerned about democracy in the United States,” Vanessa Williamson, a senior fellow in governance studies at the nonpartisan Brookings Institution, told CNN in a recent interview.
Her fears are echoed by business insiders, who privately fret over the implications for investment, growth, and stability—even as they muzzle public criticism to dodge presidential ire.
The Economic Peril of Democratic Erosion: What the Data Says
Decades of research underscore a stark truth: Healthy democracies fuel robust economies, while their unraveling breeds chaos.
A landmark 2019 study in the Journal of Political Economy, titled “Democracy Does Cause Growth,” analyzed global data and found that transitions to democracy boost GDP per capita by about 20% over the long term.
The gains stem from heightened investments in capital, education, and healthcare—essentials that falter under erratic, top-down rule.
Conversely, populist strongmen leave lasting scars.
A 2023 American Economic Review paper examined 51 populist leaders from 1900 to 2020, revealing that countries under their sway saw GDP per capita lag 10% behind non-populist paths after 15 years.
“Populists typically assume office as antiestablishment politicians who claim to represent ‘the common people’ and to improve their economic fortunes,” the authors noted.
“However, they typically do not deliver.”
Williamson, observing the U.S. trajectory, described a “slow” erosion in prior years accelerating into “rapid” decline this year.
“What’s troubling is we’re trending in the direction of the worst-case scenarios I’ve envisioned,” she said.
Autocrats, she added, excel at erratic policymaking that starves economies of predictability—precisely what CEOs crave.
Flashpoints of Overreach
Trump’s playbook has been unrelenting.
Last month, following a dismal August 1 jobs report, he abruptly dismissed Erika McEntarfer, commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics—the agency responsible for the nation’s premier economic data.
Trump accused her, without evidence, of “cooking the books.”
McEntarfer fired back last week: “Firing your chief statistician is a dangerous step.
That’s an attack on the independence of an institution arguably as important as the Federal Reserve for economic stability.
It has serious economic consequences.”
The assault on the Fed has been equally fierce.
Trump ousted Governor Lisa Cook, who is now battling the decision in court, amid broader threats to the central bank’s vaunted independence.
Such meddling, experts say, risks inflating uncertainty and deterring foreign investment.
Tariffs have been another weapon, deployed with unprecedented zeal to reshape trade—promising an influx of revenue and jobs, as Trump boasted in July: “We’re the hottest country anywhere in the world.”
Yet the unpredictability has rattled supply chains.
Even more alarming to free-market purists: The administration’s foray into state capitalism.
In a controversial pivot, the government pumped $8.9 billion in taxpayer funds into Intel, the struggling chip giant, after Trump demanded the resignation of CEO Lip-Bu Tan over alleged China ties—only to later praise him.
The move drew bipartisan unease.
“This is state ownership of private business,” lamented Douglas Holtz-Eakin, president of the center-right American Action Forum and a former economic adviser to President George W. Bush.
“We’ve been teaching the world that state-owned enterprises are unfair. But now Intel is a state-owned enterprise.”
Former Vice President Mike Pence, speaking on CNBC last week, likened these shifts to models in “China and Russia—two nations that are far from democracies.”
He urged resistance: “Such moves have taken our country to a very perilous place.”
Silencing Dissent
No episode has crystallized these fears like the showdown over late-night TV.
Trump-nominee Brendan Carr, as FCC chairman, threatened Disney and ABC with regulatory reprisals unless they curbed comedian Jimmy Kimmel’s on-air jabs at the murder of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
ABC responded by suspending Jimmy Kimmel Live! indefinitely—a decision Trump celebrated.
“That’s what you would expect to see in an unfree country.
It’s straight from the autocratic playbook,” Williamson said.
Sonnenfeld called the license threats over critical coverage “horrifying,” adding, “The erosion of free expression in the media is really alarming.”
A protester outside Hollywood’s El Capitan Theatre encapsulated the outrage with a sign: “Protect Free Speech.”
Wall Street’s Quiet Panic
Publicly, CEOs have largely stayed silent, scarred by Trump’s May threat of 100% tariffs on Mattel imports after its leader flagged price hikes from existing duties.
But behind closed doors, alarm bells are ringing.
“Business leaders are quite alarmed in private about the state of democracy in the United States,” Sonnenfeld revealed.
“We’ve had a serious erosion… Democracy is just good for the economy.
And autocracy is bad for the economy.”
Yet unity eludes them.
“We’re not seeing those forceful voices come together,” Sonnenfeld noted.
“But they need to.
They are very much alarmed.”
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