Is Trump Turning Into a Dictator? Rep. Ansari Thinks So — And She’s Not Alone

Is Trump Turning Into a Dictator? Rep. Ansari Thinks So — And She’s Not Alone

So, Rep. Yassamin Ansari from Arizona recently made waves when she straight-up called out Donald Trump for acting like a “full-on dictator.” Now, that kind of language isn't something politicians just toss around casually. She’s not just being dramatic—Ansari laid out a whole list of actions that paint a pretty disturbing picture. And here's the kicker: she’s far from the only one raising red flags.

Let’s break it down.

Ansari went off during a city council session in Phoenix, talking about how Trump has been using state violence, military-style tactics, and fear to shut people up and stay in power. This includes sending federal troops to places like Los Angeles to "restore order," which critics argue is just code for crushing dissent. She also mentioned how Trump’s allies are pushing loyalty tests, trying to arrest political opponents, and threatening to purge the civil service if he wins again. To her, and many others, that sounds less like a president and a lot more like a dictator in the making.

She literally said Trump is "not even hiding it anymore"—he’s going full authoritarian.

Ansari’s not some outlier here. Over 400 scholars, including 30 Nobel Prize winners, just signed an international anti-fascist manifesto. It warns that Trump is part of a growing global movement of authoritarian leaders. The manifesto doesn’t pull punches—it calls out efforts to undermine science, education, voting rights, and democratic norms as “hallmarks of modern fascism” (Washington Post).

Even Ruth Ben-Ghiat, a respected historian who’s spent her career studying strongmen like Mussolini and Putin, said Trump is “speeding toward dictatorship faster than Putin.” That’s terrifying. According to her, Trump’s use of propaganda, political violence, and the erosion of trust in democratic institutions fits a textbook pattern (The Daily Beast).

Gavin Newsom, the Governor of California, has also blasted Trump’s recent moves. After Trump sent troops into American cities and claimed he could ignore Supreme Court rulings, Newsom called him “unhinged” and straight-up “authoritarian” (Politico). And he’s not alone—legal experts across the board, even some conservative ones, are warning that Trump’s grabbing power in ways that flat-out break the law (News.com.au).

This isn’t just about politics—it’s also about psychology. Mental health professionals have been sounding the alarm about Trump for years. Back in 2017, over two dozen psychiatrists, psychologists, and other experts contributed essays to The Dangerous Case of Donald Trump, warning that his behavior—his impulsivity, need for admiration, lack of empathy, and cruelty—posed a genuine danger to the country.

One of the lead editors of that book, Dr. Bandy X. Lee from Yale, said Trump shows signs of “malignant narcissism,” a toxic mix of narcissism, paranoia, antisocial behavior, and sadism. That’s the kind of personality that doesn’t just want attention—it wants control. And it doesn’t care who gets hurt in the process.

In fact, in 2018, over 200 clinicians took out a full-page ad in The New York Times stating that Trump’s mental instability makes him a threat to democracy. The ad warned that his psychological profile is “alarming and dangerous” for someone with power over nuclear weapons, immigration, and law enforcement.

Sure, some mental health professionals argue about the ethics of diagnosing public figures without a clinical interview (that’s called the Goldwater Rule). But a growing number think the public deserves to know when a leader shows clear signs of dangerous behavior.

If you step back and look at the big picture, it’s not just one or two isolated incidents. We’re seeing an increasingly authoritarian vibe coming from Trump’s camp. From threatening to arrest opponents to demanding personal loyalty from government workers to undermining elections and pushing conspiracy theories—these are not the moves of a normal president.

The danger, as experts point out, isn’t just in what Trump says or does—it’s how people around him are reacting. They’re normalizing it. And once people stop being shocked by this stuff, democracy really starts to erode. That’s how authoritarianism wins—not with a bang, but with a slow slide into chaos.

People like Rep. Ansari are trying to sound the alarm before it’s too late.

Sources:

Ben-Ghiat, Ruth. “Historian of Fascism Claims Trump Is Speeding Towards Dictatorship Faster Than Putin.” The Daily Beast, 11 June 2025, www.thedailybeast.com/historian-of-fascism-claims-trump-is-speeding-towards-dictatorship-faster-than-putin.

Lee, Bandy X., editor. The Dangerous Case of Donald Trump: 37 Psychiatrists and Mental Health Experts Assess a President. St. Martin’s Press, 2019.

“Fearing Trump, Academics Worldwide Issue Anti-Fascist Manifesto.” The Washington Post, 13 June 2025, www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/06/13/anti-fascist-manifesto-intellectuals-trump.

Newsom, Gavin. “Gavin Newsom: Trump Is ‘Unhinged,’ Speaking like an ‘Authoritarian.’” Politico, 9 June 2025, www.politico.com/news/2025/06/09/gavin-newsom-trump-is-unhinged-speaking-like-an-authoritarian-00394617.

“‘Limitless’: Trump’s Own Side Freaks Out.” News.com.au, 12 June 2025, www.news.com.au/world/north-america/us-politics/limitless-power-conservative-legal-experts-warn-donald-trump-is-breaking-the-law/news-story/c9f834aebfef0ed21fe1ed9acbd7d4de.

Ansari, Yassamin. “Yassamin Ansari Goes Through Laundry List of Trump Actions That Are ‘Full-On Dictator.’” YouTube, uploaded by The MeidasTouch Network, 10 June 2025, www.youtube.com/watch?v=orO1LPbEnCU.

American Psychiatric Association. “Goldwater Rule.” APA Ethics, 2017, www.psychiatry.org/news-room/goldwater-rule.