Civitas Outlook
Topic
Constitutionalism
Published on
September 17, 2025
Contributors
Richard Epstein

Epstein: Executive Power & Authoritarianism

Original description from the Rob Montz Show:

Many people see Trump as revolutionary restoring the sacred ideals of the country. Many others see a tyrant, a mob boss seizing dictatorial power. Who’s right? Is Trump really a dictator?

To sort this out I sat down the legal legend Richard Epstein, a long time law professor at the University of Chicago and New York University who has a mastery over the technical minutiae and legal history of executive authority. Why does he think Trump’s tariffs as obviously unconstitutional? What does he mean that grudges run this administration? And when so many other presidents have snatched power they weren’t supposed to have, is Trump really an outlier?

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