The article discusses how authoritarian leaders, specifically Donald Trump, weaken or co-opt civil society to consolidate their power. It highlights Trump's systematic attacks on universities, the press, and NGOs, while focusing on businesses as critical components of civil society. By offering benefits in exchange for compliance—essentially bribes—Trump corrupts businesses and influences media corporations, threatening their independence. This corruption leads to a reliance on his administration for survival, isolating those who oppose him, including some right-leaning critics of his destructive tariffs. In this climate, the integrity of independent journalism and fair business competition suffers significantly.
To succeed, authoritarians must weaken or co-opt civil society, those spheres of society via which people form social ties independent of government.
Trump has attempted to co-opt businesses by trading thinly-disguised bribes for favorable government assistance, locking in a commitment to succeed not by competition, but by tribute.
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