Analysis: As he lionizes a strongman, Trump flexes power over the law, top colleges and the media

Summary

Donald Trump is escalating a battle against institutions that challenge his strongman instincts, including the courts, the legal profession, elite education and the media.

The administration is projecting presidential authority in a broader and more overt way than any modern White House.

Its expansive interpretation of statues and questionable interpretations of judges’ rulings is causing alarm about its impact on the rule of law, freedom of expression and the Constitution.

Trump’s own hardline aspirations were revealed through the prism of his increasingly ruthless deportation policy, raising profound questions about apparent abuses of due process and human rights.

The sense of a coming constitutional collision is growing impossible to ignore.