Can America Pull Back From the Brink of Autocracy?
January 5, 2026
1 hr 40 min
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387 of 414
January 5, 2026
Can America Pull Back From the Brink of Autocracy?
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Strict Scrutiny Episodes Around January 5, 2026
Episode 387 of 414 — walk the feed in the order it was published.
Can America Pull Back From the Brink of Autocracy?
Summary
<p>Leah kicks off the episode with repeat guest Rebecca Ingber of Cardozo Law to discuss the wild illegality–both domestic and international–of Trump’s regime change operation in Venezuela. Then, Kate, Melissa, and Leah welcome Princeton professor and expert on the rise of modern autocracies, Kim Lane Scheppele to break down how Trump is consolidating power over the executive branch and the courts. Leah next catches up with president and CEO of Democracy Forward Skye Perryman on some of the legal developments over the holidays, including challenges to Department of Education funding cuts, the freezing of childcare payments to Minnesota, and a near-total abortion ban for veterans. Finally, the hosts speak with Demand Justice's Josh Orton about the worrying trends his organization is seeing among Trump 2.0’s judicial nominees.</p><p><strong>Kim’s favorite things</strong>: <a href="https://judicature.duke.edu/articles/an-almost-sacred-responsibility-the-rule-of-law-in-times-of-peril/"><i>An “Almost Sacred Responsibility”: The Rule of Law in Times of Peril</i></a>, Gerald J. Postema (Judicature); Judge Harvey Wilkinson’s <a href="https://www.ca4.uscourts.gov/docs/pdfs/251404order.pdf?sfvrsn=b404b209_2">opinion</a> in <i>Abrego Garcia v. Noem</i>; Judge William G. Young’s <a href="https://knightcolumbia.org/documents/ahmr9jfap2">opinion</a> in <i>AAUP vs. Rubio</i>; Sara L. Ellis’s <a href="https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/district-courts/illinois/ilndce/1:2025cv12173/487571/281/">opinion</a> in <i>Chicago Headline Club v. Noem</i>; <a href="https://bookshop.org/p/books/the-dual-state-a-contribution-to-the-theory-of-dictatorship-ernst-fraenkel/53d8d232e332b285?ean=9781616190699&next=t">The Dual State</a>, Ernst Fraenkel; <a href="https://bookshop.org/p/books/the-origins-of-totalitarianism-with-a-new-introduction-by-anne-applebaum-anne-applebaum/a2326e15ca8f90fc?ean=9780063354487&next=t">The Origins of Totalitarianism</a>, Hannah Arendt </p><p>Get tickets for STRICT SCRUTINY LIVE – The Bad Decisions Tour 2026! </p><ul>
<li>3/6/26 – San Francisco</li>
<li>3/7/26 – Los Angeles</li>
</ul><p></p><p>Learn more:<a href="http://crooked.com/events"> http://crooked.com/events</a></p><p>Buy Leah's book,<a href="https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Lawless/Leah-Litman/9781668054628"> Lawless: How the Supreme Court Runs on Conservative Grievance, Fringe Theories, and Bad Vibes</a></p><p>Follow us on<a href="https://www.instagram.com/strictscrutinypodcast/?hl=en"> Instagram</a>,<a href="https://www.threads.net/@strictscrutinypodcast"> Threads</a>, and<a href="https://bsky.app/profile/strictscrutiny.bsky.social"> Bluesky</a></p><p></p><p>Get tickets for STRICT SCRUTINY LIVE – The Bad Decisions Tour 2025! </p><ul>
<li>3/6/26 – San Francisco</li>
<li>3/7/26 – Los Angeles</li>