Donald Trump: the president who would be king

Founding Father George Washington viewed the notion that he should be the US' first monarch "with abhorrence". The 47th president, however, seems to have no such reluctance when it comes to having a crown placed on his head.

In a post on his Truth Social site this week about forcing the suspension of a congestion charge pilot scheme in New York City, Donald Trump finished with a triumphant: "LONG LIVE THE KING!"

The president's deputy chief of staff Taylor Budowich shared a post with an AI image of Trump wearing robes and a crown, while the official White House X account posted a mock-up magazine cover featuring a crown-wearing Trump in front of the New York skyline.

The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

The startling impression, said The New Republic, was that "the rest of the White House was overjoyed to see the president was dropping the pretence of democracy".

'Spoken like a true dictator'

Trump's autocratic leanings raised eyebrows earlier this month in another post in which he shared the quote: "He who saves his Country does not violate any Law." It's a phrase attributed to Napoleon Bonaparte, who declared himself Emperor of France in December 1804, going so far, according to legend, as snatching the crown from the hands of Pope Pius VII to place it on his head himself.

"Spoken like a true dictator," said Democratic Senator Adam Schiff on X, in a response typical of those from Trump's political adversaries.

It's a "remarkable choice" of reference, said The Washington Post, one which is "anathema" to the vision of George Washington and his fellow Founding Fathers. But Trump has "barked up this tree before", claiming during his first term that his authority was "total". More recently, he has argued that presidents should have total immunity from criminal prosecution, no matter how serious the offence.

Trump later shared a meme version of the quote alongside the news his administration had violated a court order by refusing to reverse a freeze of billions in government funds. "In other words, Trump was – however deliberately – promoting the idea that violating a court order was justified under this Napoleonic view of dictatorial power."

'Ever-widening reach of presidential power'

Trump's actions show that he believes the power of his office is invested in him personally – and that he wants more, said The Economist.

Many of his executive orders are "brazenly" unconstitutional, government employees are being asked to declare their allegiance to him and he's "swept away" the safeguards keeping the Department of Justice and politics apart. As a result, one of its first acts has been to call for the dismissal of corruption charges against New York City Mayor Eric Adams – "though only for as long as he does what Mr Trump demands".

Indeed, Trump views his power as "pretty much indistinguishable" from that of an absolute monarch, said D.A.T. Green in Prospect magazine, and his "kingly pretensions" are erasing the checks and balances enshrined in the constitution in the form of Congress and the courts. Republican legislators could join an uprising if they come to "resent being robbed" of their law-making powers. But until that happens, we can expect to see "an ever-widening reach of presidential power".