John, fair warning: this email is long — because the list of President Trump’s anti-democratic actions is long. And growing.

We know because we’ve been tracking Trump’s anti-democratic moves, which began within hours of Trump’s return to office in January.

Since then, the Trump administration has unleashed a wave of legal and policy changes that have touched nearly every part of American life. Some are ordinary policy shifts—but others are clearly designed to chip away at the guardrails meant to keep presidential power in check.

Authoritarians around the world rely on this exact tactic: change things slowly enough that people forget what came before and over time, the unacceptable becomes normalized.

That’s precisely why CREW is documenting these anti-democratic moves—focusing on ethics, transparency and accountability—to ensure we see the complete picture of how our democracy is being reshaped and what it will take to strengthen it again.

Details are below. But if you’re already with us, chip in now to support CREW’s work and help defend our democracy and hold Trump accountable →

Tracking all of the changes affecting our democracy is an impossible task, so we’ve identified four main categories for our tracking: Corruption, Weaponization of the Department of Justice and the U.S. military, Regulatory Retaliation and Hiding or Distorting Legally Required Information.

You can read our full tracker here; otherwise, here’s a brief glimpse into what we’ve been following:

Corruption

Corruption undermines democracy, impedes good governance, fuels transnational crime and wastes public resources. Over the past 10 years, we have seen corruption worsen in the US.

Now, we have a president who seems to disregard anti-corruption measures and personally profits from the presidency.

One clear example is when Trump hosted a private gala in May for the biggest buyers of his $TRUMP memecoin, who spent a total of over $148 million to attend. Or when he announced that the DOJ would accept a plane from Qatar to be used as Air Force One, and then donate it to his presidential library when he leaves office.

Although some corruption is flagrant and therefore easily apparent, other cases are harder to identify. This category tracks national and state corruption, identifying abuses of power for financial gain or personal advantage.

Weaponization of the Department of Justice and the U.S. military

There are constitutional and statutory laws, as well as executive branch policies, designed to prevent politically motivated investigations and prosecutions and to ensure that law enforcement and military resources are not used to suppress dissent.

But the Trump administration is walking back from these guarantees.

This includes when Trump granted clemency to every person charged or convicted of participating in the January 6th insurrection. And when Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered staff to monitor social media for any service members celebrating or mocking Charlie Kirk’s assassination.

This category tracks the misuse of government power and resources to target, intimidate, punish, or reward particular people, institutions, or corporations based on their political views or affiliations, rather than for legitimate law enforcement or national security purposes.

Regulatory Retaliation

As we’ve seen in other countries, routine government functions—from corporate oversight to tax audits—can be used to stifle political opposition.

Although there are laws designed to prevent the weaponization of regulatory functions, at least one of Trump’s Executive Orders highlights the roles of the Federal Trade Commission and the Securities and Exchange Commission and appears to call for regulatory retaliation explicitly.

Traditionally, the most significant xxxxxx against the weaponization of regulatory power has been the independence of government agencies. This independence has all but evaporated due to a series of Supreme Court shadow-docket decisions that permit the indiscriminate firing of independent agency heads.

This category tracks the misuse of regulatory power and resources to intimidate, coerce, or retaliate against particular institutions or corporations based on their political views or affiliations.

Hiding or Distorting Legally Required Information

Transparency allows people to know that their government is acting honestly and with their best interests at heart. In the US, there is a network of laws that require national and state governments to collect and release information, including scientific and economic data.

But on January 20th, Trump signed an Executive Order establishing the Department of Government Efficiency without specifying who the DOGE Commissioner is, effectively placing Elon Musk in charge of its sweeping mandate. And in March, Treasury Secretary Bessent announced that the government will stop enforcing the Corporate Transparency Act.

John, every single one of these categories shows the same disturbing pattern: Trump is chipping away at our democratic institutions—intentionally, relentlessly and without shame.

If we don’t keep shining a light on these authoritarian abuses, they risk becoming a part of American life. We cannot let that happen.

That’s why CREW is documenting every move, sounding the alarm when democracy is under attack and taking action to hold Trump accountable. But this work has never been more urgent — and we can’t do it alone. Help us continue tracking, exposing, and stopping these anti-democratic actions by donating to support CREW today →

Thank you,

CREW