1. United States
2. Alaska
3. Letter

When a president uses executive power to not just blacklist but destroy a major law firm, solely for representing political opponents, it means he is given up any pretenses that he is not an authoritarian hellbent on destroying any one who opposes him by any means necessary. Donald Trump’s executive order on Perkins Cole isn’t just an attack on one firm. It is a blueprint for how authoritarian leaders can grossly abuse government power to chill free speech and legal challenges to their abuse of authority. This is not about politics it is about whether a president can use executive order to cut off legal representation. It is also chilling how the 1st amendment is being trampled on. The arrest and disappearance of Mahmoud Khalil a legal resident for expressing an opinion he did not like is an extraordinary attack on the 1st amendment. Once it is established that protestors can be arrested and jailed officials will use it to silence opposition broadly. In this country people must be free to express their views left or right without being punished by the government. It is sickening that the guardrails are gone and you are allowing are rights to be trampled on. This is not about politics. It is an abuse of authority. I never thought I would live to see my country descend into chaos and live to see democracy destroyed.