The President is a King Above the Law
My novel's dystopian future of American is becoming too real.
According to the recent ruling of the Supreme Court, the President of the United States is immune from criminal prosecution for any official act. The President of the United States is above the law.
We are careening toward an authoritarian state.
At these dark times, I happen to be writing a dystopian science fiction novel set one hundred years in the future in which America has become a fascist state with a dynastic presidential family and a Society for a Royal America (SFRA) attempting to formally dispense with the facade of a democracy and install a king.
My story started out as a lark. I didn’t intend to write something as grim as 1984. I thought I was writing a romance—a bit of fluff—in a dark setting with some commentary on where the convergence of communication, education, and media might take us. There are no Democrats or Republicans in my story. No one in the story is based off any real people living today, not even in the backstory.
It was supposed to be just for fun.
But it’s gotten serious. And immediate.
Flirtation with Authoritarianism isn’t a new development in America. It’s been the naked objective of the conservative right for decades, since at least Newt Gingrich turned partisan politics into a blood sport in the 1990s—which I’m old enough to remember—or maybe since Nixon and his “when the president does it, that means that it is not illegal”, or the passing of the Civil Rights Act, or possibly the American Civil War.
The present day Republican platform is now baldly fascist. It is certainly anti-equality. Project 2025, the “Presidential Transition Project” written by Trump’s aides and members of his previous administration, outlines what the next Trump presidency will look like. A recurring theme is to “stop wokeness”, It includes passages such as:
“… the next Administration will face a significant challenge in unwinding policies and procedures that are used to advance radical gender, racial, and equity initiatives under the banner of science…”
AND
“climate fanaticism will need a whole-of-government unwinding…”
AND
“…eliminate central promotion of abortion (“health services”); comprehensive sexuality education (“education”); and the new woke gender ideology…”
AND
“future IC [Intelligence Community] leadership must address the widely promoted “woke” culture that has spread throughout the federal government with identity politics and “social justice” advocacy replacing such traditional American values as patriotism, colorblindness, and even workplace competence.”
These are just fragments.
There’s other, scarier stuff, like the breaking of treaties, declaring war on China, forcing employers to observe the Sabbath under “freedom of religion”, and a slew of suggestions for the Department of Labor to roll back or outright ban Title VII protections.
I can’t summarize it all.
I wish I didn’t even have to read it. I don’t need to in order to inform my vote—I am anti-fascist, thanks—but it feels like necessary research for my book.
And I hate that.
The novel I am working on was not really intended to be political fiction. I want to write escapist fantasies that are entertaining. The Kings of Wyld is more my speed. But in these fraught times, with an election on the horizon that gives Trump good odds at winning the Presidency for a second term, after which who knows if there will be another election, it’s difficult not to think critically about the future.
Even if Trump doesn’t win in 2024, the pressures that make fascism attractive to people and the technology that enables controlling them through fear and disinformation isn’t going away.
For the record, I believe that democracy is the best form of government. I do not want a king. Unfortunately, democracy depends on an educated and informed voting public, as well as checks and balances on power, and both of those things are in a state of erosion that may prove impossible to claw back.
I’m not going to say more right now, but you can check out my science fiction short story set in an American dystopian future. It’s around 7,000 words, or about 25 pages, and should take about a half hour to read.
I hope the next thing I write and publish will be more cheerful.