Trump’s Power Grab Accelerates: Today’s Executive Orders Reshape America’s Economy & Government

These are not isolated policy changes. They are part of a coordinated effort to dismantle the foundations of democratic governance. This is a systemic transformation to eliminate oversight, funnel resources to loyalists, and strip away institutional resistance.

Photo by Maria Thalassinou / Unsplash

The Federal Government is Being Restructured for Authoritarian Control

Three executive orders. One day. A massive power shift.

On March 20, 2025, Donald Trump issued three executive orders that shatter democratic guardrails and centralize power in the executive branch like never before.

Each order follows a deliberate strategy of centralization, deregulation, and cronyism, allowing Trump to:

Eliminate federal oversight of public education, gutting funding and civil rights protections.
Seize control over America’s natural resources, opening up public lands for unchecked corporate extraction.
Consolidate all government spending under his administration, creating a financial power base to punish dissenters and reward allies.

This is what autocratic restructuring looks like.

Let’s break them down.

The Pattern: How Authoritarians Seize Control

History tells us how autocrats dismantle democratic systems:

Destroy oversight – Eliminate regulatory agencies that act as guardrails.
Consolidate economic power – Control financial flows to reward loyalists and punish opposition.
Suppress knowledge & education – Rewrite history, censor ideas, and create a compliant citizenry.
Exploit emergencies to justify extreme actions – Declare crises that “require” executive overreach.

These executive orders fit each step of this playbook. This is not random. It’s a systematic power grab.

The End of Federal Education Protections

Executive Order released 03/20/2025: "Improving Education Outcomes by Empowering Parents, States, and Communities"

For decades, the Department of Education (ED) has ensured civil rights protections, student loan oversight, and federal education funding. With a single order, Trump abolished it.

What happens next?

Disabled students will lose accommodations. With no federal protections, states can strip away disability support programs overnight.
LGBTQ+ students lose protection. Schools will be able to fire teachers, out students, and implement religious-based discrimination.
No more federal protections against discrimination. States can now openly roll back civil rights protections in schools.
Schools will become religious and ideological battlegrounds. Expect an explosion of curriculum censorship, state-imposed prayer mandates, and right-wing “patriotic education” policies.
Student loan chaos. The federal government will no longer oversee $1.6 trillion in student debt. Private banks will step in, leading to more predatory lending.
Massive funding cuts to public education. Without federal grants, states will be forced to cut budgets, leading to larger class sizes, fewer teachers, and failing schools.

Why this is dangerous:

This is an attack on public education itself. Trump is handing control to Republican governors and Christian nationalists who have openly pushed for “patriotic education” while suppressing discussions of racism, gender, and history.

This is how authoritarian regimes erase knowledge, rewrite history, and indoctrinate children.

The Corporate Takeover of America’s Natural Resources

Executive Order released 03/20/2025: "Immediate Measures to Increase American Mineral Production"

Immediate measures to increase American mineral production

Trump has declared a “national emergency” to justify handing over public lands to private mining corporations. This is not just about “energy independence” or “economic growth.” This is about stripping America’s natural resources from the public and handing them to Trump’s financial backers.

When autocrats seize control of a country’s economy, they start by securing access to the nation’s wealth. In Putin’s Russia, oligarchs were rewarded with massive industries. In Hungary, Orban’s allies were given monopoly control over entire sectors.

This executive order is a direct transfer of national wealth to Trump’s allies—at the expense of Indigenous rights, public land, and environmental protections.

What happens next?

Massive land grabs for private mining operations. Federal lands will be opened for uranium, gold, copper, and rare earth mineral extraction.
Environmental destruction. Regulations on toxic waste, water contamination, and land use are being waived to fast-track mining.
Indigenous land violations. Mining leases will override tribal protections, threatening Indigenous sovereignty.
A handout to the fossil fuel industry. The order incentivizes extractive industries while continuing to dismantle climate policies.

Why this is dangerous:

This is not about national security—it’s about corporate profit. Trump is using executive power to turn America’s public lands into a private resource pool for his donors and allies.

If you control a country’s resources, you control its economy.

This is a direct step toward authoritarian economic control.

Trump Seizes Control of Federal Spending

Executive Order released 03/20/2025: "Eliminating Waste and Saving Taxpayer Dollars by Consolidating Procurement"

The federal government spends $490 billion annually on contracts for goods and services. Now, Trump has centralized all procurement under the General Services Administration (GSA)— an agency under his control.

What happens next?

Every federal agency loses its independent purchasing power. Departments now require White House-aligned approval for all spending.
Private businesses must comply with Trump’s administration to get contracts. Expect loyalty tests and political favoritism.
A massive opening for crony capitalism. This order enables Trump to reward his allies and cut off businesses that don’t align with his agenda.
Government-wide IT control. The GSA will oversee all government technology contracts, allowing Trump to shape cybersecurity policies, data access, and surveillance infrastructure.

Why this is dangerous:

With this executive order, Trump has turned the federal budget into a tool of political warfare.

The government’s tech infrastructure will be completely centralized under Trump’s control.
With this order, Trump now controls the economic backbone of the federal government. Agencies that resist Trump’s policies will see their budgets dry up overnight.
Businesses that criticize him can be shut out of federal contracts.
Loyal businesses will be rewarded with massive government contracts. His political allies can receive billions in taxpayer-funded rewards.

Historical parallel: In Hungary, Viktor Orban used government contracts to build a corporate empire of loyalists. In Turkey, Erdogan weaponized procurement to punish dissenting businesses and reward his allies.

This is how authoritarian regimes create economic compliance. This is not about cutting waste. It’s about consolidating economic power.

This is no longer a democracy. It is an economic autocracy.

What Comes Next?

These three executive orders are a coordinated effort to dismantle democratic institutions and consolidate power in the executive branch.

What Comes Next?

Public education will be further gutted as red states impose ideological curricula.
Environmental deregulation will accelerate, leading to increased pollution and destruction of natural resources.

The federal government will become a financial weapon, with Trump controlling who gets contracts and who gets cut off.

Call to Action

What Must Happen Next:

Immediate Legal Challenges: Civil rights groups, environmental organizations, and public education advocates must file lawsuits now.
State and local resistance is critical. Democratic governors must pass emergency protections to block federal overreach.
Workers, educators, and government employees must organize. Public employees—teachers, scientists, government workers —must mobilize resistance within agencies. Mass resignations and resistance can slow the implementation of these orders.
Public Outrage: The public must mobilize protests, pressure lawmakers, and disrupt implementation. Expose this for what it is. These are not cost-cutting measures. They are power grabs.

This is not business as usual. These executive orders are a declaration of economic war on democracy.

The only way to stop them is through mass resistance, legal challenges, and direct action.

This is the Moment to Fight Back

Every authoritarian takeover has a moment where resistance is still possible.

This is that moment.

If Trump succeeds in consolidating power over education, natural resources, and government spending, his control over the economy will be nearly total.

After that, it only gets worse.