Trump has dragged the US to the abyss and Nigel Farage would do the same to Britain. Here's how to stop him | Jonathan Freedland

"In the US, warnings about the autocratic ambitions of Donald Trump that were once dismissed as hyperbole and hysteria now seem, if anything, too mild. Faster than most imagined, he has moved to weaken institutional checks on his power whether the courts, the universities, the civil service or the press and now has set to work gagging his critics, even, it seems, to outlaw large swathes of the opposition."

"This week saw the suspension by a major broadcasting network, Disney-owned ABC, of a late-night talkshow, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, following remarks Kimmel had made about the killing of the rightwing activist Charlie Kirk. Kimmel did not criticise Kirk himself an act now considered all but blasphemous in the US but rather Republicans' reaction to his murder, especially their eagerness to score political points from it."

"Of course, this is no one-off. Trump is also trying to cow the US's biggest newspaper, filing a $15bn lawsuit against the New York Times, accusing it of spreading false and defamatory content. The NYT has the resources to resist, but smaller US papers will have got the message. They could hardly be blamed if they now pull their journalistic punches, if only because they do not have the money to pay for a protracted legal battle against a billionaire president."

Donald Trump is rapidly weakening institutional checks on power across the courts, universities, civil service and press while gagging critics and seeking to outlaw large parts of the opposition. A major broadcaster suspended a late-night show after remarks about Charlie Kirk's killing, following an FCC chair's ultimatum that pressured the network. A $15bn lawsuit against the New York Times and threats to smaller outlets signal legal intimidation that can prompt self-censorship. Left-of-centre organizations and civil institutions face targeted crackdowns. The combined regulatory, legal and political pressures are eroding free expression and democratic safeguards in the United States.

Read at www.theguardian.com