John Roberts and the making of an American fascist state
His Court has permitted Trump to disregard Congress, dismiss lower court rulings, and breach international treaties, including the ban on deporting people to countries where they face torture.
On March 4, Donald Trump delivered his record-shattering 100-minute speech to Congress. After basking in the standing ovations, he strode down the aisle, greeting the Supreme Court justices one by one. When he reached Chief Justice John Roberts, Trump clasped his hand warmly, tapped him on the arm, and declared: “Won’t forget.”
It was a small theatrical moment, but it carried a darker significance. For Trump, Roberts has transitioned from being the neutral “umpire” he once claimed to be to a more willing supporter of the president’s authoritarian goals. Since that handshake, the Roberts Court has systematically dismantled legal obstacles to Trump’s power grab—turning America’s constitutional order into something that looks more like a budding fascist state.
The Shadow Docket Coup
The Supreme Court has long been America’s last line of defense against executive overreach. Under Roberts, it has become Trump’s most powerful weapon. In just ten weeks, the Court’s right-wing supermajority—three handpicked by Trump—has granted the president 18 consecutive victories, most through the secretive “shadow docket.” These are emergency rulings issued without hearings, arguments, or even explanations.
Their impact has been devastating. Trump now has unchecked power to fire federal employees at will, deport migrants to war zones, remove protections from over a million immigrants, and ban transgender Americans from serving in the military. Federal judges who tried to block these actions were simply overruled or ignored, as if the judiciary under Roberts no longer existed.
As Justice Sonia Sotomayor warned in dissent, the Court is “rewarding lawlessness” and abandoning the principle that America is governed by laws, not men. But Roberts has stood firmly with Trump, ensuring that this new form of executive dominance becomes normalized.
Immunity for a Strongman
The most chilling decision came with Trump v. United States, authored by Roberts himself. In that ruling, the Court granted Trump absolute immunity for “official acts” as president—even those tied to January 6 or future abuses of power. It was not merely a legal technicality but a license for dictatorship: the declaration that the president is above the law.
Roberts justified the ruling by citing the framers’ desire for an “energetic executive.” But he conveniently left out their equal emphasis on responsibility and accountability. With this single opinion, Roberts almost completely eliminated the constitutional safeguard that no man is above the law.
From Reagan Loyalist to Trump’s Protector
Roberts’s journey to this point spanned decades. Rooted in Reagan-era conservatism, he first gained experience by writing memos opposed to civil rights, voting protections, and affirmative action. As chief justice, he has regularly sided with corporations, removed workers’ rights, weakened environmental protections, and ended affirmative action in higher education.
But under Trump, Roberts has gone further—not just promoting conservative ideas but defending unchecked lawlessness. His Court has permitted Trump to disregard Congress, dismiss lower court rulings, and breach international treaties, including the ban on deporting people to countries where they face torture. When Trump ignores judges’ decisions, Roberts looks away. This isn’t conservatism; it’s collaboration.
The Fascist Drift
What is emerging is not just executive overreach—it is the foundation of fascism. A president asserts unlimited power. Courts forsake their role as a check on authority. Immigrants, minorities, and dissenters are scapegoated and stripped of their rights. And the public is told this is normal.
Roberts, once known as an “institutionalist,” is now the quiet architect behind this transformation. His reputation for caution and moderation conceals a clear pattern: bending the law to support Trump’s authoritarian ambitions. As his longtime colleague J. Michael Luttig has stated, Roberts is “presiding over the end of the rule of law in America.”
America at the Edge
The danger is real and not just hypothetical. With Trump supported by a Court that protects him from accountability, the United States now operates under a president who can dismiss regulators at will, dismantle agencies created by Congress, deport refugees in defiance of the law, and act with complete impunity. When lower courts are pushed aside and the Supreme Court itself endorses this defiance, the rule of law has already disappeared.
Roberts often compares judges to “like umpires”—simply umpires who call balls and strikes. But in this case, the umpire has taken sides. By doing so, John Roberts has pushed America closer than ever to becoming a fascist state, where one man’s will overrides the law of the land.
