WASHINGTON (AP) — For the many people considered enemies by President Donald Trump, his return to the White House has sparked anxiety about how much power he has to upend their lives.
The White House has ways to reward friends or punish foes, putting aside the long expectation that federal agencies are supposed to act apolitically. Any lawsuits challenging attempts to wield government power would likely take years to resolve and offer little immediate comfort to those targeted.
Here are some examples of what Trump's rivals and opponents fear he could do:
The gravest step that a president can take is ordering the Justice Department to open investigations or bring prosecutions. That can upend a person's life and finances even if they are acquitted or never charged. While there is a longstanding practice that presidents don't interfere in the department's operations, it's only a norm. President Trump has said he has “every right" to go after political opponents.
Presidential power is at its maximum when presidents invoke national security. Numerous lists can either prohibit air travel entirely or subject travelers to additional scrutiny. People have occasionally challenged their inclusion on such lists, but courts have been broadly deferential to government claims of national security.
Likewise, multiple programs can speed travelers through passport control or security screenings, such as Global Entry or TSA PreCheck. Could a president order political opponents to be stripped of their status? It's never been tested.
State Department-issued documents are required for international travel and can be canceled under certain circumstances. A president arbitrarily canceling the passport of a critic or political opponent would undoubtedly spark a massive legal battle, but that battle would take time to resolve and create a major inconvenience.
More than 4 million Americans hold security clearances and need those clearances to do their jobs. In many instances, they hold those clearances at the pleasure of the executive branch. Trump has already canceled clearances for numerous former officials.
Current and former security clearance holders are required to submit written works to the government for review before publication to ensure that they don't accidentally disclose classified information. It's common for former government officials to write memoirs about their time in office, and a president bent on retribution could mire books in years of delay and dispute over what is and isn't classified.
When former national security adviser John Bolton tried to publish a memoir in 2020, the career official who reviewed his manuscript said she was improperly pressured by Trump political appointees to say it contained sensitive material.
Federal permits are required for businesses across the U.S. economy. Imports, exports, commercial fishing, mining, drilling, manufacture and distribution of alcoholic beverages, operation of planes and trucks, and broadcast licenses for media outlets, to name a few, require some sort of federal permit. Critics worry a president could use that process to reward supporters and punish enemies.
Independent regulatory agencies conduct civil and criminal investigations into securities and financial fraud, consumer protection issues and election law violations, among other things. Russell Vought, Trump's nominee to be head of the Office of Management and Budget, has indicated that the administration would like to take more control over those agencies. “The whole notion of independent agencies is anathema," he said on Fox Business.
While it’s a crime for political officials, including the president, to weaponize the Internal Revenue Service, as Richard Nixon suggested to aides in the 1970s, the Supreme Court ruled last year that presidents are entitled to a broad degree of immunity for official actions. The scope of that immunity has yet to be litigated, especially as it applies to agencies like the IRS.
The federal government is the largest buyer of goods and services in the world. While federal procurement by law is supposed to be decided on merit and value for taxpayers, the Supreme Court’s ruling on immunity raises new questions about to what extent a president can direct the contracting process. Amazon alleged in 2019 that Trump tried to steer a Pentagon contract to a competitor. Trump has long griped about coverage in the Washington Post, which is owed by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos.
Russell Vought, President Donald Trump's choice for Director of the Office of Management and Budget, appears before the Senate Budget Committee during a hearing to examine his nomination, on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
President Donald Trump speaks in the Roosevelt Room of the White House, Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
