Political Science Professionals Express Concern About Threats to American Government

Number of signers nears 1000

Today, I saw a statement of concern from nearly 1000 political science professionals and professors regarding threats from the Trump administration to American government and democracy. I am reproducing the statement below. If you want to see the signers, go to this copy of the statement.

Political scientists’ statement, February 2025

We, the undersigned, are political scientists, professionals with expertise in the study of government and politics. We write to express our urgent concern about threats to the basic design of American government and democracy.

In its early days, the second administration of Donald J. Trump has disregarded existing laws and regulations. It threatens to undermine the division of powers and checks and balances, hallmarks of America’s constitutional order. These actions include:

● Attempting to shift the power of the purse, which the Constitution grants to Congress, to the executive branch. The administration has claimed that it has a right to do so because the targets of cuts are underperforming, spending taxpayers’ dollars unwisely, or are pursuing objectives at odds with the administration’s policy goals. But instead of seeking to convince Congress to change funding levels, the Administration has simply acted unilaterally to cancel spending it opposes, in violation of the Constitution and existing law.

● Firing more than a dozen prosecutors of the Department of Justice, as well as members of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, because they worked on prosecutions of President Trump. These actions politicize federal law enforcement.

● Firing 17 Inspectors General, independent watchdogs who are tasked with identifying instances of waste, fraud, and mismanagement in the executive branch. These actions undermine accountability in the executive branch and defy civil-service protection laws.

● Shuttering a major independent federal agency, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), again citing policy divergence and ignoring Congress’s power of the purse and due-process rights of civil servants. The Administration has threatened similar actions against the Department of Education and other entities.

● Dismissing leaders of independent agencies, such as the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the National Labor Relations Board before their terms were completed. The courts have repeatedly found that presidents lack the legal authority to dismiss appointees to these agencies.

● Seeking to transfer control of federal personnel and payment systems to persons who are not officers of the United States government, are operating in secrecy, have sworn no oath to uphold the Constitution, and are not subject to federal privacy laws.

President Trump won the November 2024 election fairly. We expect him to use the authority and mandate from his victory to pursue policy goals, including governmental reform. But his victory does not grant him the right to overturn our constitutional and legal order by fiat.

History tells us that actions like these by elected leaders can undermine democracies and destroy the rule of law. We urge the Administration to reverse course immediately.

The signatories are expressing their own opinions as individuals. Institutional affiliations are listed for identification purposes only.

I hope many more sign it and other groups organize similar statements. When government breaks down, American values and norms depend on other institutions rising up and advocating for them.

This is coming from the American Political Science Association and if you have a doctorate in political science, you are invited to add your name here.