New Issue One report chronicles pattern of executive overreach and corruption during Trump’s first 100 days

Issue One has chronicled a pattern of executive overreach and corruption in a new report called “Unchecked Exec,” published today on the 100th day of President Donald Trump’s second term in the White House.

The Trump administration’s concerning actions during this period reflect not only an erosion of democratic norms, but also a deeper structural concern: The use of executive authority as a political instrument; encroaching into powers given in the Constitution to Congress — not the president; and challenging constitutional principles that have long guided American governance and have been adhered to in the past by both Republicans and Democrats

“The Founders were deeply concerned about concentrating too much power in the presidency,” said Issue One CEO Nick Penniman. “The Founders fought a revolution to get rid of concentrated executive authority, and they placed ‘We, the People’ — and Congress — at the center of the Constitution. A hundred days into this administration, it’s clear the White House is intent on pushing the limits of its power to the point where it risks violating the Constitution and eroding the freedoms of every American. This is a time for total vigilance, before the America we were living in 101 days ago begins to disappear.”

The new report, which is based on an Issue One review of public records, news articles, and investigative journalism, features examples in 10 concerning areas where we have seen the Trump administration attempt to:

• Steal the power of the purse from Congress;
• Use federal funding as a tool of ideological control;
• Use emergency declarations as power grabs;
• Dismantle independent watchdogs;
• Monetize the presidency;
• Give government contracts to cronies;
• Defy court orders in immigration cases;
• Undermine sentencing and legal accountability;
• Halt prosecutions of political donors; and
• Target legal professionals with state power.

Issue One’s report also reveals a previously unreported connection about Gary Lawkowski, one of the people advising Trump on whom to pardon — that he is one of the few people in the country who knows which donors gave money to Trump’s transition effort, which has not publicly disclosed its donors, because he serves as the secretary of the nonprofit behind Trump’s transition.

“Loyalty to the Constitution must come before loyalty to any president,” said former Rep. Reid Ribble (R-WI), a member of Issue One’s National Council on Election Integrity and ReFormers Caucus. “If Congress surrenders its authorities to an executive branch that is attempting to consolidate power and upend our constitutional order, we will cease to be a government of laws. Now is the time for every elected leader to choose principle over partisanship.”

Added retired Adm. Bill Owens, a member of the National Council on Election Integrity and former vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff: “Our strength on the world stage has always come from our values at home. Unchecked power isn’t just a threat to our constitutional order, it threatens our entire national security, invites abuse, undermines our global credibility, and weakens the very foundations that make America strong. It’s vital that our elected leaders, particularly those elected by the people to serve in Congress, vigorously defend American values and reinforce our system of checks and balances.”

As the report observes, while the executive branch has significant power, it is not above the law. The Constitution provides mechanisms and responsibilities to Congress, the courts, and the public to check executive overreach. We cannot let mechanisms meant to prevent corruption and ensure accountability be dismantled or ignored.

“Congress has a critical duty to restore balance,” said former Rep. Claudine Schneider (R-RI), another member of Issue One’s ReFormers Caucus. “If we shrink from that responsibility, the freedom of every citizen is threatened. This is not about the left or right, Democrat or Republican; it’s about the preservation of our republic.”

Read the full report.