I went to see the movie “Vice” last night. I found it a fascinating and scary depiction of the self-serving, dare I say it, evil of former Vice-President Cheney, his wife and all those he associated with that is so very responsible for so many of the problems we face in the world today. I highly recommend that anyone who cares about the direction this country is headed and what has happened in the last 20 years go see the movie. While viewing the movie, I was struck by one scene in the film that shows very briefly the words etched on the Federal Judicial building in Washington, D.C., “Where law ends, tyranny begins.”

The statement comes from philosopher John Locke’s Second Treatise on Civil Government in which he says, “Wherever law ends, tyranny begins.” Perhaps it had to be truncated to fit appropriately on the wall of the building. In any event, the moment I read that statement I was struck by the juxtaposition of it, the subject of the movie and recent current events, notably President Trump’s announcement that he was declaring a national emergency at the border.

If Cheney’s actions during the second Bush administration did not push this country to a state of tyranny, certainly what Trump is trying to do will be the proverbial nail in the coffin of American democracy. What Cheney started–actually Nixon did, but that’s another story–Trump will complete and we and the world will all be worse off for it.

Cheney believed in what was and is called the Unitary Executive Theory, which posits that only the constitution and the judiciary in their interpretation of the constitution can limit the President in the exercise of his authority, such that any act of the President is legal in his role as executive and Congress can do nothing short of impeachment, which is granted in the constitution, restricting the exercise of the President’s authority as executive.

Using this theory as justification Cheney, and Bush as mouthpiece, set out to change the relationship of the American people to their government by means of systematic spying on every person in the country, the exercise of torture on anyone deemed by them a threat, forcibly taking people and incarcerating them without due process, conducting undeclared wars based on lies that under this theory somehow made them legal lies and justified.

At the end of the film Cheney is shown being interviewed—whether this actually happened is unclear–and he claims he did it all in the name of the safety of the American people. The question is safe from whom and from what?

Now, along comes Trump, who heretofore has shown only contempt for the rule of law, Congress, the Courts, and belief that he and he alone is the government and he can do anything he wants, and no one, not Congress and not the Courts can stop him.

Where Cheney stopped, Trump (Tyranny) begins. At least Cheney and Bush bothered to obtain Congressional approval for their actions. Of course, they lied to convince Congress to follow them, but under the Unitary Executive Theory such lies are legal and justified.

Trump now is not even bothering to consult Congress. He has decided that if Congress won’t give him what he wants, he’ll do it anyway in contravention of the direct will of Congress and those who they represent, the People. In effect, he is shredding the constitution and embodying by his declaration of national emergency the very thing the founding fathers of the country and the constitution meant to prevent—an omnipotent dictator.

By this action the issue no longer is should a wall, which Trump wants and uses to justify his declaration of national emergency, be built on the country’s border with Mexico as the best means to control border crossings. By his action Trump has plunged the country beyond the debate as to the efficacy of a wall to the brink of dictatorship. Should Congress and the Courts fail to stop him, this one act will forever be precedent to any President acting unilaterally against the will of Congress if Congress fails to give its assent to his or her desires.

In effect, the Congressional authority granted by the constitution to determine budgetary priorities and allocation of funds for the same will have been usurped by the President, and the role of Congress will have become irrelevant. At that point, democracy as we know it in the United States will cease to exist.

This is what is at stake by Trump’s declaration of national emergency and his intent to reallocate funds previously slated by Congress for specific purposes unrelated to his wall to be applied to build his wall.

So far, Republicans by and large during the Trump administration have followed his lead; on this issue, if they believe in the American system of government, in the constitution, they should fall out of line. For the precedent Trump’s action will set will most assuredly come back to bite the Republicans and their fealty to this most very flawed man who occupies the Presidency.

Imagine for a moment that Trump is successful in fulfilling his bogus declaration of national emergency, a complete act of political expediency, what will happen when a Democrat becomes President, for it most assuredly will happen? What national emergency will that President declare? Perhaps that there are too many guns in the country and all guns should be seized. Or perhaps something having to do with climate change and requiring that all power be generated by renewable resources or that all cars be electric, etc.? Or perhaps that anyone who is registered as a Republican cannot vote or only ballots with Democratic candidates will be allowed. Let your mind run. The possibilities are endless.

The founders of this country put the power of making the laws, of setting budgetary priorities and allocating the money for them in the hands of Congress, the representatives of the People, not the President for a very solid reason: they had just finished fighting for independence from the very system of government where a king could do anything he wanted regardless of the will of the People.

Under the constitution, the role of the President is to carry out the laws enacted by Congress, by the People. It is not to make the laws. That is Congress’s role and duty. Yes, the President is Commander in Chief of the armed forces because the founders recognized that armies cannot be led by committee. There must be one leader, but that leader must act within the laws created by Congress. He or she cannot take the law into his or her own hands. A President is not above the laws of Congress, and it is Congress’s duty to ensure that the President acts according to the laws that it enacts.

Now, national emergencies have been called before. Trump’s declaration is in this sense no different, except none were declared in contravention of the will of Congress. This is where Trump’s differs and why it is so dangerous. It in effect makes him dictator.

Cheney may have wanted to be dictator, using Bush as his puppet, but he was smart enough to manipulate Congress to go along, to at least give the pretense of legality and constitutionality to his actions.

Trump’s declaration makes no pretense of acting with the will of Congress. It is a bald-faced grab for power, and it must be fought and defeated if American democracy is to survive.