As the power of the Presidency expands, is there a real risk that America will be ruled by an authoritarian regime? One way of attempting to answer that question is by looking at examples of countries that have transitioned from democracies to authoritarian rule, without military coups or violent revolutions, to see if similar processes are occurring in our government today. We will start with examples of direct transitions to authoritarian regimes, notably Germany in the 1930s, and then consider recent transitions to quasi-authoritarian governments in today’s “illiberal democracies,” such as Hungary and Russia. We’ll conclude by discussing whether any of these processes are underway in America today, and, if they are, whether the safeguards in our Constitution are sufficient to preserve our democracy.