Barack Obama warns that US is ‘dangerously close' to becoming an autocracy
Barack Obama issued a stark warning that the United States is "dangerously close" to losing its democracy.
Speaking at the Connecticut Forum, Obama appeared to criticize the administration of President Donald Trump.
He stated that current events are "consistent with autocracies," citing Victor Orban 's Hungary as an example.
Obama cautioned that America is nearing the normalization of behavior seen in non-democratic systems.
Watch the video in full above.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
27 minutes ago
- The Independent
Deputy FM accuses Leo Varadkar of reinventing himself after Irish unity comments
Northern Ireland's deputy First Minister has accused former taoiseach Leo Varadkar of 'reinventing himself' over comments he made about Irish unity. Emma Little-Pengelly took a swipe at the former Fine Gael leader after he said that Irish unity would become 'centre stage' if Reform leader Nigel Farage was elected UK prime minister. Mr Varadkar said if Mr Farage became prime minister, it would 'change the pictures in terms of attitudes towards independence in Scotland', and change the views of some people in the middle ground in Northern Ireland. Mr Varadkar said he believes planning for a united Ireland should be happening, but that a date should not be fixed as the numbers to win a vote are not in place. He added: 'I don't think a united Ireland is inevitable, I think it's something that we have to work towards. 'But I think there are a lot of factors that would suggest that we're on that trajectory. 'Demographic factors, polling, even the most recent numbers showing that a very clear majority of younger people in Northern Ireland want there to be a new united Ireland.' However, speaking in Armagh at the North South Ministerial Council (NSMC) on Friday, Ms Little-Pengelly said that Mr Varadkar is 'entitled to reinvent himself in whatever way that he so chooses'. 'But he is wrong in terms of the trajectory, I think, when you look at people in Northern Ireland voting for nationalist parties, that hasn't moved since 1998, still in and around the 40%, that hasn't increased,' she said. 'And while there's more complexity in terms of the voting beyond that, everyone else is either voting for a proactively Unionist party or parties who explicitly say that they do not want to be focused or agitate for constitutional change. 'There hasn't been any significant shift in that. There's nothing, in my view, to say that the trajectory is such that this inevitability. I don't accept that it is an inevitability, but for my part, I do believe that the focus should be on around uniting the people of Northern Ireland together. 'That very much a focus on reconciliation, but a focus on actually serving their needs. 'While others are preoccupied by these big constitutional debates, for me, it should be about getting on and actually delivering the education system our people want. 'The tackling those big health waiting lists, tackling those big issues that face us here in Northern Ireland, because that's what's impacting on people's lives, day in and day out.' Taosieach Micheal Martin said his focus is on the 'reconciliation' between all traditions on the island, as well as the United Kingdom and Ireland's relationship. 'I'm very much focused on the hard ground, building relationships. I think what we're doing today is part of that agenda,' he said. 'I'm not going to anticipate what's going to happen in the British election in two or three years time. 'I've often said to Leo, don't always be obsessed with the opinion polls, because they give a different result. 'My own experience bears that out. Point is, I don't know what is going to happen in the British election.' He added: 'Our agenda has to be to try and use the this moment to advance issues of common interest and to get things done. 'We have witnessed a significant change in the relationship between the United Kingdom government and the Irish Government on a number of fronts.' Tanaiste Simon Harris said that every taoiseach aspires to see 'our country united'. He added: 'But we do have a huge amount of work to do, and I share the Taoiseach's view in relation to that body of work. 'At the moment, I think relations between the British and Irish governments are at the best they have been in a very long time. 'We have good and honourable interlocutors in London working with, I hope, what they find to be good and honourable interlocutors in Dublin and in Belfast. 'So whilst I certainly don't think Leo's comments are wrong, I think that's where the focus of the Irish Government is at in the here and now.' Northern Ireland First Minister Michelle O'Neill said the 'prudent' thing to do is to plan for what is 'potentially' happening in years to come. She said it is possible to 'chew gum and walk at the same time'. 'I think we can have good relationships, build good relationships. That's always going to be a good thing,' the Sinn Fein MLA said. 'I think we can cooperate on our own mutual interest that we're talking about today here at the North South Ministerial Council. 'Equally, I think we have to plan for constitutional change and set out the argument so people can make mature, rational decisions about what world they see themselves. 'We all have a stake in the future, so let's now plan for it.'
Reuters
28 minutes ago
- Reuters
Trump presided over national security meeting on Iran, US official says
WASHINGTON, June 20 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump presided over a national security meeting about Iran with top aides at the White House on Friday, a U.S. official said. The official also said U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff is in regular contact with the Iranians, both directly and indirectly, with Qatar acting as an intermediator.
Reuters
38 minutes ago
- Reuters
US Supreme Court declines to speed up decision on taking up fight over Trump tariffs
WASHINGTON, June 20 (Reuters) - The U.S. Supreme Court declined on Friday to speed up its consideration of whether to take up a challenge to President Donald Trump's sweeping tariffs even before lower courts have ruled in the dispute. The Supreme Court denied a request by a family-owned toy company, Learning Resources, that filed the legal challenge against Trump's tariffs to expedite the review of the dispute by the nation's top judicial body. The company, which makes educational toys, won a court ruling on May 29 that Trump cannot unilaterally impose tariffs using the emergency legal authority he had cited for them. That ruling is currently on hold, leaving the tariffs in place for now. Learning Resources asked the Supreme Court to take the rare step of immediately hearing the case to decide the legality of the tariffs, effectively leapfrogging the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit in Washington, where the case is pending. Two district courts have ruled that Trump's tariffs are not justified under the law he cited for them, the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. Both of those cases are on appeal. No court has yet backed the sweeping emergency tariff authority Trump has claimed.
