How tyrants take control of democracies

Robert Reich via Newsweek (along with some of my comments in Italics)

As tyrants take control of democracies, they typically

1. Exaggerate their mandate to govern—claiming, for example, that they won an election by a  landslide even after losing the popular vote.
2. Repeatedly claim  massive voter fraud in the absence of any evidence, in order to restrict voting in subsequent elections. (or cry interference from a foreign nation)
3. Call anyone who opposes them “enemies.” (or deplorables, but see further commentary below)
4. Turn the public against journalists or media outlets that criticize them, calling them "deceitful” and “scum.” (Or co-opt the media to being your sycophants. If they don't go along, shut out media personalities or outlets that provide any sort of critical view. Just see how Sheryl Attkisson was forced out. )
5. Hold  few if any press conferences, preferring to communicate with the public directly through mass rallies and  unfiltered statements. (Like Hillary not having a press conference for over 300 days. Avoid any hard interviews too. Just go on urban radio stations or the View. I’m not sure who did that. )
6. Tell the public  big lies, causing them to doubt the truth and to believe fictions that support the tyrants’ goals. (Similar to “I will put bills online for 3 days before signing them” or “if you like your doctor you can keep it”.)
7. Blame economic stresses on  immigrants or racial or religious minorities, and foment public bias and even  violence against them.
8. Attribute acts of domestic violence to “enemies within,” and use such events as excuses to beef up internal security and  limit civil liberties.
9. Threaten  mass deportations,  registries of religious minorities and the banning of refugees. (Name a tyrant that had mass deportations? It is conform or be imprisoned. Plenty of non-tyrants have greatly restricted immigration of any type.)
10. Seek to eliminate or reduce the influence of competing centers of power, such as labor  unions and opposition parties.
11. Appoint  family members to high positions of authority. (It's cronies, not just family members. Unqualified people, who’s top quality is loyalty. However, Hitler kept top people in their business roles. In a July 6, 1933 speech to the Nazi State governors, he notes "We must therefore not dismiss a businessman if he is  good businessman, even if he is not yet a National Socialist, and especially not if the National Socialist who is to take his place knows nothing about business. In business, ability will be the only standard)
12. Surround themselves with their  own personal security forces rather than security details accountable to the public.
13. Put  generals into top civilian posts. (It’s not generals, it’s cronies. Plenty of former generals have served with distinction in civilian roles, including George Marshall and Colin Powell. )
14. Make  personal alliances with foreign dictators.(Kim Jong Il has no foreign personal alliances)
15. Draw no distinction between personal property and public property,  profiteering from their public office. (like how the Clintons went from being “dead broke” in 2001 to being worth $110 Million today on the salaries of two government employees.)

Consider yourself warned.

Reich tries to create a list which fits Trump, but some of his statements are really secondary items. When tyrants take control of democracies, they ACTUALLY do the following:

1. Increase executive power, by using executive actions to circumvent the legislature. Exaggerating a mandate can be just bravado ; it’s trying to expand dictatorial (executive) power that is the problem. This also can include ramrodding legislation through the legislature through means outside the traditional process , and not letting the people find out what is in bills before being passed. “We have to pass the bill to find out what’s in it.” – Nancy Pelosi
2. Appoint “czars” to lead certain key functions, to circumvent a traditional confirmation process of the legislature.
3. Use the IRS or other government agencies to intimidate the opposition. I’m not sure any form of “punishing the opposition” escape Herr Reich’s list. Calling them “enemies” is not the same as actual persecution and/or retribution. If there is a criticism, retire a low level bureaucrat with full pension. Definitely do NOT appoint a special prosecutor for such a case. Use your Attorney General to cover everything up.
4. Disrupt the function of the opposition parties and rallies, such as paying people like Robert Creamer to plant people to start fights at your opposition’s political rallies. (Robert Creamer visited the White House 342 times, including 47 meetings with the President).
5. Use foment civil unrest by dividing people against each other. Rahm Emanuel said “Never let a serious crisis go to waste.” Sometimes tyrants have to invent that crisis.
6. Sack career non-partisan civil servants and replace them with crony bureaucrats (Travelgate, among others)