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It's the Brian Laira Show on WNYC. Good Friday morning, everyone.

So there are at least two different ways we plan to have conversations on this show about the incoming Trump administration.

One is to have straight up policy debates and policy analysis of policies that they implement or policies that they propose. We'll get

multiple points of view. We'll kick them around. The other is kind of a fascism watch. You all know

by now that there's so much concern from Trump's former top national security officials and

others that he wants to actually change the nature of governance in the

United States from the democracy that it is, imperfect as it is, to more of a strong man

authoritarian model of government, right, with fewer checks and balances. You know about Trump's

previous Homeland Security Secretary and Defense Secretary and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman,

all using that word fascist to describe Trump or his aspirations. So in addition to regular

policy debates, we will have a stream of segments here that will be a fascism watch.

Maybe it's all just rhetoric and all just talk and there'll be nothing to see here.

I hope that's the case. And if it is, that's what our guests and I will say. But if it's more scary

than that, if Trump and his appointees actually try to break our democracy, we'll be obligated

to call it out and call it by its name, and we will.

So come here for straight up policy debates and policy analysis, pros and cons, and come here

for a fascism watch as needed.

And on the latter, here we are just 10 days after the election, and there are already two topics in play in the fascism watch file, at least two, two that I see.

One is that Trump is asking the Senate to voluntarily give up its role in the Constitution of holding confirmation hearings on the members of Trump's cabinet and voting to confirm or reject.

Have you heard that? Trump has asked the new Republican Senate majority to let him make so-called

recess appointments when the Senate is out of town for a few days, meaning no confirmation

...