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The internal and external strategies – from the effort to overturn the election in the past to current actions and statements – erode not only national and global jurisprudence. However, the issue goes deeper.

They threaten the fundamental meaning of a civilized world.

A guiding principle of civilized society is to prevent the dominant from attacking and exploiting the weaker. Otherwise, we would be trapped in a conflict of all against all where might makes right prevails.

This principle is embedded of the nation's founding texts. It’s also the heart of the global system established after WWII supported by the United States, built on collective action, popular sovereignty, fundamental freedoms, and the rule of law.

However, it is a vulnerable construct, frequently ignored by those who seek to abuse their authority. Preserving it requires that the those in charge have a sense of duty to abstain from seeking short-term wins, and that society demand responsibility should they falter.

Absolute power is not right. It results in turmoil, disruption, and conflict.

Each instance people or corporations or countries that are advantaged attack and exploit those that are not, the fabric of society unravels. If these actions are not contained, the structure collapses. If not stopped, the world can descend into disorder and conflict. History provides ample precedent.

We now inhabit a international landscape with deepening divides. Political and economic power are increasingly centralized than in recent memory. This invites the privileged to take advantage of the less fortunate because they feel above the law.

The resources of a handful of tycoons is almost beyond comprehension. The power of major corporations in technology, energy, and aerospace extends over numerous countries. AI is could centralize wealth and power even more. The offensive capability of the world's largest nations is without parallel in the annals of time.

Empowered by political allies and a sympathetic high court, the presidency has been turned into the most dominant and unchecked agent of state power in the modern era.

Combine these factors and you grasp the danger.

A clear connection connects previous transgressions to ongoing menaces. Both were based on the overconfidence of absolute power.

There is parallel dynamics in international affairs: in military conflicts, in coercive diplomacy, and in the rampant monopolization by industrial titans.

Yet, strength without restraint does not create right. It fosters fragility, upended order, and armed conflict.

Historical evidence demonstrates that laws and norms to limit the influential also shield them. Absent these limits, their endless appetite for more power and wealth eventually bring them down – and with them their enterprises, countries, or domains. And pave the way for global conflict.

This kind of disregard for rules will haunt America and the global community – and indeed a rules-based order – for a long time.