King Trump

[Horace]

After all these years, this is the first conversation I’ve ever heard about the nuts and bolts of Trump plausibly deciding not to leave office. The discussion starts with commentary about Rachel Maddow doing some fear mongering about King Trump, if he wins in 2024. But the hosts make this first attempt I’ve ever heard, to investigate the plausibility. Apparently the clearest path was for Pence to refuse to certify, then scotus to grant Trump the presidency when Biden complained. SCOTUS would have done this for reasons, with some non zero chance.

I continue to be amused at the total lack of discussion around plugging the loopholes in our Democracy that are apparently waiting there for any given president to use to unilaterally decide he wants to be dictator for life.

Link to video

[Axtremus]

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/10/29/world/asia/trump-south-korea-crown-gyeongju.html

President Lee Jae Myung of South Korea presented President Trump with a replica of a golden crown excavated from one of the ancient royal tombs in Gyeongju.

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/10/29/us/politics/tariff-trump-south-korea-trade.html

Mr. Lee presented him with a medal symbolizing the nation’s highest honor. Then came a replica of a golden crown that was excavated from one of the ancient royal tombs in Gyeongju, the seat of a long-gone kingdom. “I’d like to wear it right now,” Mr. Trump said.

[Mik]

Everyone who sits in the Oval Office would like to have more power. It hasn't been any other way since George Washington. Horace makes a very good point about the loopholes that exist.

[jon-nyc]

@Horace said in King Trump:

I continue to be amused at my complete ignorance about the total lack of discussion around plugging the loopholes in our Democracy that are apparently waiting there for any given president to use to unilaterally decide he wants to be dictator for life.

Google is your friend. Start with the Electoral Count Reform and Presidential Transition Improvement Act of 2022.

[Horace]

And ChatGPT or Claude are your friend, I am sure. Yes, the answer to my question was a prompt away. I'm happy that action has been taken.

Is there any legislation proposed to close loopholes that Trump had been pursuing in his efforts to steal the 2020 presidential election?

Yes — there are federal legislative efforts that aim to close various loopholes exposed by the attempts to overturn the Donald Trump-era 2020 election and to strengthen the integrity of the electoral process. Here are some of the major ones:

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1. Electoral Count Reform and Presidential Transition Improvement Act of 2022 (“ECRA”)

This law was passed as part of the year-end omnibus spending bill in December 2022. (Wikipedia)
What it does:

• It amends the old Electoral Count Act of 1887, clarifying the procedures for how electoral votes for President / Vice President are certified, counted by Congress, and transmitted by the states. (Protect Democracy)
• For example, it makes clear that the governor (or equivalent) of a state is responsible for submitting the certificate of ascertainment for the President of the Senate to open at the joint session. (Wikipedia)
• It also tightens the process around “alternate” or “competing” slates of electors, which was a key loophole used in 2020. (Yale Law Journal)

Why it’s important:

• The 2020 attempts to overturn the election (for example via alternate electors, pressure on state officials, etc) were helped by ambiguities in the old law. For instance, how competing sets of electors would be handled by Congress was not clearly defined. (Protect Democracy)
• This law is a direct response to that situation, aiming to reduce the potential for future manipulation of the electoral count process.

Limitations / things to watch:

• Even though the federal law is improved, much of the administration of elections still lies at the state level. Implementation and state law alignment will still matter. (Yale Law Journal)
• Some critics say it doesn’t go far enough — for example, in dealing with state-legislative interference in certifications or the role of misinformation. (Democracy Docket)

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2. For the People Act (H.R. 1 / S. 1) & related bills

This is a broader democracy reform package, introduced in the House and Senate, which has not yet become law in its full form. (Brennan Center for Justice)
What it tries to address:

• Voting access (automatic registration, same-day registration, early voting, vote by mail) (Wikipedia)
• Campaign finance reform, ethics in government, redistricting/gerrymandering. (Brennan Center for Justice)
• Safeguards against election subversion by non-state actors, and by partisan actors within states.

Relevance to 2020-style threats:

• Though the focus is broader than just “loopholes used to overturn 2020”, many of the threats raised by what happened in 2020 (mistrust of results, attempts to override voters’ will, confusion about the counting process) are targeted by this legislation.

Current status / hurdles:

• It passed the House but stalled in the Senate due to filibuster issues. (Wikipedia)
• As such, though it is proposed and widely talked about, it isn’t yet enshrined in law in full.

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3. John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act

This is another bill aimed more at restoring and strengthening voting-rights protections (especially for historically disadvantaged jurisdictions). (Wikipedia)
Connection to the question:

• While this is less directly about the “alternate electors” or “certification by state legislatures” loopholes, it’s part of the broader context of ensuring election integrity, countering subversion, and defending the ability of voters’ will to be respected rather than overridden.

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Summary

Yes — federal legislation has been proposed and some has been passed to close many of the loopholes and ambiguities revealed by the 2020 election and its aftermath. The ECRA (2022) is a concrete example of a law that specifically addressed one of the major procedural vulnerabilities. Additional bills like the For the People Act and the Lewis Act target broader structural issues in the electoral system.
However — it’s not that all possible loopholes are closed, and much of the actual election administration (and therefore potential vulnerabilities) still lies at the state level.

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If you like, I can check state-by-state legislation (e.g., Texas, Georgia, etc) that specifically targets the kind of loopholes used in 2020 (alternate electors, legislative certification overriding votes, pressure on election officials) — would that be helpful?