Human Rights Watch: U.S. democracy in ‘dangerous slide’ under Trump’s second term

In a stark and comprehensive indictment, Human Rights Watch declared that the United States is in a “dangerous slide toward authoritarianism,” fueled by widespread human rights violations and a systematic dismantling of democratic accountability during the second term of President Donald Trump.

The assessment, detailed in the organization’s 529-page World Report 2026, portrays an administration it says has moved beyond rolling back protections to actively attacking the foundational institutions of American democracy.

“The Trump administration is not only rolling back hard-fought protections of recent decades; it is actively dismantling foundational pillars of U.S. democracy,” said Tanya Greene, U.S. program director at Human Rights Watch.

The report identifies a pivotal shift in the rule of law, citing the 2024 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that established a president’s broad immunity from criminal prosecution for official acts. This decision, the report argues, has created a perceived shield for executive actions.

“This President believes he is above the law and, unfortunately, he is not alone,” said progressive leader Lisa McCormick, who called out the Democratic Party establishment for its weak and ineffectual effort to stop Trump’s excesses.

Human Rights Watch contends that this legal landscape has enabled a year of “relentless, direct attacks” in which “corruption [has] run rampant.”

The report catalogues actions across multiple sectors of governance and civil society:

Judicial and Legal Independence: The administration is accused of replacing career officials with political loyalists and using the Department of Justice to investigate political opponents, challenging the judiciary’s independence.

Press Freedoms Under Fire: The administration has engaged in a “relentless campaign” against the media, the report states. This includes President Trump personally filing multi-billion dollar defamation lawsuits against major outlets like The Wall Street Journal, CBS News, and ABC News. Simultaneously, the Federal Communications Commission, led by a Trump appointee, has opened investigations into networks like CBS, which critics call a weaponization of regulatory power to chill critical reporting.

Immigration Enforcement and “Disappearance”: Human Rights Watch describes a “brutal and wide-ranging campaign” of immigration raids that have “terrorized immigrant communities.”

In one of the most severe allegations, the report claims the administration summarily removed Venezuelan nationals to a notorious prison in El Salvador, where they were “arbitrarily detained and tortured”—a practice it characterizes as enforced disappearance.

Rollback of Civil Rights and Health Access: The administration is cited for dismantling anti-discrimination protections, threatening civil society groups, and undermining the right to health through steep funding cuts to insurance subsidies and reproductive healthcare providers like Planned Parenthood.

The contempt for accountability is mirrored in foreign policy, according to the report. “The same contempt for the rule of law fueling attacks on rights at home is driving extrajudicial killings at sea,” said Sarah Yager, Washington director at Human Rights Watch.

The administration is accused of carrying out unlawful lethal strikes, terminating critical foreign aid, withdrawing from major multilateral forums, and sanctioning international accountability officials.

In his introductory essay, Human Rights Watch Executive Director Philippe Bolopion frames the U.S. situation as part of a global “authoritarian wave,” writing that breaking this trend is “the challenge of a generation.”

The report concludes that impunity for these actions, both at home and abroad, will only hasten the nation’s democratic decline.