DURHAM, N.H. — Former President Donald Trump drew a torrent of criticism when he told Fox News’ Sean Hannity earlier this month he wouldn’t be a dictator, “except on day one,” of a second administration.
But many attendees at Trump’s campaign rally Saturday at the University of New Hampshire said the comment was a joke meant to provoke his rivals. The voters said they’re not concerned Trump would truly lead as a dictator.
“He’s like a guy with a laser pointer, and the left is a cat,” said John LaClair, who drove from Barrington to attend the rally with his brother.
Rather, more than a dozen people who spoke with USA TODAY outside the rally said they believe the presidency would give Trump enough power to legally accomplish what is most important to them. That ranges from strengthening the economy to stopping migration at the southern border and preventing U.S. participation in foreign conflicts.
Shelly Temple, who volunteered for Trump’s campaign in New Hampshire in 2016 and attended the rally Saturday, said the nation’s energy production and border security are among her priorities ahead of 2024. But Trump would have plenty of authority under America’s current system to address those issues, she said.
“I don’t see that as dictator, I see that as being a leader and to protect his country… I like a president that respects the Constitution,” she said. “Let the government work the way it’s supposed to. Let there be checks and balances.”
The interpretation of Trump’s comments among supporters at his Saturday rally diverges from rising alarm among authoritarianism experts. Some have issued warnings about America’s institutions.
“Two things about Trump. One, he often says what he means and he often says it in the form of a joke,” said Mabel Berezin, a sociology professor at Cornell University who studies nationalist and populist political movements. “The second part of it is, I don’t think we should discount him.”
Trump’s allies are planning ways to bypass some of those checks and balances, Berezin said, even if consolidation of power couldn’t happen overnight. Trump on the campaign trail has proposed a series of measures that would grant the president additional powers.
“I think it’s one of those classic Trump things which have two meanings: It has a grain of truth in it, and it’s also a joke,” she said. “Trump’s most outrageous statements are worth paying attention to.”
