Source: The Dispatch
by Jonah Goldberg
“[Julius Caesar] wasn’t the first Roman dictator, just the most infamous one. In the Roman Republic, the title and authority of ‘dictator’ was occasionally granted by the Senate to an individual to deal with a big problem or emergency. Usually, the term would last no more than six months — shorter if the crisis was dealt with — because the Romans detested anything that smacked of monarchy. When Caesar crossed the Rubicon (where we get that phrase) his enemies in the Senate fled. So, the remaining senators named him dictator for 11 days to hold fresh elections. His second dictatorship was set for 10 years, and then finally he was named dictator for life. … Trump is not a dictator, but as Benjamin Franklin understood, republics fail not so much because would-be Caesars seize power. They fail because cowards give it to them — under the false pretense of an emergency.” (10/29/25)
https://thedispatch.com/article/trump-emergency-powers-dictator-caesar/