Overview

• In a rare public address in Hartford, Obama warned the U.S. was “dangerously close” to normalizing conduct typical of autocracies, including undermining the rule of law and an independent judiciary.
• He urged professionals at law firms, universities and businesses to speak out against the Trump administration’s demands and resist government overreach.
• Obama highlighted recent actions against Democrats, from detentions and threats to a state lawmaker’s assassination, as evidence of rising pressures on his party.
• He underscored the spread of misinformation as a tactic to erode public trust, calling on officials inside and outside government to uphold factual standards.
• Maintaining distance from daily partisan battles, he emphasized focusing criticism where it can have the most impact and praised emerging Democratic leaders for steering the party forward.