Overview

• Obama warned that U.S. officials risk normalizing behavior “consistent with autocracies” and cautioned that the country is “dangerously close” to slipping into autocracy.
• He criticized what he described as the Trump administration’s weak commitment to democratic principles, citing threats to judicial independence and challenges to the rule of law.
• He decried the spread of misinformation, pointing to election denials as a tactic that undermines public trust in facts.
• He urged law firms, universities and Justice Department figures to take a stand in defense of democratic institutions, even at the expense of financial or professional repercussions.
• He ended with a note of optimism, urging young people to channel their impatience with injustice into building common ground.