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Amanpour & Co.

What Makes People Want Autocracy?

What separates President Trump’s behavior from that of the average autocrat? Masha Gessen is a Russian-American journalist who has been writing about authoritarianism for decades. Their latest book, "Surviving Autocracy," makes the case that Trump’s presidency has endangered American democracy and the world’s faith in it. Gessen speaks with Michel Martin about all this--and about the road ahead.

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December 17, 2025
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David A. Graham; Brian Winter; Larry Madowo; Steve Huffman
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Yaroslav Trofimov; Andrey Kurkov; Steve Hartman; Bryan Muehlberger, Mahnaz Afkhami
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