He would be constrained, Donald Trump said, only by his “own morality” (see NYT, 10 January 2026). If taking this statement seriously, then this is the hallmark of tyranny and of a tyrant. At the moment, many terms and concepts are used in scholarly and journalistic observations to characterise Trump, his politics, and the people around him – many of whom are firmer and smarter ideologues than him – such as fascism (recently in The Atlantic by Jonathan Rauch; January 25, 2026), totalitarianism, or authoritarianism (see recently in the NYT by David Brooks, January 23, 2026). While all of them capture some important aspects, I want to suggest another concept because something seems to be missing in their characterisations: the aspect of the arbitrariness of politics and the self-obsessed corruption in his style of government and how he selects his inner circle. This suggests the concept of tyranny and Trump as the person of the tyrant.

For instance, the murder of two white, middle class US citizens, shot by a federal law enforcement agency (Immigration and Customs Enforcement, ICE) and the further deaths of an estimated 32 people in custody since 2025 (The Guardian, 28 January 2026) are not only crimes committed by government agents – but also makes no sense in ideological terms. To portray them, from the current administration’s perspective, as “collateral damage” (so the interpretation, not justification, of the US administration’s view in ABC News, 26 January 2026), would not only be dehumanising, but underplays the mere arbitrariness of politics, evidenced by endless shifts and irrational volte faces of Trump and his administration that do not seem to follow any form of rationality – independent where one stands ideologically.

These deaths are “just” one example; the permanent turn-arounds in trade tariffs, the emotional explosions on social media, or the sheer imperceptible granting and taking of loyalty other examples. The rivalry between the US and the USSR during the Cold War, for instance, followed a tangible rationality as brutal as it was. Just look at the many photographs of Richard Nixon and Leonid Brezhnev. While being fierce enemies and masters of the Cold War and its proxy wars, the photos reveal the shared rationality of some comradery and........

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