**Submission Statement:** Authoritarian leaders become increasingly cut off from accurate information as they consolidate power. When leaders punish dissent and surround themselves with people who tell them only what they want to hear (whether out of sycophantic loyalty or self-interest), they end up not just deceiving the public, but themselves. The concern for the U.S. is that weakening independent agencies, civil servants, media, and other sources of uncomfortable information makes it easier for a president to confuse loyalty with competence and political messaging with reality.
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**Submission Statement:** Authoritarian leaders become increasingly cut off from accurate information as they consolidate power. When leaders punish dissent and surround themselves with people who tell them only what they want to hear (whether out of sycophantic loyalty or self-interest), they end up not just deceiving the public, but themselves. The concern for the U.S. is that weakening independent agencies, civil servants, media, and other sources of uncomfortable information makes it easier for a president to confuse loyalty with competence and political messaging with reality.