“CONGESTION PRICING IS DEAD. Manhattan, and all of New York, is SAVED. LONG LIVE THE KING!” posted President Donald Trump this Wednesday on Truth Social.
In the days since, the comment has garnered backlash. However, it is not the first time that Trump has positioned himself as a monarch.
When he was on the campaign trail in July, Axios cited unnamed Trump advisors who said he was planning “an unabashedly imperial presidency,” for his second term. While Trump won his first round in the White House via the Electoral College, he beat former Vice President Kamala Harris in the popular vote as well last November.
Going into the election, he received a win from the U.S. Supreme Court – which includes three Trump-appointed justices out of nine in total – when it decided that he could claim presidential immunity from criminal prosecution for some actions taken during his first term. In a dissenting opinion, Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor said the ruling rendered the president “a king above the law.”
In August, Democratic lawmakers introduced the “No Kings Act” that would “reaffirm that Presidents and Vice Presidents do not have immunity for actions that violate federal criminal law and clarify that Congress, not the Supreme Court, determines to whom federal criminal laws may be applied.”
So far, the bill has not been voted on in Congress. Still, The Hill noted that protesters rallied in cities across the country for President’s Day this Monday, calling it “No Kings Day.”
Last week, Trump posted a different, more cryptic message on Truth Social: “He who saves his Country does not violate any Law,” which The New York Times reported was “apparently referencing a version of something Napoleon Bonaparte may have said.”
Of course, the very foundations of U.S. history include a rejection of monarchical rule. In a piece published this Thursday in the New Yorker, Bill McKibben wrote that Trump appeared to “overturn the most basic meme of American history,” with his kingly comments.
Even so, observers have noted that Republicans seem content with Trump’s approach, and statements that position him as a king. An X post from the White House that showed a magazine cover-style rendering of Trump wearing a crown with “LONG LIVE THE KING” on the side had 63,000 likes as of Friday afternoon.
“It’s not that Trump thinks he’s THE KING. It’s that millions of Americans want him to be the king. They have abandoned the basic precepts of democratic governance, and completely embraced the idea of a divine ruler who controls every aspect of their life,” said Mike Rothschild, author of The Storm is Upon Us about the QAnon conspiracy theory, in a Wednesday X post.
“So Trump is just flat-out calling himself a king now and Republicans are like sure this is fine…?” asked author Jill Filipovic in a Thursday X post.
Trump’s “long live the king” post on Truth Social was referencing his work to kill a $9 toll on drivers entering a part of Manhattan that was proposed by New York officials as a way to reduce traffic and air pollution.
In a Wednesday X post, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said that since the “congestion pricing” program went into effect in January, congestion did “drop dramatically,” that commuters were able to get to work faster, and that it has had a positive impact on Broadway, yellow cab trips and more. Critics of the program argued that it put too much financial stress on commuters and Trump vowed during the election to halt it, per The New York Times.
When U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced Wednesday that the program had been terminated, he said it was “a slap in the face to working class Americans and small business owners.”
It looks like this won’t be the end of the discussion on congestion pricing, though.
“Donald Trump isn’t a ‘king’ and we won’t let him use New Yorkers as roadkill on his revenge tour. We’ll see him in court,” said Hochul in another Wednesday X post.
Trump’s “king” comment has also generated discourse beyond talk of New York transportation policies. According to The Guardian, he “is receiving widespread backlash,” this week for it.
Here are a few examples, found on X:
“Doesn’t matter what u think of congestion pricing, federal government doesn’t get to make this decision. NY State passed a law, USDOT approved it. No matter what corrupt deal Donald Trump made with the Mayor, he isn’t king. Only fools concede to false power. It’s an illusion,” – New York City Councilman Justin Brannan.
“We don’t have kings in the USA,” U.S. Rep Don Beyer (D-Va.).
“Republicans: Stop overreacting and calling Trump a king,” David Hogg, Democratic National Committee vice chair.
“As Governor of Illinois, my oath is to the Constitution of our state and our nation. We don’t have kings in America, and I won’t bend the knee to one,” Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker.
“[Democratic New Jersey Gov.] Phil Murphy thinks it’s ok for Trump to declare himself king if it means he doesn’t have to pay $9 to drive into lower Manhattan. truly disgraceful,” Sam Deutsch, writer of the “Better Cities” Substack.
The Hill said that “opponents used the occasion [Trump’s “king” post] to push back against Trump’s barrage of executive actions and tech billionaire Elon Musk’s efforts to slash the size of the federal government,” with the new Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
“Mr. Trump’s first month back in the White House has been full of moments where he has invoked almost monarchical power,” said The New York Times. It said that some of the president’s policy has rested on the unitary executive theory of presidential power. Audacy has also reported on how Trump’s return to office has been marked by a flurry of executive orders and the Times noted that these executive actions have been met with “an avalanche of lawsuits.”