The Democracy Clock

A contemporaneous public record of democratic change in the United States.

The Democracy Clock documents how democratic norms, institutions, and safeguards changed during the first year of Donald Trump’s second term. Organized week by week, the book traces how executive actions, legislative developments, judicial rulings, and institutional behavior accumulated over time—often quietly, incrementally, and without a single moment that felt decisive on its own.

Rather than relying on rhetoric, polling, or partisan framing, The Democracy Clock introduces a structured method for observing democracy through measurable governance actions. Each week is examined in context, allowing patterns of erosion, normalization, or resistance to emerge across months rather than headlines.

This volume is the narrative and analytical core of The Democracy Clock project. It synthesizes fifty-two weeks of documented events into a coherent account of democratic time—how pressure builds, how safeguards weaken or hold, and how systems change not all at once, but piece by piece.

The book is written for engaged citizens, educators, journalists, policymakers, and readers who want a factual, disciplined way to understand democratic change as it unfolds—not in hindsight, but in real time.

This is not a work of prediction or advocacy. It is a record, a method, and an argument for measurement, accountability, and institutional memory.