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How Trump Amassed Power in Battling the Coronavirus Pandemic

Masood Farivar

   WASHINGTON - In a matter of weeks, U.S. President Donald Trump has
   assumed extraordinary power and influence at a time of national crisis.

   In the fight againstCOVID-19,Trump has declared a national emergency
   that has enabled himtodeploymilitaryhospital ships to New York and Los
   Angeles, force carmakers to manufacture ventilators and relax
   vaccination and treatment regulations.

   Theseand othersteps have been hailed as critical public
   healthmeasures,buttheyhavecome with a cost to civil liberties and
   democratic governance.

   After years of frustration in blocking illegal immigration from Mexico
   and Central America, the administration now has the power to arrest and
   immediately deport undocumented immigrants based on the need to protect
   public health.

   And in a signal that his administration can spend trillions of dollars
   as it sees fit to respond to the coronavirus crisiswith
   diminishedoversight from Congress or government watchdogs,Trumpis
   waging an assault on a network of federal inspectors general to weaken
   their investigative clout and mandate.

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