"Propaganda so blatant it would make the dictator of North Korea blush," one critic cracked about Karoline Leavitt's praise of the president on Fox News.

Trump is drafting a new blueprint for the presidency, one that demonstrates the primacy of blunt force in a democratic system predicated on checks and balances between the branches of government.

After the sedate Joe Biden years, the return of a presidency that is an incessant assault on the senses is a reminder of why so many millions of Americans see Trump as a compelling, historic figure – and why millions more deeply fear him.