Why we need laws to be specific

19 Nov 2025 • 45 min • EN
45 min
00:00
45:53
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Autocrats are famous for enacting vague laws with specific punishments – and if people preemptively overcorrect their behaviors, all the better. Matthew Purdy is editor at large and writer for The New York Times Magazine. He joins host Krys Boyd to discuss why the Trump administration has intentionally created vagaries around tariffs, D.E.I. and other areas so that it is difficult to know if one is breaking the law – and how that helps to consolidate presidential power. His article is “In the Trump Presidency, the Rules Are Vague. That Might Be the Point.” Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

From "KERA's Think"

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