The Constitution of the United States established a democracy with clear separation of powers between the three branches of government. Nevertheless, achieving a democracy still depends upon the citizens and certain qualities of the elected officials. This essay examines several famous historical leaders identified as tyrants by noted historians, and describes the common strategies all of them used to gain autocratic power in diverse societies. The current president of the United States, Donald Trump, is then shown to have applied the same strategies to gain autocratic power in this country.