On Feb. 28, 1933, Germans awoke to an emergency decree revoking civil liberties. Overnight, freedom of speech and freedom of assembly and association were abolished. The decree suspended federated state autonomy, and legalized phone-tapping and the interception of correspondence.

The night before, the Reichstag was set on fire. Arriving on the scene of the burning government debate chamber, newly-appointed Chancellor Adolf Hitler immediately declared the fire to be a Communist plot.

The next morning, the non-Nazi majority cabinet drafted the Reichstag Fire Decree, and President Hindenburg signed it that day.

Hitler and the Nazis justified the emergency decree through a wave of propaganda that convinced terrified Germans that the Communists were plotting civil war, and that more “acts of terrorism” were to come. As a result of the Reichstag Fire Decree, in only a matter of months, all opposition to the Nazi party was crushed.

In truth, according to leading historians of the period, the Reichstag fire was no Communist plot. It was the act of a lone Dutchman, Marinus van der Lubbe.

However, facts didn’t matter to Hitler. By capitalizing on fear of Communists, Hitler and the Nazis were able to swiftly institute martial law and crush democracy, before moving on to their Final Solution.

In 2017, there are lessons to be learned from the Reichstag fire. Following a rough transition, Trump entered the presidency with historically low approval ratings. In just two weeks of poorly enacted executive orders, his approval rating now hovers around 43 percent, with 50 percent of Americans disapproving of the job Trump is doing.

A flashpoint for public disapproval is the recent executive order that banned travelers from seven Muslim-majority countries. Protests erupted across the United States and around the world, and several federal courts have put a hold on the executive order.

Last Friday, U.S. District Judge James Robart blocked the entirety of the executive order from taking effect.

This did not please Trump. He tweeted, “Just cannot believe a judge would put our country in such peril. If something happens blame him and court system. People pouring in. Bad!”

At a time when Trump has alienated our allies and energized terrorist recruitment efforts, it is reprehensible that he is directing the American people to blame the judicial branch for future terror attacks. This dangerous rhetoric is an explicit threat to our democratic system of government.

Make no mistake, terrorists will strike again in the United States. Trump’s Muslim ban only increases this likelihood. On Sunday, a group of national security officials who worked under Obama, Bush, and Clinton filed a legal brief against Trump’s executive order, arguing that it undermines the national security of the United States.

These officials assert that not only is the ban unconstitutional, it will also “aid ISIL’s propaganda effort and serve its recruitment message by feeding into the narrative that the United States is at war with Islam.”

This means nothing to Trump. Rather, he will continue to hold the judicial branch responsible for endangering the nation. On a two-day Twitter rant, Trump repeatedly denigrated “so-called” Judge Robart and the courts. His transparent rage and frustration with the judiciary should not be taken lightly.

Historically, authoritarian-minded leaders attack institutions that are a check to their power. In the United States, these institutions include the judicial and legislative branches and the press.

Authoritarians first attempt to delegitimize through rhetoric, before taking incremental steps to actively dismantle these institutions. Predictably, they cite “national security” as their reason for doing so.

To be clear, Trump is not Hitler, and engaging in that sort of alarmist rhetoric is unhelpful and unproductive. However, we cannot ignore the very real possibility that the Trump administration may respond in illiberal ways following an attack on U.S. soil.

By recognizing patterns in history, we can steel ourselves against the rising challenges to our democracy.

In the weeks following the Reichstag Fire, Marinus van der Lubbe, along with four Communists, were arrested for their alleged roles in the attack. Van der Lubbe was sentenced to death.

Luckily for the four Communists, the German courts operated independently of the Nazi party and the men were released due to lack of evidence.

This infuriated Hitler. He needed a judiciary that would deliver the verdicts he wanted. So he made one. Hitler immediately installed a new system of special courts to bypass the traditional legal system.

By capitalizing on fear, Hitler was able to entrench the dictatorship of the Third Reich.

After the 9/11 terror attacks, President Bush’s approval rating was 90 percent, the highest of any president. He used this newfound political capital to start two wars and enact the Patriot Act, which shredded civil liberties while greatly expanding the powers of the executive branch.

The quickest way to get the country behind you is to unite against an enemy. Allegiance is patriotic, dissent is not. Bush said it best: “You’re either with us, or you’re against us.”

Trump has already primed the public to blame the judiciary for a terror attack. He has also manipulated Americans to fear their Muslim neighbors.

If terrorists strike again, be wary of the Trump administration’s response. Bannon and company lie in wait to enact far more stringent executive orders. Never forget that Trump promised to create a Muslim registry.

Following the Blitzkrieg attack of executive orders in his first days in office, it is foolish to not take him at his word.

We cannot let our own American Reichstag Fire be our undoing. Do not let your fear be co-opted by con men.

Never surrender your rights for the illusion of safety.