Abstract: Tyrannophobia - the fear of dictatorship - is a dominant theme in American political discourse. Yet dictatorship has never existed in the United States or even been likely.The hypothesis that tyrannophobia itself has prevented dictatorship from occurring is implausible; better evidence exists for alternative hypotheses. We conclude that tyrannophobia is an irrational political attitude that has interfered with, and continues to interfere with, needed institutional reform.