Donald Trump Is a Threat to US Democracy

I would like to think that no matter who is elected President of the United States, there will be a limit to how far they can go in undermining American democracy. But as someone who studies the history of democratic development around the world, I am now forced to admit that this might not be true — and that all American presidents are not created equal when it comes to respecting our country’s democratic institutions and norms. While there have been many presidents over the years who have done some things well and others poorly, what sets Donald Trump apart is his willingness to attack these institutions head-on rather than merely ignore them or try to work around them. So long as America’s political leaders continue following him down this path, we should expect more serious threats against our collective ability to govern ourselves democratically within our own borders as well as abroad.

The first thing you need to know is that Donald Trump is a threat to American democracy. In fact, he’s arguably the biggest threat it’s faced in years.

The second thing to understand is that this isn’t about his policies (like the Muslim travel ban or his support for white supremacists), but rather about how he believes the nation should be governed and what he does with power when he gets it. That’s important because many people think that if different Republicans were elected president instead of Trump, everything would be okay again — but it won’t.

The United States has not always been a democracy, but it has always been a country founded on democratic principles. For this reason, American presidents have historically been expected to respect the rule of law and the U.S. Constitution.

Trump is the most authoritarian president in recent history: he routinely disregards norms and institutions that are fundamental to our democracy, like equal protection under the law and freedom of speech. He openly admires authoritarian leaders such as Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping for undermining their countries’ democratic institutions—and even seems eager to follow suit himself.

What sets Trump apart from other presidents is his insistence on destroying democratic institutions rather than merely disregarding them as previous presidents have done. His policies often appear designed with this goal in mind: for example, his administration’s attempts at voter suppression go beyond simply cutting back on early voting days or requiring voter ID cards — they are directly targeted at disenfranchising groups who tend to vote Democratic (elderly people who don’t drive or live in rural areas). And while some scholars argue that these laws could still be overturned by courts under certain circumstances (if they were found unconstitutional), others point out that Trump’s replacement Justice Brett Kavanaugh may very well provide key votes against any challenges brought against them by states seeking relief from them through federal courts.

The U.S. Constitution and the nation’s voting system are designed to limit the power of any one person. The President, no matter who it is, should not be able to undermine our democracy. But that is exactly what former President Trump has been attempting to do by calling out elections as rigged or fraudulent — despite all evidence to the contrary.

In the early days of his presidency, he attacked the integrity and legitimacy of our electoral process when he claimed that three million illegal votes were cast during the 2016 presidential election (an unfounded claim). Then he said that he would have won New Hampshire if not for voters being bused in from Massachusetts. He also questioned whether Hillary Clinton actually won California because there were “millions” of undocumented immigrants voting for her in those states with large immigrant populations (again: false). Presently, he is fixated on telling his followers that the 2020 election was stolen from him.

Trump’s attacks on democratic values go further than just questioning election results; they also include disrespecting political opponents and journalists who disagree with him.

Trump’s disregard for democratic norms is on clear display in his rhetoric, which routinely attacks the press as “the enemy of the people,” and in his actions, such as his attempts to pressure federal law enforcement agencies to investigate political opponents.

His disregard for independent institutions extends beyond those that he himself created. He has also attacked America’s courts when they ruled against him — including threatening to “get involved” with the Justice Department if it did not reopen an investigation into Hillary Clinton — and suggested that members of Congress who oppose him should be removed from office.

The U.S. Constitution, which is the nation’s most fundamental law, sets out a system of government that is based on the separation of powers and checks and balances. But it also includes a set of unwritten rules known as “norms” that are necessary for democracy to function properly. These include:

• A president should not make public statements that undermine the legitimacy of an election result before it occurs.
• A president should not use his office for personal financial gain.
• A president should not interfere in criminal prosecutions (as President Trump did when he pressured then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions to reverse course on investigations into Michael Cohen).

In addition to these three core norms, there are other important norms — such as an expectation that presidents will put their assets in a blind trust so they are no longer personally profiting from their position or using it for private gain — that have been violated by Trump but were previously considered sacrosanct by presidents across party lines.

In conclusion, the American democracy will suffer if Trump is reelected. He is a threat to U.S. national security and international alliances. There is much that may be unfamiliar—and even unseemly—about Trump’s approach to governing, but perhaps above all else it is his utter disregard for democratic norms that stands out: undermining the independence of law enforcement; placing family members in positions of power; threatening journalists and other critics with retribution; and demonstrating little respect for the rule of law or basic principles like freedom of speech.

Written by DiMarkco Chandler

Sources:

CNN: Biden ramps up against Trump’s threat to democracy as ex-President again dangles pardons for allies
The Nation: Donald Trump Is the Greatest Threat to American Democracy in Our Lifetime
Business Standard: Trump and his followers trying to undermine American democracy: Biden

Top and Featured Image Courtesy of Gage Skidmore’s Flickr Page – Creative Commons License

Inset Image Courtesy of Alisdare Hickson‘s Flickr Page – Creative Commons License