Democrats must stop Republicans from undermining American democracy – Democracy and Society

A growing number of Republicans are directly annoyed with Trump and other right-wing agitators in an increasingly apocalyptic fear of the Biden administration’s so-called “leftist fascism.” The majority of citizens believe that there is a threat of authoritarian political violence from this faction, but continue to act as if things are completely normal in the run up to elections for the House of Representatives. The surveys on this subject speak volumes: two-thirds Republicans believe Trump lied at his rally in Arizona this month – that the election was “stolen” from him. Worse still, more and more Republicans now see lawlessness and violence as both legitimate and necessary “to save their country.” But it is this attitude that is the threat.

On the one-year anniversary of the inauguration of the Biden-Harris administration, one thing must be clear: American society’s attempt at reconciliation has failed spectacularly. Biden simply cannot communicate with the Trump cult. And these cultists pose a real danger – both to American democracy and to the life and limb of anyone who stands in their way. But who will really stand in their way?

A question of democracy

Democrats in Congress have failed even to create enough unity to protect the basic right to vote at the federal level, which is blocked in the Senate by the House minority. For decades, the practice of filibuster prevented the abolition of racial segregation, but today, this relic of segregation effectively prevents us from protecting minority suffrage. There should be no illusions: as soon as the Republicans are again in the majority, they will not hesitate to immediately abolish the buccaneer to get what they want through. This they did without hesitation as soon as Trump took office, allowing him to appoint the federal judges he wanted. National Electoral Reform failed at filibustermeaning nothing is stopping Republicans from slashing minority suffrage in more and more states, which they say will lead them to victory in the House of Representatives election.

With his uninteresting style of government, Biden has brought some dignity back to the president’s office.

But Democrats must win this election no questions asked — not to push through Biden’s agenda, currently mired in Democratic infighting, but to preserve democracy. If we look past the Republicans’ nonsensical doomsday rhetoric and appalling opinion ratings to get a sense of the prospect, the Biden administration is at least considered “satisfactory.” With his uninteresting style of government, Biden has brought some dignity back to the president’s office. His policies are aimed at improving the lives of many Americans — even if all does not go as planned due to the pandemic and rising inflation. There are also some questions about the country’s supposed return of international credibility, or whether “America is back”.

But we’ve seen time and time again how easily the older gentleman tires, which obviously also affected his already tamed party’s combat power. “Lower the temperature” was the slogan. The reconciliation of peoples must go through a calm and polite approach, open to dialogue and compromise. A continuation of Michelle Obama’s maxim: “when they go low, we go high”, which means that we will not demonize and dehumanize political opponents by calling them “the enemy”. “We Americans are not like that” or “We are all Americans,” Democrats repeatedly proclaim, almost desperately.

But Trump and an alarming number of his supporters simply ignore being part of the same American people as those who don’t look like them or believe the same — both religiously and politically. For them, the country of blacks, browns, leftists or non-Christians must be saved, if necessary, by armed force. The opposite is, of course, true: Trumpists and conspirators, armed to the teeth and now a lost cause, are the real mortal danger to the majority of citizens and to American democracy.

The silent majority must break its silence

Thus, the temperature rises and does not fall. Democrats, leftist voters, Republicans and independent voters who are not part of the Trump club must pull themselves together and fight for their country and democracy, before it is too late. They form a clear majority against the Trump cult, albeit a silent majority – a reflection of pandemic-era debate everywhere, where public perception is also dominated by a vocal, hard-thinking minority.

The majority must speak out and Democrats must become more partisan to do so. Americans who identify as Democrats with a small D must throw their support behind the Democrats with a capital D. We are proud democrats and will do everything we can to stay in power. Because we must save democracy from those who still call themselves Republicans but have long since become blind supporters of an autocratic ruler, we must become more partisan than ever.

Republicans have an institutional advantage in the anachronistic US electoral system, largely due to the overrepresentation of rural voters, so they don’t need a majority to govern.

Naturally, the idea of ​​abandoning restraint in favor of constant power politics raises many concerns. Won’t dividing the population just create more tribalization? Yes. But what is the alternative? Oversee the destruction of democratic institutions without fighting for them? Republicans have an institutional advantage in the anachronistic US electoral system, largely due to the overrepresentation of rural voters, so they don’t need a majority to govern.

What if they can determine who can vote and which votes will ultimately count? If universal suffrage is effectively abolished, then it is difficult to regain power by democratic means, even in a nominal democracy. For Trump and his cronies, elections are already useless, because by his own statements he already knows he is going to win from the start. Any other result can only be a “fraud”.

Why do white Christians, who make up the vast majority of Republicans, feel so much more threatened than the majority of Democrats? Many of them say they are concerned about their identity. So far, only a few Democrats, presumably ethnic minorities, have felt such an existential threat. But it goes without saying that the majority of non-Republicans are needed to help mount an effective resistance to this autocratic threat to American democracy.

Rule by fear

How to energize support? Debates over the pros and cons of political agendas such as Biden’s Building back better bill or academic discussions of the necessary balance between urban justice and the needs of the working class will likely lull most citizens to sleep. In fact, we have to learn from the Republicans elsewhere: it has to be fear-based. Fear of the tyranny of a mad, hateful mob, which has less and less of a problem being associated with groups like the far right Oath Keepers. It’s no longer a question of what kind of country do you want to live in? It’s more a question of what kind of country you never want to live in?

At the federal level, Democrats have virtually nowhere to go. A new partisan Democratic force should therefore manifest itself mainly at the state and local level, essentially wherever it still has power. Where is it written that only Republicans can influence the size of precincts in their favor and fill key electoral positions with their party troops?

If Democrats can’t engage in power politics, then they might as well give up. Or we could well see a much more dangerous scenario, as this fear could also lead some Democrats to turn to violence. There are already reports of armed groups on the left. This can’t be surprising considering the growing aggressiveness from the other side. Recently, a mentally ill man threatened to assassinate Donald Trump. Should Trump run for president again, the Secret Service would likely have to adapt to serious threats from organized forces.