2024-pre election special: THREAT TO DEMOCRACY

2024 PRE-ELECTION SPECIAL

THREATS TO DEMOCRACY

By Mark McLaughlin

Editor, Citizen-Observer

Who is the real threat to Democracy?  Donald Trump or Kamala Harris?

Since January 6, 2021, when marchers went to the United States Capitol following a speech from Donald Trump on the Ellipse, the Country has been forced to confront the issue of “Threats to Democracy”.

While I stipulate that President Trump was contesting the results of the election, calling on Vice-President Mike Pence not to certify the results, and then waited too long to call for a halt to what had rapidly gotten out of control at the Capitol Building, I feel there was more to this story about the role of the FBI, the failure of the D.C. Mayor or House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to accept Trump’s offer of 10,000 National Guardsmen to bolster Capitol Police and Metro Police guarding the Capitol.

Was it an insurrection?   Or was it more  a“Reichstag Fire”, a “false flag” intended to set up Trump and his followers, or more attempted coup?

Impeachments,  the January 6 Commission, the “happy warrior” mainstream Media pushed out an avalanche of propaganda aimed at preventing Donald Trump from ever seeking office again.

“Lawfare” emerged.  Two assassination attempts, and a persistent messaging drumbeat that Trump is a fascist, a Nazi, a “wanna-be” dictator.

Since the 2022 mid-terms, the day after which Trump announced his third run for the White House, the Democrats have called him a “threat to OUR Democracy.”

The “our Democracy” line just nagged at me like a tick “attached to the death” to my elbow.

As a long-time social science instructor and a long-time student of the Constitution, it eats at me that so many of our elected representatives couldn’t pass my junior level government exam.

The United States of America is a republic, not a democracy.

What makes us a “republic” is that through a concept called “consent of the governed”, we elect officials and “hire” them to act on our behalf in the Legislative and Executive branches of government.

The “product” of the Framers of the Constitution designed the Congress to be the step of government closest to the people.  The House of Representatives, closest to the people, and most responsive to them would control “the power of the purse”.  The Senate, originally designed to be appointed by the State legislators, gave state governments a “seat at the table”, and was designed to be much more deliberative, much slower, and to “cool the passions” of the people.

The 17th Amendment stripped the state governments of that conduit to national policy in making the Senate, like the house, filled by “direct election”.  This action, one of the Progressive Amendments of Woodrow Wilson was intended to centralize more power in the Federal Government.

It created a “House of Lords” with real power, and is the home of ‘elites” in charge in D.C.

It meant that when conflicts arose between the states and the Federal Government, their only recourse was to challenge Federal action through the Court system.

Modern Progressives demonstrate a loathing for the Constitution and many have called openly for it to be abolished and rewritten.

The Electoral College, the Senate filibuster, and the appointments/confirmation process are examples of “Majority Rights with Minority Protections”, perhaps the defining component of what makes us a Republic and not a Democracy.

Under the current Electoral College system, Presidential candidates have to show up in North Dakota, Nevada, Montana, Wyoming, Nebraska, and other small states, because on the road to 270, every vote counts.

To make our electoral system a popular vote system would mean a focus on metropolitan areas like New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Boston, Houston, Miami and New Orleans,  at the expense of “flyover country”.

To simplify this, it is said that democracy is the jungle equivalent of two wolves and a sheep getting together and voting what, and who to have for dinner.

So that is the system we have.  So who is the threat to Democracy?

Split-government means that one party might control the White House and the other party controls one or both chambers of Congress.

Gridlock ensues, nothing gets done, a good thing in the views of some, and relies on Executive Orders by the President to move his/her agenda, like the wall, or forgiving student loan debt, knowing that fully introduced, debated and voted upon legislation in that environment is impossible to get.

The way 2024 sets up is to produce a GOP President and Senate, with a Democratic controlled House.

Trump is suggested to “become a dictator” by Democrats, taking the phrase out of its context when they fail to mention that Trump’s intent is to restart the Keystone Pipeline and order the Closing of the Border…on Day one.

They contend that Trump will follow the recommendations of Heritage Foundation “thinktank” paper “Project 2025”, which he has completely disavowed.  I have read it myself, all 997-pages of it, and while there are some ideas in there that bear some consideration, removing career bureaucrats and restoring a “Trump-loyal” spoils system is not the way to go.

I hate the “Deep State”, and I believe a lot of people should be fired IF AND ONLY IF they ignore lawful Presidential directives, slow-walk, stonewall or obstruct implementation of the President’s policy.

If they can be fired “for cause”, basically not doing what they are ordered to do, that needs to happen.

I believe Trump will follow the Constitution.  He may run afoul of it and have that dealt with by the Supreme Court.  Fine.  Every President does.

If Democrats win, the real threat to “The Republic” is if they abolish the filibuster, which requires 60 out of 100-votes for any legislation to move to a vote, the immediate result of that is to fast track illegal immigrant amnesty, voting rights and citizenship, push for D.C. and Puerto Rico to become states, and move forward legislation to limit the First Amendment and to eliminate gun ownership with the 2nd.

All by a 50 + 1 vote margin in the Senate.  

To take apart those structural aspects of the Constitution opens the door to censorship, persecution and prosecution of Conservative thinkers, and hurtling economically into socialism, or worse.

Calls that Trump is a “fascist” or a “Nazi” and that his followers are racist “garbage” is the unmasking of something far more sinister on the other side.

Vote carefully.  Being able to actually do so after this election season could depend on it.