Analysis Of America Has Never Been So Ripe For Tyranny By Andrew Sullivan

Summary: In Chapter 1, Hudson addresses the distorted views of democracy from modern-day Americans. He explains how separation of power within the government lessens the power of American citizens and ultimately alters the ideology behind a true democracy into what we have today.

Published by the New York Times under the Opinion section, the audience for this article is any interested reader. At the time it was released, November 18th, 2016, this article arrived during last year’s elections, in which a large, but surprising number of Americans voted for candidate Donald Trump, shocking many forecasters who had predicted otherwise. Therefore, after the election, many people may have been researching the demographics of the election, and this article, which briefly shared Brooks’ opinion on the nature of the election and how viewing others through the lens of a dominant identity influenced how the votes fell where they did, may have caught a keen reader’s eye. Also, this article came at a time where racism and prejudice caused many problems, leading some to view others as one-dimensional, represented only by a skin color or religion. Since prejudice and hate is still a large issue today, tackling this problem helps make this article relevant, nearly a year after its release.

On June 16, 2015, a long time television and real estate magnate by the name of Donald J. Trump opened his presidential campaign by uttering one of the most racially insensitive remarks in today’s time when he elucidated upon that notion that Mexican immigrants who come to America are not model citizens but rather rapists and murderers who undermine the legitimacy and economic fortitude of the American experiment. This racist and xenophobic remark illustrates just how entrenched the notion of white supremacy or as Walter Rodney would call it the “white cultural imperialism” ideology is inextricably tied to the understanding of our society today. Because of this problematic ideology, there must be some sort of opposition to fight against such

The question to behold is, are Political Parties really representing who the American voters are? People oftentimes express that the people of their own political parties are not really giving a good image for the people of their own party. Hillary Clinton was supposed to represent the Democratic party for the 2017 election. With being such an admirable figure any mistake can be taken and a sign of being a liar, deceptive, and manipulative. Those who support her and her Political Party are perceived to be a lying, deceptive, manipulator, but that does not mean that her followers are. The same concept can be applied to Trump, oftentimes he is seen to have no filter, as a racist, and even sexist as well, and again the same thing can be said about Trump; just because he is viewed as that, that does not mean that his followers are the same

With the president we have now equality is the last thing on his mind. President Trump says he’s making things fair but it hurting others around. He cutting things that most people use to make a living. President Trump “ rolls back hard-fought victories for women in the workplace” ( O’ Hara, 2017). He also fired many workers that work for him because they don’t support some of his ideas. “Some members of the Trump White House have left or been forced out because they disagree on policy” ( Beckwith , 2018). President Trump wants everyone to support him and think that what he is doing is right. He states

In America, we pride ourselves on being a democracy and having choices, when in fact, it is only a political illusion. In the Constitution of the United States (which we are all held accountable to abide by), it states that we are a republic with regard to the people’s desire to be a democracy, yet there is much evidence that leans towards America being an oligarchy. While a republic is a country which elects representatives to make government decisions on their behalf, an oligarchy is a system in which a small group of people controls the country. The debate of American being an oligarchy assumes that elites have power in many aspects of government, such as the Electoral College and the election process,

The process of law making is shadowed in comparison to the process of getting reelected (Kettl). I deem that in modern democracy the Jacksonian idea is completely abolished by today’s government. The Jacksonian democracy expanded voter participation and gave light to the political era of the common citizen (Ginsberg). The idea that the President or even Congress serves the people over themselves is completely non-existent in today’s democracy. As a result, the relationship of government to economic and political power is becoming deeper. Money has always played a role in the democracy of the United States, but in modern democracy money is the key to reelection and power (Ginsberg); which gives little meaning to the idea of democracy. Money can provide a gateway for a candidate who may not even be fully competent to hold an office in Congress or the Presidency, but money is so powerful that people will still see them as a viable candidate and ultimately vote for them because their campaign is

The American political system is built on simple but revolutionary principles from our founding Fathers. These principles state that self-governance is an absolute right and the governments purpose is to serve the interests of the people. Characteristics which are essential to a healthy, functioning democracy. But America has stumbled upon a formidable roadblock to the realization of our founding fathers dream, as Lincoln said, of a country that is "of the people, by the people and for the people"( Citizens at Work, 2003). There are many factors that distort this reality and the main

Trump's presidency and supporters provide a startling insight into the fear of an erosion of whiteness as the cornerstone of what it means to be an American. The assumed fraying of the white identity that has provided privilege and fortune is terrifying to white Americans. White men, who live in luxury and privilege in an age of limited social mobility, have nothing literal to fear, rather their sense of dread hovers in the backdrop of their everyday lives. Their fear is linked to their presumed loss of political and cultural power. Due to the onset of racial paranoia, conservative Americans are scared that ethnic and racial minorities are going to comprise a majority of the United States population, challenge the status quo, and somehow procure access to unprecedented amounts of power, diminishing the power of whiteness. Immigration is not only a threat to the deterioration of whiteness but also to white Americans socioeconomic dislocation, which is why the phrase "they're taking our jobs" is so commonly employed during immigration debates. It is obvious that Trump and his supporters have a juvenile and surface level understanding of race. Even if immigration somehow compromised whiteness as a majority, it does not mean that the racial hierarchy of the United States would somehow become inverted. And it is very telling of Trump's unwillingness to be a minority that he, on

American politics has proved to be flawed in structure over, and over again. Although our founding fathers had the best intentions when they implemented democracy, they like most modern day politicians, failed to actually make things better. Yes we gained our Independence, but with the ability to make our own choices we tend to make childish and impulsive decisions. The election of Donald Trump stands to be the most recent of those mistakes, and the politicians who work for him are either blinded or full of regret. Poets Lawrence Ferlinghetti and Robert Lowell paint vivid pictures of these very mistakes that seem to recur with the thought of democracy.

The government in the United States supposedly revolves around American ideals such as equality and diversity; however, this is simply not the case as perpetuated by class inequalities. The meaning of democracy has been skewed in the United States to represent something entirely different than it did in 1776. Today, American democracy behaves more like an aristocracy, where the upper class exercises power within the government and state, influencing discourse and therefore the laws and resources in our country, which are purportedly “for the people”. Democracy is presumed to provide everyone with equal political power, but the government in today’s America, although seemingly following this ideal model, does not. Instead, the elite upper class has a monopoly over the political influence and are the sole benefactors from public policies due to their influence over the policy making process. The upper class has an overall benefit from class inequality, as it greatly impacts American ‘democracy’ through the significant power gained through money and status, leadership roles that impact government, and the influence in the policymaking process that creates upper class advantages.

This can be observed in his previous tweets, such as one from November 6th, 2012 where he audaciously said that “The electoral college is a disaster for a democracy” in response to the data at that point in the happenings of the 2012 election between Barack Obama and Mitt Romney, which is wildly ironic considering he won this election as a direct result of the same organization of the electoral college that he so strongly opposed in this tweet (Trump, 2012). As a businessman, Trump knew how to develop his already-existent public image to appeal to the exact right number of people in the right states to win the election. He even said in his book The Art of A Deal, “I play to people’s fantasies… I call it truthful hyperbole. It’s an innocent form of exaggeration — and a very effective form of promotion” (Trump and Schwartz, 1987). Those words alone are evidence enough that he understands how to manipulate people, especially the press--as he mentions in lines soon after this one--and that he has used this strategy to

one essential conviction, expressed in the word democracy itself: that power should be in the hands of the people. Although democracy today has been slightly inefficient in this idea, with the wealthy, elite class challenging this right, “it nevertheless claims for itself a fundamental validity that no other kind of society shares….” To completely understand the structure of democracy, one must return to the roots of the practice itself, and examine the origins in ancient Greece, the expansion in the Roman Empire, and how these practices combined make what we recognize as today’s democratic government.

Prevalent flaws within most modern democracies are evident in their social and economic systems. One such problem, in a system that advocates freedom to do whatever you please, is the consequential wealth disparity (Wong, Oct. 24 lecture, tutorial). Aristotle once said that, “democracy is the form of government in which… the free are the many and the rich are the few”. This highlights a paradox of democracy in that it attempts to be equal to all, yet often the rich will get richer and the poor will get poorer, and an increasing wealth divide will influence governance. Constant writes (pg. 12), “wealth is a power more readily available at any moment… more

Although our nation’s government relies on the fundamentals of liberal democracy, it still has many flaws. Articles written by Francis Fukuyama share a clear message suggesting that America’s political institutions are decaying and its flaws will not be fixed unless we have good leadership within the government that yields good policies. It is still not too late to make reformations in the system. Today, US citizens share a distrust for the inner workings of our government, and through the years, there are many things that must change. Although our government is able to withstand failures right now, it may cause an expansion of problems that will cost us indefinitely. The existence of interest groups has caused an exponential increase in the elite control of the system, thus creating people’s lack of trust for the government.