In the last 20 years or so i've heard more and more Republicans making the statement that the US isn't a democracy, it's a republic. Well, this is only half false; The US is a Constitutional Democratic Republic. We are a republic with representative democracy and Constitutional protection to set limits on governmental power.
But why are Republicans so insistent on getting rid of the term democracy? It's because their policies no longer represent the majority. That's why the last two Republican presidents only won by the Electoral College. They can no longer depend on the popular vote to get them into office. So what's been happening lately is that they're ditching democracy...and even the Constitution in order to get in
to...and hold onto, power. This is why Republicans once quoted the Constitution (however badly) and now we have Trump saying he will "suspend the Constitution" if he gets in.
Their problem is that what Republicans stand for, most Americans don't want.
Let's check the list;
>Bigotry; Republicans and right-leaning independents represent nearly every racist, homophobe and anti-Semite in the country. Most Americans understand that this is wrong. So this won't win elections.
>Environment; Most Republicans don't want any regulations. They prize money over clean air and water for us and our children. The majority of Americans support a clean environment, green energy and regulations on pollution. So being anti-environment won't win elections.
>Women's choice; The majority of Americans support a woman's right to choose whether or not she will have a baby and easy access to birth control and family planning. Republicans don't want this. If you control a woman's body you control the woman...they want that. But most of America is opposed to that doctrine. So that won't win elections.
>Religion; The majority of Americans want to be free to practice the religion of their choice, or no religion at all. The GOP is opposed to this and wants to make Evangelical Christianity the official religion of the US. This conflicts with the Establishment Clause in the very First Amendment of our Constitution! There's a reason the Founders put that there. It's because state religions have always ended up ruining governments. Most people don't want that...so it won't win elections.
>Guns; Republicans want assault weapons to be accessible to every white person...even paranoid schizophrenics and violent domestic terrorists. The reason for this is that these are the people most likely to take up arms against their government, or their neighbors, in case things don't go their way politically. Guns are also used to suppress and intimidate minorities. The gun lobby makes sure these people stay riled up and ready to commit crimes in the name of "freedom". Most people don't want this. Polls have shown over and over that the majority of Americans support gun control. So "assault rifles and extended magazines for everyone" won't win elections.
>Immigration; Most people agree that refugees fleeing for their lives do not amount to an "invasion". Trump said; "They're sending murderers, rapists and drug dealers, and a few, i assume, are good people." The actual truth is the exact opposite. Most refugees are just that; good people fleeing for their lives. A few are criminals, but criminals exist in any group of people. The thing is to weed out the bad and keep the good ones. There are solutions for the immigrant situation, but making them into "evil invaders" is not one of them, and most people know that...so it won't win elections. By the way, Congress attempted to pass a bill that would appropriate funding for border security. Republicans in the House killed it on orders from Trump. That effectively ends it as an election issue.
>War; The Republican party has been the party of war at least since Ronald Reagan. They have been either starting wars or supporting proxy wars around the world for decades. War is good for the arms industry and helps support the oil industry by gaining access to oil in foreign countries by installing and maintaining regimes friendly to the US. In the '60s we fought in Vietnam because of communist paranoia. We have had at least 2 more failed wars since then. People died for nothing. Most Americans don't like needless wars, so a party which constantly wants to go to war should be unpopular.
>Money; This is a big one. The majority of middle/upper income Americans love personal prosperity. They love the stock market and you see it on the news every day, "the market is up" or "the market is down". It affects everything from our kids' college funds (if we can afford one) to our retirement. Wealthy and well off Republicans LOVE the stock market because it's a way of getting lots of money without working. Someone else does the labour and stockholders get paid. This is why they hate public schools, the US Postal Service, Medicare, Medicaid, "Obamacare", Social Security and virtually any other government agency that provides a service that they would like to see privatized so it can be put on the stock market to generate dividends. Unfortunately, this has two side effects; First it cuts vital services which help people who are low wage earners or unemployed. Second it cuts the salaries of workers in favour of paying dividends to investors and wealthy CEOs. People are beginning to figure this out...and they are voting accordingly.
So what to do, Republicans ask themselves? Well, one thing to do is to cast doubt on the election process and then declare democracy to be ineffective. We saw that happen in 2020. Another is to declare the Constitution to be invalid whenever it conflicts with their goals (we've been hearing that from Trump).
...and finally the last is to foment discontent and insurrection in their base in order to rule over the majority by force if necessary.
The way this works is for all those special interests above to pledge loyalty to one party, and its politicians, no matter what. It's called "unite the right". It brings together all the racists, bigots, fascists, mysoginists, gun nuts, religious fanatics, greedy and just plain haters under one tent. Although these groups separately can't win an election, collectively they can command enough voting power to swing the Electoral College.
...and there you have it! They either win the EC or they declare the election to be a "fraud", without any proof, and mount an insurrection driven by bogus conspiracies and lies.
The GOP has become anti-democracy and anti-America...and millions of Americans are ok with that as long as it gets them what they want.
Ok, Rant over.
