The demise of democracy has been discussed for more than a generation. However, a new poll suggests that a majority of Americans now believe the death of democracy is not only imminent but unavoidable.
Politics :
According to a new Yahoo! News and YouGov poll, 53% of Republicans and 55% of Democrats believe the death of democracy is upon us. The rise of Donald Trump and his MAGA movement, the surprising willingness of Americans to hand over control of the country to a lone dictator in lieu of multiple branches of government, the increasing infatuation Americans have with following only Fox News and other propaganda media outlets as their lone source of news information, the perceived politicization of the US Supreme Court, as well as America’s fear that it’s losing its traditional White-Christian control are all feeding into the democratic demise.
Now, take a moment to consider the fact that roughly half the country considers the United States something of a lost cause and you’ve got yourself a truly chilling statistic.
The shocking poll numbers validate how Americans have been feeling since the Donald Trump-contested 2020 presidential election, the January 6th Capitol Hill insurrection, and the partisan political battles that have since ensued.
Republicans have dug in their heels and vowed to protect Donald Trump and their party’s reputation over country, while Democrats have maintained a dead-end willingness to seek bipartisan compromise where there simply is none. For most Americans, it’s all a lose-lose situation and one that has many questioning why they should continue to vote at all.
The divide among those who believe the death of democracy is coming is startling. For example, those on the right are shockingly disengaged from the January 6th hearings. Only 9% of those who voted for Donald Trump, (13% of Republicans and 22% of Fox News viewers) have watched the hearings. The others believe the hearings are a farce designed only to denigrate Donald Trump and the GOP.
In contrast, 47% of those who voted for Democratic President Joe Biden (44% of Democrats and 52% of MSNBC viewers) are deeply interested in and closely following the hearings.
Additionally, only 45% of Americans are willing to believe that the insurrection was part of a Trump-led conspiracy to overturn the 2020 election. Further, an alarming 1/5th of Americans believe all school shootings in recent years are faked and staged by crisis actors whose only goal is to take away guns. Of course, the remaining percentage of Americans recognize the shootings are not faked and the deaths are real.
As if those numbers weren’t enough, 52% of Republicans, 50% of Independents, and 46% of Democrats all believe a 2nd civil war is on the horizon. Interestingly, many also believe America will never experience another peaceful and trustworthy election again.
When asked if he was worried about the 2024 election, one House Select Committee member said “Very worried!”
“We focused so much on what goes on in DC and Congress and the Senate. But when you have these [local] election judges that are going to people that don’t believe basically in democracy, authoritarians, 2024 is going to be a mess,” said Republican Rep. Adam Kinzinger of Illinois.
“And wake up, America. Wake up, Republicans, because this is not going to be good for you if you think it is,” he added.
“Remember, democracy never lasts long. It soon wastes, exhausts, and murders itself. There never was a democracy yet that did not commit suicide.”
– John Adams
Poll: Half of Americans now predict U.S. may ‘cease to be a democracy’ someday https://t.co/LO7GD1dcBV
— AV8 (@AV8intheblue) June 15, 2022
Democracy has survived primarily because Americans have traditionally held it in high esteem and insisted that it be the uncompromised law of the land. Now, all bets are off and many Americans have a totally different belief system on what America should be.
How have so many Americans been so easily fooled? How much do white supremacy and religious omnipotence play into these percentages? Is there still time to prevent the death of democracy, or is the concept of the UNITED States of America already a lost cause?
“I actually think there is a fair chance we could completely lose our constitutional democracy for a couple of decades if we make bad decisions. I am not naive about this. I have been in a lot of fights. I have lost some and won a bunch. I have been elated and heartbroken. But I have never before been as worried about the structure of our democratic form of government.”
– former President Bill Clinton
OK WASSUP! discusses Politics:
Americans think the death of democracy is here.
Newsweek:
President Joe Biden revealed that after being elected to the White House, Chinese President Xi Jinping cautioned him that democracies are on the decline and that one day “autocracies will run the world.”
“We’re living through a global struggle between autocracies and democracies,” Biden said during his commencement address to the U.S. Naval Academy’s graduating class.
“I’ve met more with Xi Jinping than any other world leader has. When he called me to congratulate me on Election Night, he said to me what he said many times before,” the president said on Friday. “He said democracies cannot be sustained in the 21st century, autocracies will run the world. Why? Things are changing so rapidly. Democracies require consensus, and it takes time, and you don’t have the time.”
https://www.newsweek.com/joe-biden-naval-academy-speech-china-democracy-warning-1710966