The Illusion of Democracy
The theme of this election cycle has been saving our democracy. The events of the past few days have convinced me that the democracy we were hoping to save has been unmasked. It is clear that the wealthiest Americans and some foreign oligarchs are calling the shots and we the people are merely serving the illusion of democratic governance. Billionaires and soon-to-be trillionaires control all three branches of government. They clearly own the Supreme Court, both houses of Congress and exercise undue influence over the executive branch.
We mere voters are barraged with daily requests for small contributions that only serve to bolster the illusion that we are actually participants in determining the destiny of our nation. Donors like Musk make that attempt at citizen participation laughable. Installing the right chief executive is a business decision for people like him and there is no limit to what they are willing to spend to protect and grow their vast wealth. Trump gave them massive tax cuts, deregulation and a sympathetic Supreme Court majority. All they got from Biden were reduced pharmaceutical prices, student loan forgiveness and restoration of environmental protection. Those don’t resonate with the wealthy on the left or the right. The Democrats pushing to dump Biden have been listening to their corporate benefactors and not their constituents.
How did so many never Trumpers become forever Trumpers? They were shown the reality of American democracy and recognized the futility of resisting those intent on amassing and preserving their obscene wealth. It’s now their game to be played by their rules. You have to play ball with the moneyed interests or get out of the game. Adam Kinzinger and Liz Cheney learned that lesson and are now mostly silenced.
In 2016 the donor class succeeded in electing a particularly hideous candidate and are poised to reelect him despite his failed record, criminal convictions and fealty to the autocrats of the world. If he falls short at the ballot box, they already have a plan to invalidate the election. When he succeeds, they will implement Project 2025, a plan to permanently cripple the inconvenient vestiges of American democracy.
Until the Constitution can be finally put to rest, the illusion of majority rule must be maintained. The people who have engineered the gradual deconstruction of our democracy rely on a very vocal and visible mass of easily persuadable low information voters who have been convinced that Trump is a servant of God. Fostering Christianity as the state religion will enable the ruling elite to convince Trump’s faithful that any evil done in God’s name is patriotic and lawful.
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