"How the Democrats would be better off today if Bill Clinton had never been president."

[LastLiberal in PalmSprings]

8. Using "if-then" logic, declaring independence from England in 1776 led to Trump.

I think it's not so much who or what specific events happened, but the inherent difficulty of maintaining a democratic (small "d" ) state. There are so many forces working against it from inside and out that citizens have to really want it. As President Andrew Shepard said in "The American President":

"America's not easy. America is advanced citizenship. You've got to want it bad, because it's going to put up a fight."

Trump is just one of a long line of people who say they love America, but hate Americans. He wants to deport naturalized citizens, for chrissake! He wins by wearing people down. He's a damned glacier crushing everything in its path because it just doesn't stop.

Trump is not the enemy of democracy. It's what he represents that is the enemy. It's every Republican in Congress who doesn't stand up to him who is the enemy of democracy. It's every citizen who just doesn't care enough to vote who is the enemy of democracy. It's every corporation that puts profits above all else that is the enemy of democracy. (The fact that I started to write "who" instead of "that" to describe corporations shows how deep the problem is. Corporations are NOT people, my friend!)

Ultimately, lethargy and the general feeling of "What's the use?" is the ultimate enemy of democracy. As President Shepard said, "You've got to want it bad."