The tyranny of "our democracy"
Hardly a day goes by that does not produce hyperbolic pleas for the salvation of “our democracy” by the least democratic elements of our political establishment. Joe Biden’s handlers, through their presidential meat puppet, constantly accuse half or more of Americans of being existential threats—sometimes even worse than climate change or Donald Trump—to “our democracy.” To be sure, they’re threats because they’re white, Republican, normal, and oppose the policies of the Democrat/socialist/communist (D/s/c) Party, but they’re also a threat primarily because they support the Constitution and rule of law, which are truly existential threats to “our democracy.”
D/s/cs are expert at manipulating language and building narratives that change as circumstances dictate. In this case, “our democracy” which is a tyranny of the majority. The Federalist Papers warned against this danger inherent in democracies, for in a democracy 50.000001% rule. Human nature guarantees tyrants will deprive the minority of their property, liberty, even their lives. Without the checks and balances established in the Constitution, a tyranny of the majority is inevitable.
Senator Mike Lee, in 2020, told the truth:
Graphic: twitter screenshot
The response was as swift, angry, historically uninformed and deceptive as one might imagine.
The Constitution, in article IV, section 4, states:
The United States shall guarantee to every State in this Union a Republican Form of Government, and shall protect each of them against Invasion; and on Application of the Legislature, or of the Executive (when the Legislature cannot be convened) against domestic Violence.
In the Federalist No.39, James Madison wrote:
[W]e may define a republic to be, or at least may bestow that name on, a government which derives all its powers directly or indirectly from the great body of the people, and is administered by persons holding their offices during pleasure, for a limited period, or during good behavior. It is ESSENTIAL to such a government that it be derived from the great body of the society, not from an inconsiderable proportion, or a favored class of it; . . . It is SUFFICIENT for such a government that the persons administering it be appointed, either directly or indirectly, by the people; and that they hold their appointments by either of the tenures just specified[.]
In United States v. Cruikshank, the Supreme Court ruled a republican form of government includes:
“… a right on the part of its citizens to meet peaceably for consultation in respect to public affairs and to petition for a redress of grievances as well as the equality of the rights of citizens.”
That D/s/cs and many among the Self-Imagined Elite (SIE) virtually never refer to America as a constitutional, representative republic is no accident. It’s how they think, and it reveals their intentions. The Constitution protects unalienable, individual rights and restrains tyrannical impulses.
Attempts to pack the Supreme Court and abolish the Electoral College and filibuster are obvious examples. Even more obvious are D/s/c’s never-ending attempts to abolish the First and Second Amendments, both essential to a representative republic and destructive to a tyranny of the majority. Speaking of the filibuster, Madeleine Polubinski wrote:
The Framers, famously wary of tyranny of the majority, devised a system of governance to protect minority rights and promote deliberation without a filibuster. The Federalist Papers outline how checks and balances, federalism, and other structural mechanisms prevent abuses of power, suppression of minority interests, and rash government action. The Framers clearly feared tyrannical majorities and an overly powerful legislature. However, even they deemed a supermajority cloture requirement unnecessary, undermining the argument that the filibuster enhances the Senate’s intended function.
Also destructive to the republic are the Marxist Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) and Critical Race Theory (CRT) movements. Both, intimately related, ignore and subvert inherent individual rights, creating instead competing groups of oppressors and the oppressed. Under such systems, merit dies, and individuality and individual rights are subsumed by identity group rights. The oppressed have rights enforceable against their oppressors, who have only those privileges afforded them from time to time by “our democracy.”
We see tyranny of the majority in the unlawful arrests, prosecutions and pre-trial detentions of January 6 defendants. We see it in the government’s recently announced intention to arrest another thousand or more Americans for merely being present near the Capital Building on January 6. We see it in the prosecutions of Donald Trump. We see it in electric vehicle, solar and wind power mandates, and appliance restrictions. We see in in mounting regulations affecting every aspect of life. We see it in those whose private jets circumnavigate the globe as they plan a life of no possessions and bugs for dinner for us.
Like so much D/s/cs say and do, “our democracy” is not only a lie, but a warning we’d be foolish to ignore.
Mike McDaniel is a USAF veteran, classically trained musician, Japanese and European fencer, life-long athlete, firearm instructor, retired police officer and high school and college English teacher. His home blog is Stately McDaniel Manor.