Punk Is Killing Democracy Single Handed

Believe it or not, this isn’t an opinion piece, though we’re due for one. The editorially bored happen to agree with the headline, but we aren’t the ones making that determination (this time). President Felonious Punk has been judged by people smarter than him (not difficult) and smarter than most of us when it comes to matters of democracy. They determine that Punk has done in a matter of days what has taken other dictators years to achieve. This is not a good position to be in and if the rest of this story makes you uncomfortable, that may be a good thing.

A recent global democracy report warns that the US may lose its democracy status next year. The report highlights concerns over actions by Trump, including pardoning supporters and removing watchdogs. Experts note a rapid shift towards authoritarianism. The judiciary’s role will be crucial in preventing this transition. While the US remains a ‘Liberal Democracy’ currently, that status could be lost should the judicial branch fail to protect from Executive authoritarianism.

The Varieties of Democracy analysis, based at Sweden’s University of Gothenburg, shows a shift that may have the US losing its high-ranking “Liberal Democracy” status, with experts warning that the democracy of the country may be on the verge of collapse. Each year, Varieties of Democracy takes a look at all the countries claiming to be democratic. They consider more than just the status of elections but how the country functions under the leadership of its head of state. This year, the US doesn’t score well.

“If it continues like this, the United States will not score as a democracy when we release [next year’s] data,” said Staffan Lindberg, head of the Varieties of Democracy project. If that sounds a bit terrifying, you’re not going to like what was said next. “If it continues like this, democracy [there] will not last another six months.” 

SIX MONTHS! He’s got to be kidding, right?

Uhm, no. His project includes 31 million data points for 202 countries, compiled by 4,200 scholars and other contributors, measuring 600 different attributes of democracy. This year’s analysis only covers through the end of 2024, but the number of autocracies (91) has just surpassed democracies (88) on this list for the first time in two decades, and nearly three-quarters of humans now live in an autocracy — where one person has unconstrained power — the highest rate in five decades. The world as a whole has taken an autocratic shift, a fact that should scare everyone on the planet. As a society, we’re moving backward.

The report still refers to the first several days of Punk’s presidency as ‘unprecedented’ and lists a number of reasons why. Pardoning 1,500 criminals who supported him; firing independent agency watchdogs without process; purging apolitical police and military brass; ignoring laws; and unilaterally deleting federal programs, and even a whole organization, created by U.S. Congress. He’s just called his predecessor’s pardons void and vacated. He gave a bitterly partisan speech at the Department of Justice, demanding the prosecution of the media and certain adversaries. He threatened numerous universities with sanctions. He invoked a 227-year-old war measures law during peacetime — for the first time — to deport accused gang members without due process. And, most importantly, when that deportation plan wound up in court, he may have — although it’s still in dispute — defied a court order, cracking the ultimate constitutional safeguard.

George Washington University professor Michael Miller used the term “electoral autocracy” for America with Punk in control, as per the report. He also mentioned that the US could be referred to as a “weak democracy.” While Miller cautioned that even if Trump won an election, fair and square, most autocracies have multi-party elections, according to the report. He explained that even in an electoral autocracy, people can vote, they can protest, and they can also criticize the government, but at a price, as per CBC.

Miller said, “That price is the fear of retaliation: losing your job, public funding, or a contract. Over time, fear takes hold, and people — including powerful media owners — start to self-censor,”

The current case of the administration’s ongoing lawsuit against CBS owner Paramount is a perfect example. The government’s case is specifically against the long-running news program, ’60 Minutes.’ “This may be a lawsuit that is designed to intimidate, but they [CBS/Paramount] are clearly making a statement that they will not be intimidated,” said Tom Bettag, a longtime television news producer who worked under Mike Wallace and Morley Safer at the CBS show.

Paramount Global filed new motions in the past two weeks to get both the lawsuit and the FCC probe dismissed. Still, Shari Redstone, head of Paramount, is reportedly anxious for a settlement, much like Disney agreed to pay $16 million in December to end Trump’s lawsuit against ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos. Complicating matters is Paramount’s proposed merger with Skydance Media, which needs approval from the administration.

Speculation runs high as to whether Paramount will cave as Disney/ABC did. Doing so would send a strong signal to the White House that none of the major media outlets are going to stand in their way. Already, owners of the Washington Post and Los Angeles Times have cut editorials that were critical of the administration.

Only the Judicial Branch stands to block a complete Punk takeover. As we discussed earlier today, judges at every level have been pushing back hard against the blatantly unconstitutional actions of the White House. The Department of Justice (DOJ), however, is pushing hard to get in front of the Supreme Court. All it would take is winning one case at that level for the Punk administration to make the authoritarian switch complete.

Fortunately, the Judicial Branch doesn’t move as fast as the Executive Branch. There may still be sufficient time to mount a reasonable opposition in Congress if only there were enough backbones in that gaggle of pasty fat and celluloid to do so. So far, even the most vocal Democrats have remained silent on the issue.

We’re in a high-stakes standoff that can’t last forever. Trump may find new ways to sidestep court orders, but sooner or later, there will be a direct clash with a judge, Miller said. “They’re saying, ‘We’re obeying the court order’ — wink, wink,” Miller said. “I don’t think they’re ever going to come out and say, ‘We’re ignoring a court order.’… [But] at some point it becomes unsustainable.” 

Opinion is irrelevant at this point. Stopping this administration has to be the priority for everyone in the US. Our democracy depends upon it.