Democracy is under threat from slow-moving authoritarianism, which often goes unnoticed by many educated individuals. They assume democracy is secure as long as elections occur and criticism is allowed. However, political scientists refer to this as democratic backsliding, leading to 'competitive authoritarianism' where the ruling party manipulates institutions and laws for power consolidation. Over time, actions previously deemed shocking become routine, exemplifying the erosion of liberal democratic values. Trump's actions illustrate this concerning trend, marking a significant departure from established democratic norms and practices.
Many highly educated Americans share my friend's intuition. They believe that if elections are occurring and criticism of the president is not banned outright, then democracy is not under threat.
Political scientists who study democracy have a term that clarifies the phenomenon: democratic backsliding. Backslide far enough, and you end up in something called 'competitive authoritarianism.'
Elections are still held, but the ruling party has commandeered so many institutions in society, and has violated so many laws to enhance its own power, that the opposition hardly stands a chance.
Trump took or was revealed to have taken six shocking new assaults on liberal democracy. They would have been shocking, anyway, before he spent a decade bludgeoning our civic nerve endings to the point where these things now register as mere routine politics.
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