Behind the Failure of American Democracy

Published in Cankao Xiaoxi
(China) on 24 November 2020
by Zhang Weiwei (link to originallink to original)
Translated from by Enshia Li. Edited by Helaine Schweitzer.

 

 

 

On Nov. 23, General Services Administrator Emily W. Murphy advised Joe Biden and his team that the Donald Trump administration had made preparations to officially begin the transition process. The same evening, the Trump administration confirmed this over social media, but Trump himself has yet to admit that he has lost the election and continues to challenge the election results.

After the disaster and confusion of this election, the American people have decidedly lost their moral high ground. Many Western media outlets blame this on Trump. According to The New York Times, Trump’s attempts to subvert the results of the U.S. election have destroyed American democracy. The United Kingdom’s Financial Times also reported that Trump’s refusal to accept the results of the election is a threat to American democracy.

All along, America has presented itself as a model of democratic norms for other nations, pointing to the supposed lack of freedom and equality in other countries. However, as recent events have shown us, American democracy is not immune to failure. Its image has already been severely damaged on the world stage, and the U.S. will be hard-pressed to point its finger at other countries in the future.

American democracy does indeed have a big problem. Even the American people are losing faith in their system. According to polls of the public, only 55% of Americans believe that the election was held in a “just and legal” manner, and 25% of respondents believe instead that the election was either rigged or unduly influenced by illegal ballots. It’s no wonder that The New York Times reports that American democracy is on the verge of collapse.

It takes more than a single cold day to freeze the surface of a river 3 inches deep. The failure of American democracy is not a random occurrence, and ultimately blame cannot be attributed to only one U.S. president. In reality, democracy in the U.S. has been on the decline since the last days of the Cold War. A study by Cambridge University shows that U.S. citizens' dissatisfaction with America’s democratic government has been rising steadily since 1995, from 25% in 1995 to 50% today. Behind this number lies chronic structural issues involving U.S. governance.

The most pressing issue for American politics is the influence of money in elections. “One person, one vote” sounds morally sound in the abstract, but in reality, elections are controlled by the mounting influence of money. This time around, more than $13.9 billion poured into the 2020 election, the greatest amount in American history. The influence of money in politics leads to a severe distortion of public opinion, and ultimately voting becomes nothing but a game for the rich. Ordinary people are entirely forgotten. It comes as no surprise that the public questions the presence of “dirty money” in their democracy.

Experts believe that the “winner takes all” electoral system is an innate flaw of American democracy. The result of the U.S. election largely depends on the Electoral College; the winner of the Electoral College does, indeed, take all. The candidate who wins the majority of the vote takes the election, meaning that the candidate does not need to consider the needs of the American people writ large. This system only increases political polarization and drives U.S. politicians to create division within society. American society cannot reconcile differences among its citizens; rather, it makes them worse.

American democracy is ill, and not just a little. Trump’s post-election actions have revealed the disintegration of democracy for what it is, but the decay started long ago.

As for what Americans ought to do in the face of this decay, prominent political theorist Larry Diamond states, “American democracy is getting old, but that is only a part of the problem. . . . We should have updated our structures long ago, learning from other countries around the world.”*

*Editor’s note: Although accurately translated, this remark by Larry Diamond could not be independently verified.


参考消息网11月24日报道 美国总务管理局局长墨菲23日通知拜登及其团队,特朗普政府已做好准备正式开始政权过渡进程。特朗普当天傍晚在社交媒体上证实这一消息,但他没有承认自己在大选中落败,表示将继续挑战选举结果。

经过此次大选的纷纷扰扰,美式民主被认为彻底走下了“神坛”。不少西方媒体将此归咎为特朗普。美国《纽约时报》批评称,特朗普寻求颠覆大选结果的努力,破坏了美国的民主。英国《金融时报》也发表社评称,“特朗普不承认败选危及美国民主”。

美国向来以“民主教师爷”自居,经常指责其他国家的选举“不自由、不公正”,但最近的事态发展表明,美国对民主失灵并不免疫,美式民主在全世界的形象遭受重创已经成为事实。美国再也难以理直气壮地对其他国家的选举指手画脚。

美式民主确实出了大问题。就连美国民众对民主的信心也空前弱化。有民调显示,只有55%的美国成人相信此次大选是“合法且正确的”,甚至有28%的受访者认为这场选举“是违法投票或者是选举操弄的结果”。无怪乎美国《纽约时报》刊文称,美国民主制度正“处在崩溃边缘”。

冰冻三尺,非一日之寒。美式民主的失灵不是偶然的,也并非特朗普的一己之力将它置于险境。实际上,在冷战结束之后不久,美式民主就在一步步地走向衰落。剑桥大学的调查显示,美国民众对民主的不满自1995年开始逐渐上升,从1995年的25%上升至今年的50%。而在这一数据背后,则是美式民主的痼疾和先天不足。

美式民主最积重难返的痼疾在于金钱政治。“一人一票”的美式民主听起来冠冕堂皇,但其实早已被金钱淹没,而且呈愈演愈烈之势。本次美国大选花费高达139亿美元,是有史以来最为昂贵的选举。金钱政治大行其道的后果是民意受到严重扭曲,所谓的民主选举最终沦为了富人的游戏,政治走向和政策选择完全由富人主导,普通民众的利益受到忽视。充满“铜臭味”的美式民主遭到民众质疑,一点都不让人觉得讶异。

有专家认为,“赢者通吃”的选举制度是美式民主先天不足所带来的硬伤。美国总统选举的最终结果取决于主要遵循“赢者通吃”规则的“选举人团制度”。这就意味着参选人只需要去争取比对手更多的支持,而不用去考虑整个国家和民众的利益诉求。这一制度强化了美国两大党之间的两极化程度,客观上驱使美国政客在社会中煽动和制造对立。面对巨大的社会分歧,美式民主制度不仅难以将其弥合,反而可能会让社会更加撕裂。

美式民主病了,而且病得不轻,但它得的是慢性病,特朗普在大选前后的种种表现,最多只不过是扯下了美式民主的最后一块遮羞布而已。

针对这样的现实,美国著名政治学者拉里·戴蒙德最近也表示:“美国民主已经上了年纪,这正是问题的一部分……我们也早就应该更新我们的民主机制,向世界各地其他民主国家学习。”
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