Is the United States Still a Democracy?

President Donald Trump is stirring up trouble both at home and abroad, but is he doing so to bring order out of chaos? Or to create chaos out of order? He is also intent on turning the United States into a corporation, not only collecting debts from Ukraine but putting the “con” in “economy” and the “me” in “America First” by issuing certain people “gold card” visas. Even so, his greater concern is probably with securing his reelection. After all, both Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin have amended their constitutions to extend their terms in office. Can Trump still be seen as a strongman if he is unable to do the same?

First of all, Trump is a felon, which is already shocking enough and would break with tradition in many countries — yet his supporters remain unfazed. But will he end up in jail after leaving office? The prospect has undoubtedly fueled his desire for reelection, pushing him to take desperate measures. Under the 22nd Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, a president cannot be reelected beyond a second term, and while the threshold for amending the Constitution is a high one, it would not be an impossible scenario if Republicans secure a landslide victory in the 2026 midterm elections.

Trump could also declare a state of emergency to suspend the election and extend his power, citing reasons such as national security, war or civil unrest. As far as stirring up conflict abroad is concerned, there are many hot spots around the world that could lend themselves to Trump’s designs, and Taiwan would be no exception. When the time comes, much will depend on the position taken by military leadership; thus,Trump’s recent purge of top U.S. military officials is probably linked.

As for the issue of civil war in the U.S., this has actually been brewing for some time. As early as 2021, Barbara F. Walter, a CIA consultant specializing in political unrest and terrorism and a political science professor at the University of California, San Diego, warned that American society was severely divided and increasingly on the road to domestic warfare; her most recent book, “How Civil Wars Start: And How to Stop Them” came out in early 2022. With Trump inciting populism, will the country really go down that path?

Additionally, Trump has been cracking down on press freedoms. Recently, the White House barred media outlets including the Associated Press and Reuters from covering cabinet meetings and traveling on Air Force One because they refused to accept Trump’s renaming of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America. The Associated Press filed a lawsuit in response, but the case did not develop as it had hoped when a federal judge rejected the request to restore its White House press access.

What is more, The Washington Post, owned by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, recently announced that its opinion section would no longer carry articles with views opposed to free markets and “personal liberties.” The decision has raised questions about freedom of the press, with its potential for interfering with media independence and freedom of expression.

The U.S. Supreme Court is composed of six conservative and three liberal justices — clearly the most conservative majority since the 20th century — so when cases in the U.S. are appealed to the highest court in the land, it can only be beneficial to Trump. But it could also trigger nationwide protests and increased unrest. The stakes are extremely high, but for Trump, nothing seems to be impossible.

It can be seen that Trump has consolidated power across the three branches of government, and his actions are so controversial that information has already emerged concerning plots to assassinate both him and Elon Musk. Such a political culture is a stark departure from the U.S. of the past and the norms of typical democratic countries.