Because people allowed this to happen, the current administration is now more emboldened than its recent predecessors ever have been.
https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/read-the-full-supreme-...
This is what happens when “rule of law” is subverted on the generational scale — eg, by enabling illicit mass migration opposed by the majority of the people. They eventually feel that appeals to “rule of law” are merely emotional manipulation used against them and stop caring in pursuit of a solution to what they perceive as a problem.
What did people expect to happen?
> Venezuela's Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello said on Friday that none of the hundreds of Venezuelans deported by the U.S. to a Salvadoran prison is a member of Venezuela's Tren de Aragua criminal gang, the reason Washington gave for expelling them.
> "I believe with absolute responsibility that not a single one appears on the organizational chart of the now-extinct Tren de Aragua organization, not a single one," Cabello said on a podcast, saying he had names of the deportees from U.S. media and his own source.
> Venezuela says Tren de Aragua was effectively wiped out in 2023, and that the idea that it still exists is based on a claim from the country's political opposition.
Due process is important for protecting the innocent, but due process is also important because it documents the crimes of the guilty.
Yeah, yeah, Godwin's Law and all that, but the similarities with mid-20th century fascism are undeniable here. The administration specifically started with targeting a small, well-defined minority (that is, people in the US illegally, or at least purported to be here illegally), and then extended to valid visa holders (what's the point of being on legal visa if it can be revoked at any moment with no judicial review and then you can be imprisoned for weeks/months) and now legal permanent residents. It's just classic creeping fascism.
It probably wouldn’t have seemed plausible to them that someone could be impeached twice and convicted of fraud, then win the popular vote.
Or more like there is no solution to this besides telling people to be vigilant about protecting their democracies.
[0] https://constitutioncenter.org/education/classroom-resource-...
Is there a theoretical situation where a single party gaining control is simply the will of the voters? That appears to be a potential valid outcome.
The issue is not that a single party has control; it’s that a single person has control, having purged that party of all disloyalty or contradiction, and is now proceeding to remake the entire government according to their rather erratic whims, with very little effective restraint.
>Is there a theoretical situation where a single party gaining control is simply the will of the voters?
Sure. But not with the current electoral college and its exploits, as well as literal election bribery that is publicly admitted to.
some reverence may simply be patriotism. I suppose it's no different than any other kinds of celebrity style of worship. people like a role model.
Fundamentally, patriotism is no different than other kinds of celebrity worship, but practically, more people are willing to do terrible things in the name of patriotism than they are for any A List celebrity. Can substitute patriotism with religion as well. Patriotism seems more akin to religion to me, now that I think of it. I don't know if that is good or bad.
I’ve lived in the USA and saw the Iowa caucus and election process up close. For a country that was the self proclaimed arbitrator of democracy all over the world, I’m shocked how fragile their own checks-and-balances system is. The lack of opposition to this complete takeover is astounding. I hope USA survives this phase and comes out stronger and more resilient to further such events.
Media is the practice of including and excluding voices, and there are distinct trends over time of representing one or another set of voices.
The same people supporting Trump, from national thought leaders like Heritage and the Federalist society, to Murdoch publications (Fos, WSJ), to everyday people on social media have long pushed hard for expanded Second Amendment rights, expended freedom of religion which outweighs all other considerations and rights, and freedom of speech, etc. for right-wing hate speech (including their focus on social media moderation) - just as examples.
People tab:
"I love our founding fathers": https://x.com/Stephan73992604
"Founding Fathers daily": https://x.com/FFoundersDaily
Someone with [heart] founding fathers: https://x.com/JKernerOT
Top tweets:
Rush Limbaugh: https://x.com/LimbaughLegacy/status/1906424705336180913
"ThePatrioticBlonde": https://x.com/ImBreckWorsham/status/1904301594717651038
And an actual anti-semite: https://x.com/GnoticeUs/status/1906465034823499806
And the most recent:
https://x.com/SwampFox1795/status/1906554560094576889 https://x.com/tablewithannie/status/1906554512472736060 https://x.com/jp_peter51132/status/1906555671040102769
The ultra-nationalists love national myth and imagery. Always have. See the picture: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1939_Nazi_rally_at_Madison_Squ...
Displays of nationalism and patriotism is mostly just a disciplining tactic by authoritarians who want unquestioning loyalty simply by displaying superficial symbols and gestures.
It's a way to claim the authority of the dead, to manufacture legitimacy through association. So now you're questioning the flag as opposed to the person waving it telling you what to do.