Despite the upcoming trials of Donald Trump, the American Democrats seem to have little to gain from the situation. In the end, it will be up to the American voters to decide whether Donald Trump and his Republican Party should be held accountable for their conduct in the last presidential election.
On 1 August 2023, the US Department of Justice filed a lawsuit against Donald Trump. The federal court in Washington D.C. accuses Trump of conspiring to prevent the newly elected President of the United States, Joe Biden, from taking office.
States United Democracy Center
After this news, the reader might expect that Joe Biden and the Democrats no longer have a rival called Donald Trump. However, the American people are not sure whether these allegations are enough to remove Mr Trump from the race for the next presidency. Even a conservative newspaper, unpopular among Republicans for its criticism of Mr Trump, puts expectations into context: „It’s not even clear that Smith [the special counsel in charge] is proving anything the law prohibits.“
Is democracy under threat?
Looking at American elections, it is clear that the Democrats are less popular in rural areas. According to the polls, this is largely due to the fact that Democratic candidates are perceived as strange and too extreme by the average American. They do not seem to support American values such as patriotism, hard work and faith in God as convincingly as their Republican counterparts. In the campaign for the mid-term elections in November 2022, it became clear that the Democratic Party was more focused on outlining the wrongdoings of many Republican politicians and their threat to democracy.
On the other hand, Democratic proposals to curb crime and immigration seemed rather confusing. Yet these are issues that people in the United States deal with every day.
Biden’s popularity plummets
The incumbent US president’s popularity rating has been steadily declining in the run-up to the mid-term elections, reaching around 45% disapproval on the eve of the elections. One reason for this is undoubtedly continuing inflation, but Joe Biden’s age and often awkward public appearances are also factors.
Nor do the shady business practices and repeated law-breaking of Biden’s son, Hunter Biden, help matters. The Democrats should be demanding rigorous investigations into Hunter’s business dealings, not excusing them or even trying to cover them up. This practice plays into Donald Trump’s hands and undermines confidence in the impartial application of the law.
What do voters want?
Yet, despite all this, the Democrats had a surprisingly positive result in the mid-term elections, retaining their majority in the Senate but losing votes in the House of Representatives. Could it be that the American electorate is tired of seeing an influential person bending the truth to suit himself and spreading lies with impunity? Is it possible that Americans want to demonstrate that no one is above the law?
In a democracy, no one should be able to escape accountability. Otherwise, a precedent would be set for presidential candidates to enjoy impunity.
To the German translation of this article: US-Demokraten ohne Chancen?