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Citizens have a huge amount of power within the government, being able to vote in elections and pursue ballot initiatives. How is that not a democracy?

scarface74 3y ago
Citizens don’t. Because of two senators per state, people in sparsely populated states have far more power than people living in larger states. Even within states since people are concentrated in urban areas, it’s easy for the minority to engage in gerrymandering so that the rural population voting power is more than urban voters. That’s not to mention the fact that even in conservative states, on singular issues like abortion, drug legalization and the right for felons to vote, the population runs to the left of the legislation. When those initiatives are put on the ballot, they win. So the legislators in those states are making it harder for initiatives to get on the ballots. You can look at states like Texas that are taking more power out of the hands of the city. https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/4007362-texas-passes-bill-stripping-authority-from-cities/ https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/4007362-texas-passe...
chrisco255 3y ago
We don't have ballot initiatives at the federal level. The US is a democratic republic, so it's a bit pedantic, but if you had to classify as one or the other the U.S. is a republic.
- ianburrell 3y ago
  Republic means not having a monarch. The US is a representative democracy. So is the United Kingdom, but they are a monarchy.
  - chrisco255 3y ago
    No, that's not what a republic means. The U.S. is a republic. It is mentioned explicitly in the U.S. Constitution in Article 4, Section 4: "The United States shall guarantee to every State in this Union a Republican Form of Government, and shall protect each of them against Invasion; and on Application of the Legislature, or of the Executive (when the Legislature cannot be convened) against domestic Violence." As mentioned, the definitions of republics and democracies have blurred over the years as people often use them interchangeably. Republics have representatives. Just as the ancient Roman Republic did, with its famous Senate. Pure democracies run on majority rule and direct voting on laws. https://constitution.congress.gov/browse/essay/artIV-S4-1/ALDE_00013635/['republic https://constitution.congress.gov/browse/essay/artIV-S4-1/AL...'] https://constitution.congress.gov/search/republic https://constitution.congress.gov/search/republic

scarface74 3y ago

Citizens don’t. Because of two senators per state, people in sparsely populated states have far more power than people living in larger states. Even within states since people are concentrated in urban areas, it’s easy for the minority to engage in gerrymandering so that the rural population voting power is more than urban voters. That’s not to mention the fact that even in conservative states, on singular issues like abortion, drug legalization and the right for felons to vote, the population runs to the left of the legislation. When those initiatives are put on the ballot, they win. So the legislators in those states are making it harder for initiatives to get on the ballots. You can look at states like Texas that are taking more power out of the hands of the city. https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/4007362-texas-passes-bill-stripping-authority-from-cities/ https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/4007362-texas-passe...

chrisco255 3y ago

We don't have ballot initiatives at the federal level. The US is a democratic republic, so it's a bit pedantic, but if you had to classify as one or the other the U.S. is a republic.

ianburrell 3y ago
Republic means not having a monarch. The US is a representative democracy. So is the United Kingdom, but they are a monarchy.
- chrisco255 3y ago
  No, that's not what a republic means. The U.S. is a republic. It is mentioned explicitly in the U.S. Constitution in Article 4, Section 4: "The United States shall guarantee to every State in this Union a Republican Form of Government, and shall protect each of them against Invasion; and on Application of the Legislature, or of the Executive (when the Legislature cannot be convened) against domestic Violence." As mentioned, the definitions of republics and democracies have blurred over the years as people often use them interchangeably. Republics have representatives. Just as the ancient Roman Republic did, with its famous Senate. Pure democracies run on majority rule and direct voting on laws. https://constitution.congress.gov/browse/essay/artIV-S4-1/ALDE_00013635/['republic https://constitution.congress.gov/browse/essay/artIV-S4-1/AL...'] https://constitution.congress.gov/search/republic https://constitution.congress.gov/search/republic