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Opinion
Messy aftermath of Trump’s election defeat shows US democracy is working, not failing
- The doomsayers fail to grasp that American democracy is not so brittle that the behaviour of one president can break it
- What Trump is doing is messy but also democracy in its purest form and denying him the right to challenge the result would erode, rather than bolster, democracy
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Michael Chugani is a Hong Kong journalist and TV show host
Prophets of doom are crawling out of the woodwork to declare the death of American democracy. They cite US President Donald Trump’s refusal to admit that Joe Biden won the election as proof the United States has lost its moral authority to preach democracy to others.
It’s not just US-bashers who are gloating at the messy aftermath of the election. Even respected commentators such as Larry Diamond of Stanford University and David Frum of The Atlantic have used descriptors like “rot” and “broken” to trash the US political system.
I am not in the same league as these experts. They are far more qualified to judge the US political system. All I have as an American is a deep faith in my country’s democracy and a gut feeling that, rather than die, post-election soul-searching will lead to its rejuvenation.
Many who rushed to erect tombstones for American democracy and global leadership have based their case on Trump’s mercurial leadership which has divided the country, alienated allies and fanned racial hatred. They fail to understand that American democracy is not so brittle that the behaviour of one president can break it.
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