Abstract
This is a research paper that aims at investigating whether America is a perfect democracy. The researcher hypothesizes that in an ideal democracy, the citizens and the foreigners are delighted with the system. The paper seeks to understand; first is there voter suppression in America, secondly is there deep polarization between democrats and republicans, thirdly do America interferes with other countries’ democracies, fourthly is there a conflict between America and other countries, and finally, the paper explores the harmful use of money in American campaigns.
A thorough investigation of the research has shown that America is not a perfect democracy based on how it conducts its elections and interacts with other countries. The country has been suppressing voters recently from marginalized communities by creating laws that make it hard for certain people to vote. America has also been implicated in foreign interference and supporting some warring regimes. The division between Democrats and Republicans has become hatred, making the country more polarized. Finally, the country’s campaigns have been full of bribery and corruption, making them less democratic. The conclusion, therefore, was that America is not a perfect democracy as many of its citizens are unsatisfied with the way of voting and administration.
Is America a Perfect Democracy?
The topic of democracy has been a subject of discussion for a very long time. Democracy is a system of governance that has been there for many years, but people still do not seem to understand it. Pertinent issues are raised on what true democracy should be, and questions have appeared about countries that claim to be democratic. America has been argued to be the most democratic nation due to frequent free and fair elections and their separation of power. America is used to scrutinize the function of democracy as it can clearly show its strength and weaknesses.
While investigating democracy, several considerations should be considered on the topic. An investigator must consider the different interpretations of democracy according to context and region. Other people have varying ideas of what democracy should be, and they judge its applications differently (Xin, 2022). What may appear right among certain people may also be very wrong in the eyes of other people. For instance, some people believe that democracy is just about direct representation, where people vote for the decisions they want. Others believe democracy is about electing a few people to represent their interests. The American democracy is, therefore, an excellent system for people to learn about what the system can and cannot achieve.
Research Questions
This research paper will address the following issues of American democracy. Firstly, has voting in America been entirely fair, or is the accusation of voter suppression and exclusion of marginalized groups real? Could we be living in a lie that America has the best policies about elections, or is the country great in electoral justice? Secondly, the researcher will investigate the division and polarization between the Democrats and Republicans. The different approaches in certain aspects, such as social, cultural, economic, and foreign policies, will be investigated. The third issue investigated in democracy will be foreign interference with other countries. On this topic, we shall explore how America has been interfering with other democracies and how other countries have been interfering with American democracy. Fourthly the points of conflict between America and other countries are explored. The researcher investigates the various disputes affecting other countries, and how America has dealt with them shall be investigated. Whether America is a source of conflict or peace shall be explored. Finally, the paper shall explore whether money controls the politics of America. Does money play a role in influencing American democracy, especially elections?
Hypothesis and Thesis Statement
In a country with respect for the rule of law and a perfect democracy, people must be pleased. An ideal democracy is likely to cause joy to even other countries. However, a perfect democracy is only possible if the players perfectly follow the provision of democracy and act in the ways they are supposed to. American democracy is not an ideal democracy since it has brought many feelings of dissatisfaction to the residents of America and the international citizens.
Why America is Not a Perfect Democracy
America has for a long time used legal and illegal means to prevent some citizens from exercising their right to vote. Historically the state has used local governments and influential individuals to deny some people from a specific region, race, gender, and economic fractions from voting. Before the Fifteenth Amendment of 1870, black and Native Americans had been reprieved their rights to vote. Black men in America voted for the first time after the amendment despite America having been a ‘democracy’ for about 100 years. However, not all states allowed black people, mainly formerly enslaved, to vote immediately after the amendment. Women, at the same time, were denied the right to vote for many years until 1920, before the nineteenth amendment. Therefore, America denied men from minority groups and women their right to vote for more than 100 years after it was declared independent.
In modern America, the states and some sections of the population have been denying certain people the right to vote by enacting barriers. Some of these laws target specific fractions of the population from registering to vote and eventually casting their votes. Today in America, many eligible voters fail to vote due to regulations and restrictions set to discriminate against some people (Aclu, 2021). Some strategies are hidden, and their intentions may be hard to identify. Such plans include too much strictness on voter ID laws and voter registration.
Voter registration restriction is a standard method used to curb people from voting. When the election cycle begins, voters sometimes are forced to provide many documents to prove citizenship or identification. For instance, in 2011, a weird law was introduced in Kansans that required citizens to prove their citizenship. The politicians had claimed that there was voter fraud that needed strict measures to stop it. Subsequently, about 30,000 are blocklisted from voting. Regions such as Tennessee have also set dubious registration processes and criminalized those who do not follow the process (ACLU, 2021). Such efforts discourage the number of people applying and registering to vote.
Some states have been discouraging voting by making the voting process tiresome and hectic. For instance, it is now a crime in Georgia to provide food and water to voters queuing to vote (ACLU, 2021). Coincidentally most of the regions where such strict rules exist are inhabited by people from minority groups such as blacks. Heavy penalties are made for simple errors during voting; hence, people avoid voting due to fear of prosecution.
Voter purges have existed in many scenarios whereby poll officials purport to clean up voter rolls. This method has been used in many scenarios for disenfranchisement and to remove voters from rolls without adequate reasons and notices. The voter purge and clean-up are often carried out inaccurately and have flaws (ACLU, 2021). Such actions are not meant to promote democracy but to deny sections of the population from voting.
America’s history of polarization is not ending but is becoming deeper daily. America has long been divided into Republican and Democrat ideological lines. The division has gone deeper even daily, and many people have different negative views towards the other sides. Most people on the Republican side admit to disliking their counterparts on the Democratic side and vice versa. The competition between the democrats and republicans has, in most cases, become that of hate and get personal.
When one party is on the reign, members from other parties often feel aggrieved and disappointed. Competition between the Republicans and the Democrats has complicated bipartisanism and collaboration among members of the public and politicians. Some people even need to be more cooperative when it comes to following the policies of a given government. Making good policies becomes very hard for the country when there is a supremacy battle between the Republican and Democratic sides. Competition may be good for the social-economic development of a nation.
America has tainted its image and reputation to promote democracy and human rights to other countries. The country’s effort to promote democracy has led to many concerns and doubts and invited hatred from other countries (Choi & James, 2016). Most of the steps to intervene and bring changes in other countries have led to the collapse of regimes and the emergence of wars. Great human suffering has been witnessed in Libya, Iraq, and Afghanistan; in cases such as Libya, the United States interfered with an administration that was doing fine and left havoc among the citizens. Although Muammar Gaddafi was ruthless to his opposition, he did not attack innocent civilians; however, US interventions were negatively felt by everyone, including the innocent (Guiora, 2020). The United States did not show good examples in the way it handled the different countries it intervened in cases of restoring peace and democracy. The actions of the United States regarding other countries cannot be described as true democracy.
The United States has shown biasness in dealing with some of the countries. Sometimes the United States has been seen to push specific geo-political and strategic issues. The United States has acted aggressively against some countries, especially those that go against its agenda. In many cases, the government has been bipartisan in specific domestic conflicts. Supporting or propping certain regimes often worsens the countries as these regimes sometimes become cruel and brutal to citizens. The united states have also been applying double standards in its self-acquired duty of being the moral officer. Some countries have been violating human rights, and the United States has been silent on them while intervening too quickly in other scenarios.
The use of money in America has dominated political campaigns for a long time. Today’s voting scene is dominated by billionaires from various sectors who pour billions of cash to influence the outcome of elections. Unfortunately, many voters need to learn the people’s identity and intentions. Wealthy donors and interest groups have become critical stakeholders in the politics of America, even when most of them fight for their interests.
In American politics, money has also been used to lobby development and push for individual and group interests. Most rich people ensure they are in the government by sponsoring one or bribing politicians to pass policies in their favor. In America, business people have become power brokers who invest in politicians to support their business deals (Foreman,2018). Political action committees are also other avenues that politicians misuse to raise money, often used to endorse or oppose certain politicians. PACs have resulted in daytime lobbying and exchanging goodies to influence political decisions. American politics has also been influenced by dark money that is not accounted for, and some are mainly a result of widespread corruption in the region.
Counter Arguments
There have been arguments on the issue of voter suppression that America has been setting strict voting rules for accountability. Some people believe the strictness of registration and the voting process is meant to make elections fair. Other people have also claimed that America has been at the forefront of expanding voting rights and should not be accused of voter suppression.
On the issue of polarization, having different political sects has been appreciated by some people as a way of enhancing democracy. Competition has been regarded as a crucial component of democracy. Party Pluralism has also been hailed as a perfect form of democracy, and compared to other countries, American democracy has been termed commendable.
About interference with other countries’ democracy, supporters of the USA democracy have said the United States has done more good than harm. Although America interferes with other countries’ democracies, it has assisted a lot in stabilizing other countries. Supporters of these claims argue that America was at the forefront of building international institutions such as the United Nations, which have become vital in promoting world democracy.
On the issue of promoting violence in other countries, Counter arguments have been made on our crucial role in promoting peace and stability around the world.US has been a humanitarian helper to many countries worldwide. There is also the argument that refusing to intervene in some instances would have caused more harm than good for those countries. It is hard to know whether the war would have stopped in certain countries if the USA did not intervene.
Arguments on the use of money in America’s politics are exaggerated. Supporters of this argument have stated that millions of money are used in the country’s politics because of its size and population. There is also the claim that America is one of the few countries with a regulated amount of money used in campaigns.
Conclusion
In conclusion, America is not a perfect democracy. Firstly, the country has been suppressing some voters by enacting and supporting restrictive laws. Secondly, the government has been interfering with other countries internal affairs. Thirdly there is a lot of polarization in the land between the supporters of the Democratic and Republican parties. Fourthly the government needs to be a better peace ambassador as it has contributed to aggravating war in some regions. Finally, money has been part of American politics, and therefore some decisions are influenced by acts such as bribery.
References
ACLU. (2021, September 29). Block the vote: How politicians are trying to block voters from the ballot box | News & commentary | American Civil Liberties Union. American Civil Liberties Union. https://www.aclu.org/news/civil-liberties/block-the-vote-voter-suppression-in-2020
Choi, S., & James, P. (2016). Why does the United States intervene abroad? Democracy, human rights violations, and terrorism. Journal of Conflict Resolution, 60(5), 899-926. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022002714560350
Foreman, C. (2018). Money in Politics: Campaign Finance and Its Influence Over the Political Pr political Process and Public P process and Public Policy, 52 UIC J. Marshall L. Re, 52 UIC J. Marshall L. Rev. 185.
Guiora, A. N. (2012). Intervention in Libya, yes; Intervention in Syria, no: Deciphering the Obama administration. SSRN Electronic Journal. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.1993322
Xin, X. (2022). The distinction between true and false democracy. International Critical Thought, 12(2), 189-198. https://doi.org/10.1080/21598282.2022.2086759
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