The primary difference is that a republic is a system of government where power is exercised by elected representatives and limited by a constitution, which protects minority rights from the will of the majority. A democracy (in its "pure" or direct form) is a system where the majority rules directly, with fewer inherent protections for the minority. Most modern nations, including the United States, are actually best described as a hybrid: a representative democracy (a type of democracy where the people elect representatives to make laws) that also functions as a constitutional republic (a republic governed by a supreme law). The terms are often used interchangeably today.
The point being, as a Benjamin Franklin stated at the close of the Constitutional Convention, we have a "A republic, if you can keep it". We are a Republic governed by a Constitution which both Trump and the Congress are defying.
Well, then - it's a good thing that we're NOT a democracy, we're a representative republic .
ReplyDeleteThe primary difference is that a republic is a system of government where power is exercised by elected representatives and limited by a constitution, which protects minority rights from the will of the majority. A democracy (in its "pure" or direct form) is a system where the majority rules directly, with fewer inherent protections for the minority.
DeleteMost modern nations, including the United States, are actually best described as a hybrid: a representative democracy (a type of democracy where the people elect representatives to make laws) that also functions as a constitutional republic (a republic governed by a supreme law). The terms are often used interchangeably today.
The point being, as a Benjamin Franklin stated at the close of the Constitutional Convention, we have a "A republic, if you can keep it". We are a Republic governed by a Constitution which both Trump and the Congress are defying.