Last week we celebrated the Fourth of July, remembering the day in 1776 when our founding fathers signed the Declaration of Independence. The third sentence of that august document states that “Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed.” This was the key innovation of our republican experiment. In a divinely ordained monarchy, authority derives from God; the people are there to be ruled by and serve the monarch. But in the system of government envisioned by America’s founding fathers, political leaders exist to represent and serve the people.

This can be a fragile ideal. George Washington could have shattered it right from the get go had he wanted to hang onto power. But instead he relinquished his position and retired with honor when the time was right, a choice that—more than any other—made him a foundational hero of American democracy.

Though this principle has survived many crises since then, today it faces arguably its greatest threat yet. Donald Trump has already tried to roll back our democracy once. Now he’s running with an explicit plan to do so, and with the twisted authority of the Supreme Court to back him up.

This kind of dangerously blind loyalty from some Democrats right now is not just disturbing, it’s dangerous.

Of course, to realize his dark vision, Trump needs to win in November. So the most terrifying thing about our current moment is that the presumptive Democratic nominee, President Joe Biden, is by every objective measure, on track to lose reelection. His 37% approval rating makes him historically unpopular, three quarters of Americans do not believe he has the cognitive health to be president, he is consistently losing in swing state polls (where he is polling far behind other Democrats), and his disastrous debate and interview performances show that he is not up to the task of effectively prosecuting the case against Donald Trump.

In this context, it’s easy to understand the anger many Americans have felt at the Democrats—some at high levels within the party but also worryingly large numbers at the grassroots—who’ve been insisting that President Biden deserves our unconditional support.

This is a dangerous claim to make on behalf of any political leader. In a democracy, no individual politician deserves unconditional support. That’s the whole idea behind a government “deriving [its] just powers from the consent of the governed.” Our leaders serve us, not the other way........

© Common Dreams