Trump's Inauguration: Is he president, king or a tainted defendant?

Newly elected US President Donald Trump | Photo: Reuters

The year is 1787. The original architects of the newly independent United States gathered at the Convention Hall in Philadelphia. Eager men and women are milling around outside the hall. There is a heated debate about what the new state should be like. One day, Benjamin Franklin comes out of the hall. A frightened woman asks him, "Which is better, doctor, a republic or a monarchy?" Franklin replies, "A republic, if you can save it." 

238 years after that incident, Donald Trump is being sworn in as the 47th president of the United States in Washington on Monday. He is the first person in the long history of the United States to take office despite being convicted in a court of law. In other words, he is a convicted felon. 

Benjamin Franklin's concerns have not been proven true, the United States is still a republic. But the question of whether this country will truly remain a republic after spending the next four years under Trump is not entirely irrelevant. The famous political scientist William Gallstone believes, 'If we can somehow sustain our basic institutions for the next four years, then that will be a great success.' 

Not everyone is as optimistic as Gallstone. US constitutional expert Cal Gilson believes that Trump's first four years were hampered by resistance within the administration. There is no one to stop him in his second term. 'He was just as divisive and reckless in the first term, and he won't change in the second term.'

Republican Senator Mitt Romney made it even clearer. The attack on Capitol Hill by Trump and his followers on January 6, 2021, was a direct attack on democracy. Referring to that, Romney said, "I am much more concerned about the future of our democracy now than I was on January 6."

Trump himself has made it clear what he will do once he gets the power. He could not accept defeat to Joe Biden in the 2020 election. Now, sitting in power for the second time, he will avenge that insult. If necessary, he will become a 'dictator' for a day. He will take retaliatory action against the Justice Department officials who have investigated his illegal activities for the past four years. He will also take a hard look at the leaders of the opposition Democratic Party who have criticized him, such as former Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Even the journalists/commentators in newspapers and TV who have criticized him are also on this list.

These words cannot be said by an elected president of a republic, only by a king or emperor. Noting that the influential US human rights organization ACLU has said in an appeal to American citizens, 'Tell Congress that we elected a president, not a king.'

Many say that what Trump says is just words, he will not do anything in reality. Even as a first-term president, Trump said a lot of things, which he could not implement in the end. True, but at that time there were many experienced and seasoned members in his cabinet, whom we call 'adults in the room', band because of them, Trump's harmful intentions were not implemented. But this time there are none of those 'adults'. Moreover, both houses of Congress are now controlled by Republicans. The Supreme Court is also dominated by conservative judges who are considered his supporters. In other words, what we call the 'guardrails' or safety fences of democracy, there is nothing left.

This time, Trump has selectively appointed people to his cabinet who have earned this opportunity not because of experience or qualifications, but only because of personal loyalty to him. Matthew Waxman of Columbia University gives the example of Peter Hegseth, the head of the Department of Defense. He has no experience or qualifications to run a defense department with a budget of almost a trillion dollars and 300,000 people. 'This man is more skilled at running America's "culture war" than defense.'

Or consider Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the nominee for the Health Department. He is against all vaccines, including the one that has been proven effective only for COVID-19. He also opposes the use of fluoride in water, even though fluoride has been scientifically proven to be beneficial for teeth. Trump himself once called Kennedy Jr. “crazy” and compared him to a very annoying buzzing fly.

Trump has promised to begin deporting 125 million illegal immigrants from the day he takes office. If he tries to implement even a small part of this, it will cause unimaginable humanitarian disaster across the country and abroad. Most of these illegal immigrants have been living in this country for a long time, their children were born in this country, and are legal citizens of this country. Trump may win the hearts of his staunch supporters by saying, "All the illegals are gone," but the chaos that it will bring to the country will not be able to be resolved for many years. The New York Times said the whole thing is dangerous.

Most experts also consider Trump's promise to impose import tariffs to deter China a big mistake. If the United States throws a tariff stone, China is certain to throw a counter-stone. Referring to that, Chinese spokesman Liu Penghui said in Washington, "None of us will win in a tariff war or a trade war."

Not just a trade war, Trump is also considering taking over the Panama Canal and Greenland, by force if necessary. The man who came to power opposing all forms of war is now rolling up his sleeves for a 19th-century-style neo-colonial war.

Some experts, however, are reluctant to accept that everything is 'dark and gloomy'. As an old and worn-out democracy, the US system of governance has its own 'checks and balances'. Although this balanced system has failed at times over the past two hundred and fifteen years, it cannot be said that it has caused permanent damage. Nixon's Watergate, Trump's January 6th Capitol Hill riot, Andrew Jackson's Supreme Court ruling that was overturned, or George Bush's Patriot Act violations of civil rights—all these are black spots on the face of US democracy; but the country has not become a monarchy or a dictatorship.

Seventy-five million Americans trusted Trump and elected him. We may not have to wait long to see how Trump pays the price for that trust.