The political bickering is a threat to democracy

American politics  

Politicians as a threat to democracy  

Wolfgang Hansson  

This is a commenting text. Analysis and positions are the writer's.  

Published 19:12 

Photo: J. Scott Applewhite/AP 

Columnists 

The political bickering continues despite very difficult situations in society.  

This applies to gang violence in Sweden, but even more so to the shutdown of the state apparatus in the United States.  

A small group of extreme Republicans would rather create chaos than help solve the country's problems. 

That politicians work primarily for the public good when the country is in a difficult position is unfortunately no longer a matter of course.  

We saw yesterday how a number of Swedish party leaders continue the squabble over who has done what and who has not done enough against gang violence. Instead of showing national collection.  

The only thing we can take comfort in is that it is even worse in the US.

There, a number of Republican politicians on the right are blocking the approval of a new budget. This despite the fact that it has very serious consequences for American society.  

A number of service functions for ordinary citizens are being shut down and hundreds of thousands of government employees are not getting paid. Some are forced to work for free in, for example, the military and the security apparatus. 

          

"This time the situation is extra strange because Republican Speaker Kevin McCarthy has reached an agreement with Joe Biden and the Democrats." Photo: J. Scott Applewhite/AP  

The only thing that can stop this from happening is Congress hammering out the budget that a majority supports, before midnight on Sunday night.  

There is no indication that this will happen. On the contrary, federal government shutdowns have become the new normal. It is the fourth time this has happened in the last ten years and they last significantly longer than before.  

This time the situation is extra strange because Republican Speaker Kevin McCarthy has reached an agreement with Joe Biden and the Democrats on the budget. But now he does not dare to put it forward for a vote because his own position as Speaker is threatened by the extreme Republicans.  

Trump cheers  

In the background, Donald Trump is cheering on those who want to shut down the state.  

- If we don't get everything we want, shut down the rub, he writes on his social media platform Truth Social.  

He sees it as a symbolic blow to the Department of Justice, which has launched several lawsuits against him. 

         

          Republicans consider chaos their best friend. Photo: Mike Mulholland/AP  

The Republicans' broader argument is that US government spending is too high and that the galloping budget deficit must be reduced. 

But when Donald Trump as president borrowed gigantic amounts to finance a major tax cut, those same Republicans had no problem approving the spending increases in the budget.  

This time, they have particularly targeted the support for Ukraine that is included in the budget. Many Trump supporters in Congress want to sharply reduce aid to Ukraine. 

Now the budget is being used as a political bat in the hope that it will help Donald Trump to the presidency next year. Their hope is that voters will punish Joe Biden and the Democrats for paralyzing the federal government.  

Previous descents show that they almost always blame the sitting president.  

Republicans consider chaos their best friend.  

Dysfunctional democracy 

If the United States were still a normally functioning democracy, Republicans and Democrats would have put the political differences aside temporarily and guaranteed the continued funding of the state's business. Anything else had been seen as irresponsible.  

But democracy in the United States is becoming increasingly dysfunctional, just like in democracies in many other parts of the world, including the Swedish one. 

More and more it is about short-term survival and positioning for the next election rather than offering long-term solutions to important social issues.

A sign left behind after the presidential debate in California on Wednesday. Photo: Sarah Reingewirtz/AP 

In Sweden, in addition to gang crime, the future energy supply is such an issue.  

 

Business is calling for long-term solutions because there are large investments that have to be made and people want to know what the rules of the game are. But the politicians refuse to talk to each other. They distance themselves more and more from their basic mission, to serve the people.  

 

In the US, the polarization is even worse. There, it is almost impossible to agree on any issues at all, which results in a paralysis of political decision-making. 

 

When politicians cannot offer solutions to the social problems that voters experience, it risks leading to distrust of democracy as a form of governance. Instead, it is tempting to vote for strong men who point with their whole hand and claim that they have simple solutions to difficult problems. Like Trump who claims he can arrange peace in Ukraine in 24 hours.