America at a Crossroad: Can Democracy Survive the Assault

By Norman Franklin

Norman Franklin

How do we, the people, process these rapidly evolving dynamics of our nation? What are we to think about the draconian policies swiftly implemented under the guise of a voter’s mandate to save America and restore her to a former glory?

Here’s the truth. There was no mandate in the 2024 election. The voters were evenly divided. Forty-nine percent held sway to Trumpian ideology and voted for him. Forty-eight percent voted for Vice President Kamala Harris.

 If we are to be authentic with ourselves and truthful to the facts, we must admit that the American people didn’t hand over the country to be gutted by greed, nor did they intend for the welfare of the people to be trampled under the feet of hubris. The false narrative of a voter mandate is manipulative misinformation.

 With the suddenness of lost wages from mass firings, the forty-nine percent of voters are beginning to realize they have been misled.

The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) was formed to examine all areas of government, identify waste and fraud, and make recommendations to the President for a leaner, more efficient government.

DOGE was given the authority to slash spending, eliminate government departments, and terminate merit employees—an email notice on Friday, then "don’t come to work on Monday."

Billionaire Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy were initially tapped as experts to ferret out waste and fraud. Ramaswamy later opted not to join the team, instead announcing his bid for governor of Ohio. May God’s mercy comfort the citizens of Ohio.

Musk has assembled a team of young men, ranging in age from nineteen to twenty-five, to review agency staffing, program spending, and government department necessity. They always find waste, fraud, and useless spending—justifying the elimination of programs, dismantling of departments, mass firings, and forced retirement buyouts.

Although transparency was a campaign talking point, data from DOGE reviews are held close to the chest, not reviewed by Congress, nor open to the public.

 The Freedom of Information Act gives the public the right to obtain copies of federal agency reports. However, the White House recently designated DOGE as the United States DOGE Service. This classification insulates DOGE from public records requests and most judicial intervention until 2034.

DOGE systematically reviews government agencies, then takes to social media and loyal news outlets with exaggerated claims of waste, fraud, and uselessness. These unsubstantiated claims justify the elimination of agencies providing vital services, shuttering government departments, and mass firings.

Maneuvers to circumvent laws are a common practice of this administration. It’s a pattern among far-right conservatives and their non-government cronies.

A culture of lawlessness has seized the nation. But what characterizes a culture of lawlessness?

Lawlessness prevails when there is an absence, rejection, or breakdown of legal order. When rules meant to govern are disregarded, selectively applied, or entirely abandoned.

 Lawlessness dominates when leaders discredit elections, ignore court orders, and dismantle government agencies to remove accountability. Laws are selectively enforced. Justice becomes an illusion for the poor and people of melanin-rich skin.

 DOGE labeled the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) as fraudulent and wasteful. They downsized staff from ten thousand internationally to just six hundred. Thousands of former staff members are now stranded in various locations. The closure of USAID leaves many underdeveloped countries without medical aid and daily sustenance.

 The Department of Education (DOE) is also targeted for dismantling, with plans to return control of education to the states. The DOE collects data, monitors educational outcomes, enforces federal civil rights laws, and distributes federal funding to low-income districts. Contrary to misconceptions, the U.S. DOE does not dictate curriculum content to state education departments.

 The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) stands between consumers and financial institutions as a guardian of truth in lending. It ensures that financial institutions comply with the law and provide clear, truthful information about their products and services. Without CFPB oversight, consumers may be left vulnerable to unscrupulous lenders.

President Trump has been critical of the Bureau, arguing that it represents government overreach and is unaccountable. It, too, is a target for elimination.

 When a culture of lawlessness prevails, there is a loss of public trust in government, a loss of confidence in the election process, and a decline in international credibility.

 Lawlessness is the deliberate subversion of laws to benefit the powerful and suppress opposition. As lawlessness continues to rise, a functioning democracy declines.