Axar.az presents an article “Oligarchy” by John Samuel Tieman.

Is the United States becoming a racist oligarchy?

At the recent inauguration of Donald Trump, between Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg and Jeff Bezos, about a trillion dollars was represented. According to Federal Reserve data, the bottom half of the American population, around 65,000,000 households, own less than $4 trillion dollars. The 2023 Gross National Product of Azerbaijan was $67.53 billion in US dollars. In the final stretch of Donald Trump's campaign for president, Elon Musk donated $200,000,000. Altogether, there were ten or twelve billionaires at Pres. Trump's inauguration.

Perhaps I am wrong. But it is hard not to suspect that there is an intentional dismantling of the democratic republic, which is to be replaced by an oligarchy that favors white nationalism.

Take J. D. Vance for example. Before being elected to the Senate, and shortly after that the Vice Presidency, he was mostly known as the author of “Hillbilly Elegy”, a memoir that got made into a movie. He served two years in the Senate. He owes much of his idealogical orientation to a tech billionaire, Curtis Yarvin. The Vice President is quite open about his indebtedness to Mr. Yarvin. Yarvin believes that real political power in the United States is informally held by universities, NGOs and the press and others, all of whom collude to sway public opinion. According to Yarvin, it all needs to be destroyed. “What is a government? A government is just a corporation that owns a country. … You need a CEO. And a national CEO is what's called a dictator. It's the same thing. There's no difference between a CEO and a dictator. If Americans want to change their government, they're going to have to get over their dictator phobia.” Yarvin has alleged that whites have higher IQs than blacks for genetic reasons. He has claimed that some races are more suited to slavery than others. He wrote, "It should be obvious that, although I am not a white nationalist, I am not exactly allergic to the stuff." It is worth repeating that the Vice President is quite open about his intellectual indebtedness to Mr. Yarvin.

On “Jack Murphy Live”, a right-wing talk show, Mr. Vance referred to our time as a “late republican period.” That's “republican” as in the democratic republic, not the party. That's our Vice President. That's our representative. What he represents is oligarchy, an oligarchy whose agenda includes dismantling the democratic republic, and installing in its place a white nationalist regime. We are a long way from a Russian-style oligarchy. Our economy is good. Our institutions are resilient. But none of that precludes the gradual withering of the norms of governance and the withering of adherence to the Constitution. There is one hope. Just because oligarchs-in-waiting want to lead in a certain direction, that doesn't mean that all of us are obliged to follow.

We're at a point wherein oligarchy, dictatorship, white nationalism, these are not something we are descending into, something so many steps below us. No, it's running parallel to us. Half of our neighbors voted for this last November.

Why does defending the democratic republic matter? Given the times, perhaps it is well to revisit the simple premises upon which our nation is based. Our constitution calls for more than majority rule. The democratic republic is a governing system based on the will and consent of the governed, institutions that are accountable to all citizens, the rule of law, and respect for the human rights of all people. Day-to-day governance calls for an adherence to norms that are understood if often unwritten. Adherence to the Constitution, and the norms of governance, are these matters going away tomorrow? No. But are they going away? Pres. Trump signed an executive order doing away with birthright citizenship. He didn't get his way. But one man chose to do away with part of the Fourteenth Amendment. One man, not the consent of the governed. The president wants to instill, in the government, personal loyalty to him. Mr. Trump is a felon. His treatment of immigrants is inhumane.

Adherence to the Constitution, and the norms of governance, are these matters going away tomorrow? No. But are they going away? Perhaps I am wrong. Perhaps I am an alarmist. But I'd much rather sound the alarm and be wrong than be right and remain silent.