Democracy was never really at risk from Trump’s tweets

AMERICANS always do supersized portions. That’s why they’re inclined to exaggerate into a constitutional crisis Donald Trump’s entirely predictable strop at the prospect of rejection at the polls. After four long years of disruptive Trumpism what else could anybody have expected?

Narcissists like Trump never like being told to get their coat and clear out.

But, there are two reasons why Americans – and indeed anybody who believes in democracy around the globe – should be grateful for having endured The Donald experience.

The first is that Trump proves democracy is in rude good health in the United States. It’s not some delicate flower in danger of wilting away under Donald Trump’s glares and threats about going to his conservative-majority Supreme Court with baseless complaints about corruption.

If the 2020 presidential election proves anything at all, it’s the robustness of character, strength of purpose and demonstrable integrity at the heart of the democratic and electoral system there.

TRUMP’S behaviour, his attempts to stop the counting of votes, his undermining of trust, his autocratic-style push to delegitimise the system of democracy itself, will serve, instead, to confirm the polar opposite. He can rant and rail all he wants while still inside the Oval Office – the most power-laden 76sq.mt of space on the planet – and it makes no difference whatsoever.

That’s because America is not Belarus and the exceptionalism and checks and balances that have characterised the United States experiment for almost 250 years still survive, all underpinned by that classic bulwark of democracy – the separation of powers.

Unlike his mad tweets since Tuesday, Trump will need cold, hard evidence of corruption, sufficient to have altered the outcome of the election, if he has even the slightest hope of success in the American courts. And he doesn’t.

So, if asked, the courts, independent of the executive, will put a stop to his ridiculous tantrums. Democracy wins.

The second reason why we all should be grateful to The Donald is because this election shows that although we may be rid of him, we’re certainly not done with Trumpism.

That’s clear from the massive vote he achieved in this election, up almost 12% to over 70.3 million on the 63 million votes that won him the presidency four years ago. That’s nearly FIVE times the rate of population increase (2.5%) since 2016.

America has a hugely disaffected 47.7% minority with concerns that simply have to be addressed.

There’s a growing gap between urban and rural, globalisation has ripped jobs out of previously safe, secure and satisfied communities, people are increasingly alienated through lack of education and lifestyle opportunities and are obviously willing to support a dangerous and ruthless demagogue like Trump, blind to his excess and personality failings of the last four years.

America has been through more critical difficulties in the past, the dreadful Civil War being the most catastrophic of all.

BUT its most pressing everyday crisis is racism and, tragically, that is likely to become even more flinty as the proportion of whites in the population reduces and urban blacks and other people of colour flex their political muscles. From this side of the pond there are two key takeaways (as the Yanks might put it) from the US election.

One, we must avoid the kind of stark division that now torments the United States. That can only be done by the greater number benefiting and feeling attached to ‘the system’ – and that will only be delivered by politics of the centre. So far, in fairness to what we’ve built here, and taking all the many, and serious, imperfections into account, we haven’t done too badly in that regard.

Second – we need to spruce up Mayo in preparation for a visit from President Joe Biden after the mid-term elections in 2022.

Again, we Irish will now have an open door at the White House and, with Brexit about to fall on top of us, that’s precisely the kind of access we need.

Finally, can you imagine the strength of character or suicidal tendencies required by whoever was chosen to sneak into the Oval Office and tell The Donald: ‘Mr President – you’re done here. I’ll help you with your things.’