The Evolution of the American Republic
The United States has experienced several distinct iterations of its republic throughout history. While it may seem unusual to frame our political journey in this manner, the remarkable stability of our constitutional framework leads to a common perception that our current political order is the only one that exists. This perspective is often contrasted with the French experience, which has seen multiple republics, currently in its fifth iteration.
Our enduring constitutional text, coupled with a cultural reverence for the framers as almost prophetic figures, can obscure the significant structural transformations that have shaped our political landscape. The American republic established by figures such as George Washington, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and James Monroe is fundamentally different from the one characterized by Andrew Jackson, Martin Van Buren, and Henry Clay. Similarly, it diverges again from the republic of Ulysses S. Grant and his contemporaries.
This evolution is not merely a matter of historical curiosity. Each era has seen Americans interpret the Constitution through new lenses, exercising powers that their forebears might have deemed tyrannical. Moreover, they have organized politically in innovative and often unprecedented ways, effectively reconstituting the republic to serve their contemporary needs. The political landscape of the framers’ time could not have anticipated the mass politics that emerged during the Jacksonian era, just as those Jacksonian figures could not have envisioned the biracial political dynamics and the unified national state that developed during Reconstruction.
Understanding the existence of multiple iterations of the United States is crucial, especially as we approach pivotal elections. The stakes are high; a second term for Donald Trump would not spell the end of America as we know it, but it could signify the transition from one republic to another—though whether “republic” remains an appropriate term for what follows is debatable.
The current American republic was largely shaped during the tumultuous decades of the 1930s and 1940s, alongside the consensus that emerged in their wake. This republic is characterized by a robust administrative state that actively manages economic affairs, social insurance systems that provide a safety net for the majority of Americans against market uncertainties, and a judiciary that curtails the powers of individual states over their citizens. Additionally, it has been defined by federal protections of civil rights and a broad interpretation of the Constitution that safeguards personal rights, including privacy rights related to contraception and abortion.
However, this foundational settlement has never been entirely settled. It has faced challenges from the very moment it took shape. Since Trump’s ascension to office in 2016, he has seized the opportunity to reshape the Supreme Court, leading to significant conservative victories against various pillars of the current republic. In just the past two years, the Court has severely limited federal agencies’ authority to interpret laws and issue regulations, effectively rendered it nearly impossible for public institutions to directly address racial inequality, undermined federal protections for voting rights, and dismantled long-standing constitutional protections of bodily autonomy, thereby threatening the established right to privacy.
