VOTER POWER
US Democracy
Myth: The US isn’t a Democracy, it’s a republic.
Fact: We are a Constitutional Republic AND a Democracy. That’s because a republic is a form of Democracy.
The founding fathers believed in a democratically elected government, but they didn’t support a purely Rousseauian-style democracy. So, they devised a system where representatives are democratically elected by the populace to serve at the pleasure of the citizenry.
The existence of voting representatives gives us the “republic” part of our government. But we also have the Senate to balance out power between states–that is, to keep larger states from overpowering smaller states–and the House of Representatives to accurately represent the citizenry of states based on population.
The beauty of the American system can be found in its effort to combine democratic ideals with a classical republic to develop a practical democratic system. In fact, it’s this republicanism that makes democracy work in America.

Fascism vs. Communism
Q: So, can we agree there isn't one bit of difference between Fascism and Communism? A: No, we can't agree on that. Fascism and Communism are both authoritarian forms of government, but all similarities stop there. The main impulse of Fascism is...
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What Are Limits of the Presidential Pardon?
Since President Trump’s impeachment acquittal in the Senate a few weeks ago, he’s become quite fond of putting his thumb on the scales of justice. Today, during his press conference at Andrews Airforce base, the president said of some recent court cases,...
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Propaganda of Authoritarianism: Trump’s “Squad” Tweets
Either he’s a natural at it, or President Trump is being coached on classic Russian propaganda techniques. The president’s defense of his own racist Tweets is the latest chapter in what is knows as the “4D Approach” to propaganda: dismiss, distract,...
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The Debate Over American Fascism
When freshman Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez recently described privately run ICE detention centers as “concentration camps,” it ignited a debate over the use of related words like “fascism” and “genocide” to describe the polices and actions being...
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AI and the Future of Democracy
Last week, AI LA held a symposium called “AI, Ethics, and Fairness.” The panel discussion took place at the Phase Two co-working space in Culver City, California and its members included a computer scientist, a technology ethicist, a legal expert in AI and an AI...
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GOP Rep. Amash Tweets Case for Impeaching Bill Barr
As one of the founders of the ultra-conservative Freedom Caucus, Congressman Justin Amash may be the last person you'd expect to call for the impeachment of President Trump. But after completing his reading of the full 486-page Mueller Report, Amash became...
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To Impeach or Not to Impeach? That Is the Question
This week, as we collectively digested Robert Mueller’s 400-page report, a debate broke out over whether or not Congress should begin impeachment hearings into President Trump. The pro-impeach crowd led by Elizabeth Warren and Alexandria...
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President Trump Defends Ivanka’s Use of a Private Email Account
President Trump is singing a very different tune now that his own daughter has been caught using a private email account to conduct government business. On Monday, The Washington Post reported that Ivanka Trump used her personal account to correspond with White House officials throughout much of 2017.
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Maine Uses Ranked-Choice Voting to Decide House Race
Maine became the first state in the country to use ranked-choice voting to decide a federal election. No candidate got 50% or more of the vote, which sent the election to a ranked-choice runoff. The loser is now suing, saying that ranked-choice voting is unconstitutional.
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GOP Governor: Trump is ‘Outrageous, Disgraceful, and a Divider’
Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker is the latest Republican to take a verbal swing at President Trump. The insulting remark was made during last night’s final gubernatorial debate, in which Baker faced off against Democratic rival Jay Gonzalez.
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