Is America A Democracy?

Democracy Name Institution Date “For years, the residents of oxford, Massachusetts, seethed with anger at the company that controlled the local water supply” by Yascha Mounk 1) Is the author wrong? Is America a democracy? The author is not wrong at the town meeting there were suspicious activities before the crucial voting, which indicated that Aquarion may have deliberately sabotaged the voting process to avoid going out of business. At the local level town meetings are important to deliberate and discuss and vote on important issues, but these efforts are thwarted by outside interests, powerful individuals, businesses and institutions to limit people’s power. The author mentions the case of a lobbyist for Aquarion pulling a fire alarm, which thwarted efforts by the people to meet and vote again. The US is a democracy, but there is crisis of democracy in America, as there are threats to the popular will, with lobbying one of the factors influencing policies and decisions that are not always popular with the majority. The entry of big money in politics has meant that political power and money are closely intertwined and there are attempts to limit the popular will where this jeopardizes the interests of big businesses. Trust in politics is declining a and threats to individual rights may increase there is no level playing field in decision making right from the local level as is the case of oxford, Massachusetts. 2) Mounk continually states we need to take our power back. Can the people have power? How can the people take power back? Yes, the people can have power back, and this requires electing people who best serve their interests. Proper vetting of the political candidates would help and transparency on lobbying activities would provide valuable information on what lobbyists try to influence and the legislators they target. When there is greater scrutiny on policies and decisions, it is more likely that there will be transparence and accountability among the policy makers, rather than the policies merely reflecting the economic elites and organized interest groups. There is a need for more town meetings and grassroots meetings to influence policies at the local level, which also makes it easier to focus on political mobilization. In doing so, the people will exercise more power, and especially, when there is political sensitization so that the peoples’ preferences are reflected in policy making and political decisions. Political awareness is necessary to mobilize the people when there is then focus on polices that reflect the popular will, and this extends to constituents holding the legislators accountable for policies, which benefit the many, rather than the few. 3) Is it possible for our government to regain the trust of its citizen...