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I have often viewed the period of 1841-1880 as a period of a crisis in political legitimacy ... on many levels.
Why 1841? The debate over John Tyler becoming president, followed soon after by the Dorr Rebellion in Rhode Island.
Why 1841? The debate over John Tyler becoming president, followed soon after by the Dorr Rebellion in Rhode Island.
Why 1880? Right after the debate over who ruled Maine, a presidential election in which the results were accepted in a closely-contested race.
Secession's a debate over political legitimacy. So was Reconstruction. So was Bleeding Kansas. So was the debate over presidential war powers. Legitimate process ... what is it? What's legitimate?
This includes women's suffrage and black suffrage.
This includes women's suffrage and black suffrage.
We are experiencing another such period. Who's a citizen? Who can vote? How do we exercise suffrage? How do we conduct elections? Birtherism; "lock her up"; the current crisis ... all are tests of the political process's legitimacy.
More than anyone else, Donald J. Trump has tested the boundaries of legitimacy. His claim to power rests on asserting that anything that denies him power or questions his authority is illegitimate.
None of his opponents are legitimate. They aren't qualified to be president. They're crooks, or their family members are crooks.
No election results are legitimate that do not favor him.
No election results are legitimate that do not favor him.
There are no boundaries to his power as president, and everyone should serve his interests or face heavy criticism echoed by his supporters.
Donald J. Trump tests our national norms even as he is a product of them.
Donald J. Trump tests our national norms even as he is a product of them.