How the American Political Culture is a hindrance to its Democracy

The textbook introduces characteristics of the American political culture that are a widely held set of beliefs that guide American politics. These include American individualism, distrust of the government, liberty, populism, and religion. The purpose of this post is to argue, or at least introduce the idea that some of the notions by which Americans guid their political decisions may in fact be hindering the progression of democracy. The United States is amongst the wealthiest nations in the world, and yet there are high levels of inequality both socially and economically, high unemployment rates, and other problems that are preventing the success of the democracy.

Americans individualistic ideal that the rights of the individual take priority to that of the community, relayed through common sayings like “pull yourself up by your bootstraps” neglects historical inequities that made the inalienable rights that Jefferson introduced in the Declaration of Independence exclusive. The protection of constitutional rights like freedom of association, speech and belief are of course pillars of any thriving democracy, however the more social individualistic idea is the one that is potentially harmful. Beliefs like the idea that one can control their own fate, and that if one works hard enough they can be successful rather than acknowledging that there are economic and political factors beyond the individual’s control leads to an unforgiving nature for people that have struggled within the system. This means that systems in place designed to help vulnerable populations like children, and poor people, are extremely lacking. And so, for example although the poor are not explicitly excluded from access to health care, being healthy is in fact a right that they have limited access to. “Without challenging the importance of the struggle for human rights of an individual nature, it is still possible to suggest that the status of some groups, particularly communities, has been neglected at some risk to the integrity and consistency of democratic and ethical principles, notably those of equality and justice.” (Svensson, 1979) The fear of the welfare state that Americans have is rooted in their political culture, mainly idealism, and fear of government. However, the world’s most successful democracies like Norway and Switzerland, are successful welfare states.

Another problem with political culture is populism. Populism is an appeal to the people, a shift from the bureaucracy to the grassroots. And on surface this seems like a great thing, it becomes problematic however when people develop a sense of false consciousness as they tend to do. False consciousness as Karl Marx explains is when a person’s belief or ideology is contradictory to their own self interest. For example, a poor working class person voting against Hillary Clinton and for Donald Trump would be false consciousness, because Clinton would have increased programs that would have benefited the working class. This tends to be a dysfunction of the capitalist system wherein institutions and social order are designed according to Marx to distract members of the proletariat, working class, of their oppression. Populist leaders are inherently charismatic and aim to appeal to people of the working glass to make themselves seem relatable. This characteristic of populism in my opinion is also a hindrance to democracy because it prevents voters from acting in their own self interest. Rather than being swayed by facts, voters tend to vote for the person they relate to, who may in fact not be the best choice.

For these reasons, I argue that some facets of the American political culture are preventing the growth of the democracy. Individualism and populism specifically, have traits that target vulnerable populations and as a result reproduce and reinforce social, and economic inequalities.

http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1467-9248.1979.tb01213.x

https://www.economist.com/news/books-and-arts/21705665-value-marx-21st-century-false-consciousness

8 Responses to "How the American Political Culture is a hindrance to its Democracy"

Brett Tivnan says:

February 7, 2018 at 1:11 pm

This blog post brought up some very good arguments, particularly in how the social aspect of politics is severely hampering our country’s ability to grow and adapt. I strongly believe that the American electorate has slowly been transformed to a populist society, focusing far less on the policies that a candidate backs. Instead, a great deal of the voting population seems more concerned with what party a candidate represents than what that candidate actually stands for. As you noted above, Hillary Clinton, a very moderate democrat, likely would have been far more supportive of the working class and poorer demographics of the United States. Unfortunately, the Republican Party has historically garnered support from poorer Southern states for reasons independent of financial motivations. Despite the support of these states that often wins the Republican nominee the election, very little is ever done to improve the standard of living for a great deal of the citizens within these states. According to data compiled by the Census Bureau on July 28, 2017, 12 of the 13 states with the lowest per capita income voted Republican in the 2012 Presidential Election. I believe that this tells a dangerous tale, where the American people are no longer acting in their own best interests in order to better their own lives.
Kelly Gough says:

February 10, 2018 at 12:33 pm

Jennifer,

Your post brings up a very interesting idea that Americans political decisions are getting in the way of the progression of democracy. One of the points that you bring up is that the United States is currently facing “high unemployment rates.” While this may have been an issue Americans held a few years ago, I would argue that it is no longer a viable issue. The United States unemployment rate has actually been in a steep decline since 2010 and is currently at a very low rate of about 4.1%. See the graph below to further illustrate this point.

Link for reference:

https://data.bls.gov/timeseries/LNS14000000

Another interesting point you bring up is the “individualistic ideal that the rights of the individual take priority to that of the community, relayed through common saying like “pull yourself up by you bootstraps.” I believe that one of the things that make America successful is this very mentality. I understand your point about the “unforgiving nature for people that have struggled within the system.” However, I believe that this mentality overall does more good than bad. Personally, I have overcome much adversity that people would never expect. I have had many obstacles thrown in my way that I can assure most people would never have to face. However, because of this American ideal that has become synonymous with my own personal motivations, I was able to overcome these obstacles and am now graduating from a top tier University with countless opportunities.

One cannot control their own fate, however, one can control how they react, handle, and work to overcome whatever their “fate” is.

Thank you for this thought provoking and interesting post.
Holden Powers says:

February 10, 2018 at 12:54 pm

Thank you so much for your post Jennifer. There are some situations where welfare is necessary (i.e. death of both parents early on in life, mental disabilities, homelessness, etc…). However, in the U.S., we believe that most people are given opportunities early on which will prevent them from needing any sort of public welfare. By providing services like public education the government believes that we put people on the “right path” early on in their lives. I understand that there are people who think that our public education system is not enough to make someone have opportunities to be successful in life. However, the U.S. believes that we do provide enough assistance at an early age especially after President George W. Bush’s “No Child Left Behind” act. We have a mentality that it is “not our fault” if you are not successful or do not take advantage of the system in place. I hear your argument that the U.S. has a poor welfare system. However, if you look at this article (https://www.forbes.com/sites/timworstall/2015/04/02/the-us-has-the-worlds-second-largest-social-welfare-system/#185d0317dfbf), the U.S. actually has the 2nd largest welfare program as a percentage of GDP. The only country that spends more than us is France, but they have very high taxes compared to the U.S. Therefore, I believe that the U.S. already has a good welfare system in place.
Thomas Cody says:

February 11, 2018 at 7:12 pm

Jennifer,
Thank you for a very insightful post! I completely agree with your point that the government is not doing enough to help its poor and repressed citizens. After the Great Depression when FDR fought for the New Deal, all new programs were created to help marginalized groups that were not getting the help they needed. Since they has not been many major equivalent to the New Deal in recent decades, income inequality and difficulty achieving upward mobility has grown worse and worse in the new technological age. I agree that this ‘pull yourself up by your bootstraps’ mentality has not worked when it comes to passing this type of legislation. Greater taxes on inheritance, free or reduced price college, and more regulations on Wall Street could all be examples of what we could do to create a more equal society here in the twenty-first century.
Kayla Corbin says:

February 11, 2018 at 11:00 pm

I believe this is a solid post, and the theory presented is valid!
The idea of “pulling yourself up by the bootstraps” is dangerous if you do not take privilege into consideration which many Americans don’t. If a group is systemically oppressed it’s hard to make something out of nothing but you still get what I like to call the “Obama/Oprah excuse” which is when people say: “well if they did it, you can too.” Which is an obvious over simplification on how people can still achieve in a system that wasn’t designed with them in mind, by that I mean minorities of any kind. I also agree with the point that populism can be dangerous, because people blindly vote against their own interest usually due to a lack of knowledge and good sounding rhetoric. Not to oversimplify any candidate’s electorate but it’s definitley important to acknowledge. However I do believe slowly but surely the government is putting more resources and effort into programs that aren’t as effective as they could be.
Thanks for the post, it was really stimulating!
James Weakley says:

February 12, 2018 at 6:18 pm

Jennifer,
I found your post extremely thought provoking, raising many interesting arguments. I would like to start by sharing my support to the idea that populism is dangerous to any democracy. Populist movements tend to be highlighted by political propaganda and impossible promises. President Trump’s recent campaign utilized populist techniques to turn Donald Trump into the perfect representation of a fed up middle class. Populism tends to take advantage of an over emotional electorate, feeding off fear and insecurities.
I do however, disagree with your assertion that individualism inhibits the growth of democracy. Instead I believe the idea of an american dream and that “one can control their own fate”, contributes to democracy. The idea that one individual can make a difference in government and can strive to be/do anything inspires hope to all americans. Without belief that we have control over our lives and government people will no longer have a desire to participate in government. Without the participation of the governed, democracy can no longer exist, let alone prosper.
Katherine Breed says:

February 13, 2018 at 10:15 pm

Jennifer,

Thank for your blog post! You offer some very interesting points and back them up with evidence, while offering a thought provoking argument. I do agree with you that voting has become more center around parties and not the candidates at the forefront, therefore hindering the progress of democracy. However I disagree with you about your claim on Hilary Clinton. Although you argue that a poor person voting for Donald Trump would have false consciousness because Clinton would have increased programs benefitting the working class, one could argue the same for a wealthy person voting for Hilary Clinton.

Clinton wanted to take away money from the wealthy and increase the inheritance tax to 65% from 35%, according to Fortune.com. Although she wanted to take money from the wealthiest Americans, it is still someone else money that they worked hard for. The same false consciousness could be seen here. The vast majority of American want to work, not just be given handouts by the federal government. Therefore I disagree with your claim that the government is trying to distract vulnerable populations to keep the working class oppressed.

http://fortune.com/2016/09/23/hillary-clinton-inheritance-tax-billionaire-estates/
Andrew Griffin says:

February 14, 2018 at 10:51 pm

Jennifer-

Your post provides good insight into flaws of American political culture. Your assessment of Donald Trump as being a wolf in sheep’s clothing I find particularly compelling. However, I take issue with your analysis that suggests that Hilary Clinton would have been the better working class candidate. While she would have been better than Donald Trump on a number of social issues, she is far from perfect in this regard. For example, Bill Clinton in 1994 signed a sweeping $30 billion dollar crime bill that incarcerated thousands of young black Americans which Hillary Clinton supported. A candidate who supports something that was so egregiously horrible for much of the working class of America should not be viewed as the obvious “working class candidate.” Yes it is likely true that Hilary Clinton would not likely be calling for the social safety cuts that Trump is calling for in his budget, but on the issues of social welfare, between Hilary Clinton and Donald Trump, the contest was not between good vs bad. It was bad vs worse.

-Drew

https://www.thenation.com/article/hillary-clinton-does-not-deserve-black-peoples-votes/

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