Adam Brandon, A Republic, not a Democracy: How to Restore Sanity to America (New York; Skyhorse, 2021).
This recent book by Adam Brandon, president of Freedom Works, is further evidence of conservatives and libertarians giving up on the Republican Party and are looking for new ways to fight the left.
Many who make the argument that the US is a republic, not a democracy focus on the need to protect property and to prevent the tyranny of the majority. As those who have read Charles Beard know, this is an argument the founders would have recognized. But unlike many others on the right, he does not use this argument to restrict the franchise. Instead, his attention is focused on what he sees as the link between democracy and socialism. Taking his cue from Plato, he argues that because people want stuff, in a democracy the people are enabled to take stuff from the wealthy. Since socialism is the system where the government owns everything, democracy inevitably leads to socialism.
The first half of the book is a critique of “socialism;” the second half is in praise of free markets and the Constitution. The first half of the book is marred by a limited understanding of the many ways in which the term “socialism” is used. For example, he dismisses the claim that Denmark and Sweden are socialist countries by quoting a former Danish president who states, “Denmark is far from a socialist planned economy. Denmark is a market economy” (p. 43). Apparently he doesn’t appreciate the difference between a planned economy and a social market economy.
The second half of the book is a fairly standard libertarian argument in favor of free markets and a conservative one defending the constitution. He cites the usual voices on the right such as Ludwig von Mises, Ron Paul and Milton Friedman. There is not much new to be learned here.
The most significant part of his argument is the means he has chosen to restore sanity. He does not look to the Republican Party but rather, he looks to grassroots action. In particular, he calls on people to directly contact their elected representatives, especially visiting in person their local offices. Writing at length about the power of “The Swamp” and its resistance to change, he nevertheless believes that politicians respond to the voices of their constituencies. It is quite conspicuous that he has no faith in party politics.
It is also curious that he has little to say about the lack of sanity on the right. Overall, there is an air of unreality to this book. Trump and Steve Bannon agenda are dismissed with a single sentence. The prime reference to Covid-19 is to using “learning pods” as a way to replace public education. There is no discussion of abortion, even from a libertarian perspective. It is also seems strange to argue that the rich are being taxed too much when they compete to take joyrides in space. Perhaps he does not wish to alienate potential allies.
The book shows that even though the Republican Party has embraced fascism, the enemy remains an imagined socialism. But without a party to work with, Brandon turns to grassroots organizing. Isn’t that what Obama was criticized for doing?