It is important to be cautious whenever current events are paralleled with historical occurrences. We’ve seen a lot of that, by both sides, in comparing this past election and with what happened in Europe in the 1930’s. Are these comparisons something to actually be concerned about or are they just exaggerations to alarm people? Comparisons with more distant historical affairs can be even more problematic. Despite all this, I can’t help but notice what’s been happening with the re-election of Donald Trump and the rise of Julius Caesar and the ending of the Roman Republic. It may seem like a stretch, but here I go.
Whatever one may think of Donald Trump, it seems pretty clear he has shown a great deal of political acumen and skill in being able to gain re-election to the White House. Going from political defeat, to fermenting an insurrection against the country, to criminal prosecution, to surviving an assassination attempt (in dramatic fashion), and finally to a return to power in a democratic election. Whatever one may think of the means by which he accomplished it, these are quite a series of events. And now we all hold our breaths to see what comes next.
Julius Caesar followed a different, but similar path. Like Trump, Caesar came from a wealthy (patrician) family. Rather than a record (myth?) of business success as in Trump’s case, Caesars’ success came from real military accomplishment (like most successful Roman politicians) with the conquest of Gaul. When he crossed the Rubicon with his troops in defiance of the Roman Senate, he became an outlaw and traitor to the nation. When his political opponents fled Rome, he declared himself dictator and pursued them across Europe. After defeating them, he returned to Rome. this time to be greeted with open arms by both elites who had previously opposed him and by the masses.
The Roman Republic had become increasingly dominated, controlled and run by the patrician class in their own interests to the detriment of ordinary citizens. Caesar promised to change this through dictatorial powers. He was subsequently appointed dictator for ten years in 46 BCE and then dictator for life in 44 BCE. He was assassinated shortly thereafter.
During his time as dictator, Caesar initiated civic and social reforms that benefitted ordinary Romans, earning (currying?) their support. He also made political reforms, such as dramatically increasing the size of the Senate, reducing the power of the patrician class relative to other classes. He expanded Roman citizenship to middle class professionals and shopkeepers, increasing his support among these groups. Caesar focused on removing criminals from the streets, increasing the safety and security of common people. Perhaps most importantly, Caesar believed that he, and he alone, was capable of solving the problems confronted by Rome and the Roman people.
As their situation improved, the mass of Roman people accepted Caesar as their leader. They had tired of years of political division and infighting, civil war, and the inability of the Senate to solve problems such as the concentration of the ownership of land in the hands of the wealthy, increasing prices of necessary goods (like grain), poverty in general, and criminality in the streets. Caesar focused on solving these problems. In successfully doing so, his political opponents resented the popular support he garnered and their increasing political weakness and irrelevance. This eventually contributed to his assassination.
It seems there are certain parallels with the return of Trump to power that might be reflected in Caesar’s rise to power. Like Caesar, Trump believes that only he can solve the problems our country is confronted with. While Caesar brought an aura of true military success, Trump instead brings the aura of business success (whether true or not). On his return to power, Trump has the support of many blue collar, small business owning, regular Americans as well as political, business, and financial elites who initially opposed him. People are tired of years of political division and infighting, and the appearance of the government’s inability (whether true or not) to solve problems. Ownership of homes (property) is increasingly out of the reach of ordinary Americans while private equity firms buy up millions of homes to rent them out. The rise of grocery prices has been a major concern of the middle class. Although rates of serious crime have actually fallen over the last several years, there is a perception by many Americans who support Trump (mostly rural and small town) that crime is on the rise and out of control (particularly in large cities where it has really gone down). Whether Trump follows through on his promises to solve these problems (imagined or not) or rather succumbs to the wishes of elites the likes of Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos, remains to be seen. Whatever the outcomes with Trump may be, it is must be noted that the end of Caesar’s reign was followed by more civil war and chaos. Ultimately, the Roman Republic came to an end to be replaced by the rule of an Emperor and the establishment of the Roman Empire.
As Trump enters the White House for a second time, there are concerns that democracy in America, and across the globe for that matter, is on a decline. People around the world, particularly young people, have become increasingly disenchanted with the difficulties democracies have recently had with politicians working harmoniously together to solve societal problems and improve the lives and opportunities for ordinary citizens. They are, like the Romans before them, tired of political fighting, division, and gridlock. After all, the end of the Roman Republic did result in the establishment of the power and glory of the Roman Empire to the benefit of most of its citizens. So, the rise to power of a strong man (woman) who can cut through the messiness and problems of democracy with force, purpose, and decisiveness might seem worth it to some Americans despite the loss of democratic rights.
This is the conundrum faced by the political opponents of Donald Trump. How can our democracy be restructured so that it performs more effectively in solving the problems of regular Americans? There are probably two main challenges in accomplishing this. Firstly, as the Republican party has aptly demonstrated over the last several years, it’s really quite easy to undermine a democracy by contending the government is ineffective and then working to do everything in your power to make the government ineffective by refusing to cooperate on virtually anything and being opposed to virtually everything. Secondly, allowing unlimited amounts of money to enter the political arena (the Citizens United case) results in BOTH political parties becoming so indebted to the moneyed interests, that the needs of regular citizens are largely ignored. This provides a populist aspirant like Trump the opportunity to enter the political arena by promising to take on the unpopular ruling class, breakthrough the gridlock, and rid the country of political opportunism (drain the swamp) while at the same time appointing and empowering your loyalists. Whether or not those who oppose Trump and the eroding of democratic values are able to solve these two challenges remains to be seen. If they are not, the road ahead will be very hazardous for those who prefer the challenges and difficulties of democratic governance combined with the protection of democratic rights to authoritarian subjugation and efficiency.
