The Founding Fathers never intended to build a broad-based, inclusive representative democracy. This must be understood. Instead, their concern was to build a narrowly-based, exclusive representative democracy that enhanced and protected the rights of a ruling class (themselves). As time went by, excluded groups worked to penetrate and become part of this exclusive ruling class. Non-propertied males, non-white males, women, and younger adults were gradually able to do so. In the case of non-whites, legal admittance did not automatically translate into de-facto admittance due to strategies such as Jim Crow laws and political violence that were adopted to keep them from sharing real power.
Recognizing what the intent of the Founders acutally was, is important if we are to understand the predicament we currently find ourselves in. In particular, the Electoral Collge and the structure and bylaws of the Senate were intentionally designed to protect the interests of a less than majority ruling group. Combined with control of the Judiciary, which can be exercised by control of the Senate, a less than majority segment of the population can gain control of the political system and government and determine the fate of our country. It must be recognized that control of the Judiciary eventually resulted in the release of unlimited amounts of money (via Citizens United) into the political system; resulting in both the political system and government being controlled by financial elites (billionaries). Republicans shrewd recognition of all this enabled them to work the system to gain the advantage and power they have today.
Meanwhile, Democrats have held on to the myth that our Founding Fathers had some vision that what they were creating would eventually lead to a broad-based, power-sharing, representative democracy that protected the rights of everyone. That almost certainly was not the case. Another component of the myth is the Founders desire to protect an oppressed minority from the “tyranny of the majority”. Of course, the minority they were almost certainly most concerned with protecting was themselves. Building protections in for the minority such as the Electoral College primarily protected their own interests. You can only trust the people to a degree. Broader concerns, not just self-interest, more than likely contributed to what the Founders designed, but it is very doubtful that was their primary focus. While embracing the myth can help build a consensus that people need to work together for the good of everyone, ignoring the actual intent of the structure that the Founders were laying left us vunerable to the takeover of our political and governing systems that is now occurring.
None of this is intended to condemn the Founders or disparage the high regard in which they should be held. Whatever their actual intent, the foundation they built did result in the creation of the most effective, broad-based representative democracy that has ever existed. Granting the Founders high esteem can help build support for the system that ultimately developed. However, ignoring the reality of their intent can result in a dangerous disregard for the cracks in the foundation that they laid.
A less than majority segment of the population has taken control of our political system and government. This is what the Founders intended and is the system that they sought to build. Subsequent events, in particular the Citizens United decision, empowered monied interests to gain greater control and cement their power in the system. Donald Trump and his allies gained less than 50% of the popular vote, won the election, and now claim a mandate to dismantle our democracy.
Building an actual broad-based, inclusive, representative democracy, such as the one that is touted in the founding myth, will require fundamental changes to the foundation of our democracy. Elimination of the Electoral College, reforms in the bylaws of the Senate, and the reversal of the Citizens United decision are all necessary components of this change. It will not be easy; the very structure of the system was designed to make it extremely difficult to do. But it is our only hope, and must be done.
