Our democracy’s foundation is under ‘sustained threat’
Published Dominion Post, May 25, 2025. Reprinted with permission.
The Constitution is the foundational document of our U.S. government. Presidents, members of Congress, Supreme Court Justices and federal court judges—they all take an oath to uphold the Constitution.
The Presidential oath is spelled out in the Constitution itself: “I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.” (Article II, Section 1, Clause 8)
Senators, Representatives, Supreme Court Justices and federal judges, plus all other federal employees, swear a slightly different oath to the Constitution: “I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter. So help me God.” (senate.gov)
In addition, Supreme Court Justices and federal judges take a judicial oath, to guarantee fair and impartial justice. (supremecourt.gov)
These oaths to the Constitution were taken by all our current elected leaders. Yet, on April 17, 2025, the League of Women Voters of the U.S. declared that we are in a constitutional crisis.
The three branches of government were designed to work in a system of checks and balances. (constitution.congress.gov)
Congress passes laws, creates government agencies, funds the government and has impeachment power over the President and federal judges/Justices.
The President carries out the laws passed by Congress, serves as commander-in-chief and, with consent of the Senate, makes treaties and appointments, including federal judges/Supreme Court Justices and all other officers of the United States.
The federal judiciary interprets laws passed by Congress and actions by the Executive, including whether they pass Constitutional muster.
A Constitutional crisis can occur when the checks and balances do not work as intended. When:
The Executive acts beyond its legal authority and is not checked by Congress.
The Supreme Court or other federal court grants excessive latitude to the Executive or Congress.
Congress abdicates its oversight responsibilities, for example, by permitting the Executive to impound appropriations or dismantle duly authorized agencies without Congressional approval.
The Executive refuses to comply with court orders.
Recently, such occurrences have become commonplace. Only the federal courts, with periodic deviations by the Supreme Court, appear to be functioning dependably.
Citizens—even those who voted for the politicians currently in office—have begun raising a ruckus. However, it’s a long time before the next election, and elected officials are ignoring their constituents’ voices.
Today’s enemies of the Constitution are coming largely from inside the Executive branch, the very people charged with operating our government, while an ineffective Congress, with responsibility to push back, does not respond. The outcomes so far include:
Public servants living in terror of illegally losing civil service careers, acts designed to cripple government operations.
Residents living in terror of being arrested and jailed without due process.
Many living in fear of retribution just for speaking out, even though free speech is still written in the Constitution.
Do we have a label for this? Webster’s Dictionary defines “authoritarianism” as the concentration of power in a leader or an elite not constitutionally responsible to the people. That, with a hefty dose of “terrorism”—the use of violence or the threat of violence, as a weapon of intimidation or coercion—seems to fit where we are.
In the words of Celina Stewart, CEO, and Dianna Wynn, president of the League of Women Voters, "The foundational principles that have sustained our democracy—checks and balances, the rule of law, free and fair elections—are under direct and sustained threat. In this extraordinary moment, we cannot proceed with business as usual. All Americans—no matter who you voted for in 2024—need to come together, stand united, and fight back to save our democracy.”