In the end, the most significant differences between a liberal democracy and a banana republic are these:
- The executive in a liberal democracy follows court orders. The executive in a banana republic either stacks the judiciary or ignores it;
- The press is controlled by the executive, either through legal or financial means, in a banana republic; and
- Enemies of the executive are prosecuted for frivolous, partisan reasons in a banana republic.
To my pleasant surprise, the Trump administration has chosen to complain bitterly about adverse court orders, but not to ignore them–yet. It is clearly stonewalling legitimate efforts at congressional oversight, however, and we have plenty of evidence, particularly recently, that Trump is eager to prosecute his opponents, even with the assistance of foreign governments. We also remember his threats about controlling the media, and note Justice Thomas’ statements in support of that agenda.
The key figure in this process is William Barr. Based on his behavior and his reputation as an avatar for increased executive power, there is no chance that he will stand up against his boss in public for the essential norms of a liberal democracy. He will either: (a) slow walk Trump’s demands for political investigations; (b) openly express enthusiastic support for them, while doing nothing to effectuate them; or (c) actually embrace them and thus begin the process of destroying the republic.
At this point, do you really have any faith in him? Me, neither.