Furious opposition from the legislature, the media, and the public defeated the attempt by South Korea’s president to impose martial law. Since Trump is perfectly capable of trying the same thing, are there any lessons in this episode for him?
The message here is that liberal democracy will be defended vigorously by the citizenry. It is more likely, however, that Trump will conclude that the keys to maintaining control over widespread public opposition are the unconditional loyalty of the military and the willingness to use lethal force ruthlessly against large crowds of unarmed protesters.