Feb. 21, 2025: A Republic, If You Can Keep It

Posted on February 26, 2025 at 12:00 AM

by Arabella Meyer

When asked whether the Constitutional Convention had produced a republic or a monarchy, Ben Franklin famously replied, “A republic, if you can keep it.” That phrase has never felt more apt nor been so frequently quoted. The first month of the second Trump administration has challenged aspects of our democracy in ways many of us could not have imagined.

To watch the executive branch shutter agencies established by acts of Congress and stop the distribution of funds appropriated by Congress with no comment—let alone action from the legislative branch—is astonishing. To see this being enacted by an “agency” neither designated nor vetted by Congress is wild and beyond anything we have seen. This is not what our nation’s founders envisioned.

One of the brilliant, and often frustrating, aspects of American democracy is the way power is balanced between the executive, legislative, and judicial branches. In fact, the founders assumed that if one branch of government would hold the greatest power, it would be the legislative branch (see Federalist Paper #51). While there have been periods in which the executive branch has increased its power (particularly during times of war), there is no precedent for what is currently taking place.

It is imperative that the legislative branch assert its rights and powers by calling on Elon Musk and members of his DOGE team to testify before Congress about their activities, to force them to gain Congressional authorization to close agencies or stop existing grants, and to remind President Trump that he must work with Congress to enact many parts of his agenda.

We the people have a duty to press Congress to act. We need to call our representatives (even if they are supportive of our position), to write to our legislators, and to protest until balance is restored to our government. Let’s keep our republic! Find out how to contact your senators at www.senate.gov/senators/senators-contact.htm and your representative at www.house.gov/representatives.