Resolving con ict: democracy and American political values 23While America’s political culture has many other aspects, the concepts of
democracy, liberty, and equality are central to understanding how American
politics works. Agreement on these principles helps lessen conflicts and limit their
scope. For example, when Democratic senators lost the battle to prevent Trump’s
Supreme Court nominee Neil Gorsuch from being appointed, they didn’t have to
worry that Trump would remove them from office or throw them in jail for opposing
Gorsuch. (Indeed, this equality norm is one reason why Trump’s threat during the
campaign to jail Clinton if he won the presidency was so controversial.) Moreover,
Democrats have a clear path to preventing Trump from appointing more justices
like Gorsuch: attract enough supporters to regain control of the Senate in the 2018
elections, or find a candidate who can defeat Trump in 2020. Americans and their
elected officials have been willing to grant one another political equality and to
take political defeats in stride because there is agreement on the basic boundaries
of political debate. Again, this consensus does not imply there is no conflict—quite
the contrary. However, conflict is easier to resolve if it is over a narrower range
of options.
Not surprisingly, many aspects of America’s political culture will come up
throughout this book. You also might want to look out for them when you are
watching the news or reading about national politics. When Democrats in Congress
talk about the need to provide health insurance for all Americans, they are
emphasizing equality—and when President Trump and his Republican allies argue
that minimizing government involvement and allowing people more choice (even
if it means some people cannot afford insurance) will lead to a better system, they
are emphasizing liberty. Moreover, as this example suggests, part of the conflict inIn democracies like the United States,
voting is one of the most visible ways
citizens use the political process to
express their opinions and resolve
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