The consent of the governed has been withdrawn

In the US, a weary nation rejects the warmongering politics of carnival and spectacle

"Rebellion to tyrants is obedience to God.” – Benjamin Franklin

Franklin in London in 1767, wearing a blue suit with elaborate gold braid and buttons. Public domain image courtesy of Wikipedia. History of the painting.

There have been 59 presidential elections in the United States of America since Jefferson penned the now historic axiom in the Declaration of Independence that governments “derive their just powers from the consent of the governed.”

On the cusp of the nation’s 60th election in November 2024, with its politics hopelessly mired in partisan infantilization and trivialization, a historic $34 trillion national debt vs. $26.5 trillion GDP, and a $1.4 trillion military machine enmeshed in unpopular wars across the globe, the governed have clearly and unequivocally withdrawn their consent, resulting in a historic crisis of legitimacy.

A September 2023 survey by Pew Research found that “fewer than two-in-ten Americans say they trust the government in Washington to do what is right, the lowest trust measures in nearly seven decades of polling.” The exact figure is 16%.

When the question shifts to satisfaction with the overall direction of the country, Gallup reports that only 22% say they are satisfied. Gallup data also show a historically high percentage of voters rejecting both parties, with those identifying as “independent” ranging as high as 49% in 2023.

This society wide dissatisfaction and distrust is reflected in the reality that 77 million Americans, one third of eligible voters, did not vote in the 2020 presidential election, More than 63 million who are eligible to vote did not even register.

With the $20 billion 2024 election spectacle already underway, Pew finds that “65% of Americans feel exhausted” thinking about politics.