So what’s the real reason Republicans say we’re not a democracy, we’re a republic?

My view is they’re not mutually exclusive, we’re both. Probably looking for replies from progressives here, because it seems like I’ve heard or read lots of very different Republican explanations and I can’t remember any of them, it just seems like they were all pedantic bullshit. There must be some underlying issue that’s important to them. My guess is roughly that “democracy” carries the connotation that everyone gets to vote, whereas in a republic maybe it could be considered acceptable to disenfranchise certain people deemed illegitimate (such as minorities and poor because they didn’t show an ID), but I don’t feel very confident in that hypothesis.

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GerOttman · 70-79, M

There are very good reasons for the republic choice as opposed to a democracy. The issue was carefully considered by the framers. The big issue I see is a lack of understanding of how the country was designed to work in the first place and how far off from that design we are now. The states are intended to be quasi independent and equal in standing in the republic. The dominance of federal control we currently have is the exact opposite of the design.

whowasthatmaskedman · 70-79, M

@GerOttman Quite so. When the nation was being put together, communications and transportation and even industry were all far more locally based than the founding fathers could have dreamed. a large measure of independence was crucial for anything to get done.