This week, President Biden warned America that an oligarchy is forming in Washington DC and that it threatens our republic. Turns out, this is not a new story.
For 482 years (509 BCE–27 BCE), ancient Rome ran as a democratic republic. America has lasted in that state for 236 years (1789-2025).
The end of the democratic phase of the Roman republic was brought about by wealthy, elite Romans like Marcus Licinius Crassus (115–53 BCE) — the richest man in the nation at the time — who frankly hated the Roman “free bread for all” welfare system.
He and others like Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus (Pompey the Great, 106–48 BCE) wanted to end the voice of the public in political decisions (because they were demanding free bread, paid for with rich peoples’ taxes), so they used their massive wealth to promote rightwing authoritarian populism and buy off legislators who’d then be loyal to them.
This created political gridlock in the Senate, leading many Romans to lose faith in their democratic form of government.
Three primary elements were used by the morbidly rich of that era to erode the power of Rome and replace it with sycophants loyal to them: polarization and elite gridlock, the erosion of democratic norms, and the concentration of power in the hands of a small elite who funded and thus controlled Rome’s senators.
It took decades, but they finally succeeded in using that lack of faith in government to replace Roman democracy with Caesarism, aka authoritarian strongman rule, kicked off by Julius Caesar crossing the Rubicon River to seize the seat of government in Rome and finalized by Augustus Caesar ending any semblance of democracy.
Here in America, a handful of rightwing billionaires have spent decades fighting to end the New Deal and Great Society programs that use their tax dollars to distribute “free bread” to Americans in the form of Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, unemployment insurance, food stamps, quality free primary education, and cheap or free college.
While their efforts began in earnest in the 1970s following Lewis Powell’s infamous Memo, they really kicked into high gear when the billionaires succeeded in the 1990s in installing Newt Gingrich as Speaker of the House.
Newt pioneered a new form of American politics based on political warfare, delegitimization of the US government and programs of the New Deal and Great Society, manipulation of the media, populist messaging, and using obstruction as a political strategy.
His efforts were amplified by billionaire-owned media like Fox “News” and rightwing hate radio, always trash-talking New Deal and Great Society programs, calling for more tax cuts to de-fund government, and encouraging hatred of politicians and the political process.
The result was political gridlock, the end of democratic norms of collegiality and compromise, and the concentration of power in the Speaker’s office and ultimately the GOP itself. This led most Americans (over 75%) to eventually lose faith in our government; out of that came today’s increasing calls for an American version of Julius and Augustus Caesar.
One of the first was rightwing blogger and JD Vance mentor Curtis Yarvin, who began arguing over a decade ago — with his “dark enlightenment” movement — that America needed a new Caesar to free us from gridlock and stagnation.
As JD Vance noted in a 2021 podcast:
“There’s this guy Curtis Yarvin who’s written about some of these things. One has to basically accept that the whole thing is going to fall in on itself. … The task of conservatives right now is to preserve as much as can be preserved and then when the inevitable collapse comes you build back the country in a way that’s actually better.”
Others who could be characterized (or characterize themselves) as American Caesarists include Trump advisors Michael Anton and Charles Haywood, and Heritage Foundation President Kevin Roberts.
So, here we are, with Joe Biden’s warning.
— Just like in the Roman republic, America’s morbidly rich and their business interests have funded efforts to denigrate popular government and its programs for decades, all to serve their own financial and political interests.
— Just like in the Roman republic, the politicians funded by these elite rightwingers and companies have crippled the ability of our government to meaningfully meet the needs of anybody other than their patrons.
— Just like in the Roman republic, this billionaire-funded gridlock has led the nation to widespread immiseration, homelessness, and a breakdown of the social contract, accompanied by the eruption of militia groups and billionaire-funded Astroturf movements like the Tea Party.
— Just like in the Roman republic, this seizure of government by rich men and its subsequent inability to meet the needs of the majority of its citizens has driven popular discontent, loss of trust, and calls for radical reform that includes an abandonment of democratic principles and the rule of law.
— Just like in the Roman republic, that call for reform has been met by a strongman figure who claims that he, alone, can fix things and who demands total loyalty and subservience from elected officials and the institutions of the state.
Trump has now crossed the Rubicon: he’ll be inaugurated in less than a week. He’s seized the government and, as we saw with his utter humiliation of Joni Ernst this week, is demanding Caesar-like pledges and performances of loyalty and fealty.
Next week, we’ll find out how closely Trump and his Caesarist allies will follow the ancient roadmap to replace democracy with oligarchy and then tyranny that was first pioneered by Gaius Julius and Gaius Octavius Augustus.
Will America fall like ancient Rome? Or will we, like we did in the 1860s and 1930s when oligarchs last tried to destroy our system, fight back and not only hold but improve our democracy?
Stay tuned…
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