Trump’s America: Anything But a Banana Republic

Political repression is commonplace across the developing world. To maintain power, authoritarian rulers intimidate and imprison their competitors. Comparing Donald Trump to someone like Zimbabwe’s Robert Mugabe is inaccurate and unwarranted.

On Tuesday, in a gruff, monotonous tone characteristic of the congressman, John Conyers cautioned the House Judiciary Committee and Attorney General Jeff Sessions against appointing a second special counsel to investigate the recent claims surrounding Hillary Clinton and the Uranium One deal. Quoting former Justice Department head Michael Mukasey, Mr. Conyers maintained that the criminal pursuit of political competitors mimics a “banana republic.”

The president’s repeated calls to have his 2016 rival be put in jail do, to some extent, resemble the actions of an authoritarian leader. Whether before, during, or after an election, the repression of political opponents is a hallmark of tyrannical governance.

However, this is a strawman argument. Trump is not Idi Amin; nor is he Benito Mussolini. Drawing erroneous comparisons and calling the president a murderous dictator is irresponsible. Moreover, it downplays the horrors committed in places like Uganda and Fascist Italy. President Trump, at times, may resemble an authoritarian ruler, but he is most certainly not an authoritarian ruler.

True authoritarians do not wait for the gavel to meet the striking block. President Trump would never, under any circumstance, attempt to incarcerate Hillary Clinton without a lawfully attained judgement succeeding a thorough investigation and trial.

Furthermore, genuine authoritarians fabricate baseless allegations against their competitors. The president does not customarily pluck accusations against his chief political opponent out of thin air.

The United States, even under Donald Trump, is not a banana republic. To suggest as much is to trivialize the suffering of those living under legitimately oppressive regimes. For example, Zimbabwe, a country currently making headlines around the world, has been under true dictatorial rule for decades. Using political repression to preserve his presidency, Robert Mugabe has terrorized the African nation for the better part of thirty-seven years.