Former President Donald Trump has waged war against democracy from the very beginning, but in the run-up to, and aftermath of, the 2020 presidential election, his conspiracy theories and anti-democratic actions became more dangerous.
From the January 6 insurrection to malicious lawsuits intending to overturn a democratic election, Trump’s efforts showed just how fragile democracy can be if it isn’t guarded carefully. But while the guardians of democracy succeeded this time, our next government may have other goals. Far too many Republican elected officials have pledged undying loyalty to Trump, even to the point of ignoring the will of the people, displaying remarkable contempt for democracy itself.
Nobody exemplifies this authoritarian sentiment better than Utah Sen. Mike Lee. Lee has made no secret of the contemptuous attitude in which he holds democracy. In fact, on October 8, 2020, this self-described constitutionalist tweeted, “Democracy isn’t the objective… We want the human condition to flourish. Rank democracy can thwart that.” (The tweet is still public, by the way; he’s made no effort to delete or retract it.) With statements like this, it’s no surprise that Lee has supported Trump’s efforts to overthrow democracy. Lee poses a great danger to our very foundation of democratic government.
Only one candidate in 2022 can defeat Lee and protect our democracy against his (and Donald Trump’s) attacks – Evan McMullin. I do not agree with McMullin on a great many issues, but on the greatest issue for our republic – democracy itself – we are in complete accord. And, in the 2022 election, that issue will decide the future of our country, including if it will continue to exist.
The Utah Democratic Party should not endorse a candidate in this race. McMullin’s electoral chances rest on three key pillars – Republicans who see the damage that Mike Lee is doing to democracy, independents who align with McMullin’s policies or desire to break the two-party hold on Washington, and Democrats who recognize that the most important issue in this race is the preservation of our democratic system. By endorsing a candidate, the Democratic Party signals its opposition to McMullin and increases the likelihood of Lee’s reelection.
In discussion of this issue, one point seems to resurface repeatedly – that the Democratic Party should, in the interest of strategy, support someone running as a Democrat. But this belief is, though well-intentioned, mistaken. Kael Weston, the sole candidate running for the Democratic nomination, has to this point run only one campaign before. He lost the 2020 election for Utah’s 2nd Congressional District 59.0%-36.6% – a 22.6-point margin, underperforming President Joe Biden in the district.
Now he is running for U.S. Senate, a seat which Cook Political Report calls solidly Republican. He himself has not said that he believes the race to be unwinnable – that would be unthinkable for a politician – but looking at his history as well as this current race, he clearly doesn’t mind a forlorn hope. For endorsing a clearly losing candidate, the party wouldn’t gain anything of significance.
By endorsing Weston, the Democratic Party risks the one thing that it truly depends on – democracy. If Lee succeeds in his goal of destroying democracy, the Democratic Party will no longer be able to have any chance of getting any candidates elected. The Democratic Party should not endorse anyone in this race, not only in the interest of democracy but in the interest of the Democratic Party and its policies – all are jeopardized, as well as the very process they depend on if Lee is reelected.
Sen. Mike Lee poses an existential threat to democracy – by his own admission, he opposes the very existence of democratic government. But he has not succeeded in destroying it yet. Utah must vote Lee out before he succeeds in robbing that power from us. Republicans, independents and Democrats must all put aside differences in policy to defeat Mike Lee and save our republic. Otherwise, we may soon find that 2022 was our last chance.
Atticus Teter
Atticus Teter is a student at West High School in Salt Lake City.
