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The American Republics

In his victory speech in the early morning of the 6th, Trump said, "The United States has given us unprecedented and powerful power," and "I have made a commitment that I will rule by adhering to this simple motto," thereby emphasizing his will to fulfill his campaign promises.

Many of Trump's campaign promises could significantly alter the order of the United States and the world. Trump said he could use the military to suppress protests or "internal enemies" and planned to fire a large number of federal government employees. In addition, he said that "revenge can sometimes be justified" for his political opponents, including those who participated in investigating and prosecuting him, and said he would promote punishment. He also said that he would deport a large number of unregistered immigrants on his first day in office.

No one can control Trump, which also indicates that his second term may be more violent. He was elected in the 2016 election without political experience and reused Republican elites. White House Chief of Staff John Kelly and Secretary of Defense James Mattis and others were called the "axis of adults" and played a role in calming Trump's unreasonable instructions and impulses. But US media reported that Trump now believes that loyalists are better than outspoken subordinates, and he wants to use them to fill high-level public positions.

The unexpectedly huge victory also made Trump more daring. As of the early morning of the 7th, he had the upper hand in all seven swing states and was leading Vice President Kamala Harris by about 5 million votes in the national vote count. This is the first time since 2004 that a Republican candidate has led in the national vote count.

In the Senate and House elections held at the same time as the general election, the Republican Party won 52 seats out of 100 seats in the Senate, regaining the majority in the Senate. The Republican Party also won 205 seats out of 435 seats in the House of Representatives, ahead of the Democratic Party, which only won 190 seats. If the Republican Party, which follows Trump, controls both the Senate and the House, it will be easier for Trump to realize his own agenda through the main functions of parliament, such as legislation. The Federal Supreme Court, which is composed of three justices nominated by Trump in his first term, has lost its balance due to the six seats of the Conservative Party and the three seats of the Progressive Party.

Numbered republics generally reflect significant shifts in governance, either through revolution, constitutional reform, or occupation. Numbered republics typically refer to political entities with the term "republic" in their name, followed by a numerical designation. This can indicate a succession or version of a governmental or constitutional system.

France has gone through five different republics since the end of its monarchy in the late 18th century. Each republic represents a distinct period of government in French history, marked by changes in the constitution and political system. The First Republic (1792–1804), was established after the French Revolution, following the fall of the monarchy, and ended when Bonaparte declared himself Emperor in 1804. The Second Republic (1848–1852) was established after the February Revolution of 1848, which ended the monarchy of Louis-Philippe (the July Monarchy). Soon Louis-Napoleon staged a coup and declared himself Emperor Napoleon III, leading to the Second Empire. The Third Republic (1870–1940) was etablished after the collapse of the Second Empire during the Franco-Prussian War (1870), and ended with the German invasion in World War II. The Fourth Republic (1946–1958) replaced the Vichy regime, and ended with Charles de Gaulle's return to power amid the Algerian Crisis.

The First Roman Republic (509–27 BCE) was the ancient Roman Republic that replaced the Roman Kingdom. The Second Roman Republic (1849) was a short-lived revolutionary government established in the Papal States during the revolutions of 1848-1849. The First German Republic (1919–1933), also known as the Weimar Republic, was established after World War I. The Second Republic (1949–1990) refers to West Germany (Federal Republic of Germany) post-World War II until reunification. The First Republic in Austria (1919–1934): Established after the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The Second Republic (1945–present) was reestablished after World War II.

In Brazil, the First Republic (1889–1930) was also known as the "Old Republic," following the abolition of the monarchy. The Second Republic (1930–1937) was marked by Getúlio Vargas' presidency. Later "republics" in Brazil are less formally numbered but refer to subsequent phases of government.

In the Philippines, the First Republic (1899–1901), known as the Malolos Republic, established after independence from Spain. The Second Republic (1943–1945) was a Japanese puppet state during World War II. The Third Republic (1946–1972) was established after independence from the United States. The Fourth Republic (1981–1986) was the period under Ferdinand Marcos' rule after martial law. The Fifth Republic (1987–present) was established under the 1987 Constitution post-Marcos.

The Czech First Republic (1918–1938) was the interwar Czechoslovakia after independence from Austria-Hungary. The Second Republic (1938–1939) was a short-lived state following the Munich Agreement. In Hungary, the First Republic (1918–1919) was established after the collapse of Austria-Hungary. The Second Republic (1946–1949) existed before transitioning into the People's Republic of Hungary under communism.

The Korean Republics refer to the different phases of South Korea's government, marked by constitutional changes and shifts in political structure since its establishment in 1948. Each "republic" reflects significant events, reforms, or political transitions in the country's history. Early republics were marked by authoritarian rule, gradually transitioning to democracy in the Sixth Republic. From the Third Republic onward, South Korea experienced rapid industrialization and modernization. Public uprisings played a pivotal role in shaping the transition between republics.

Korean Republics began with the First Republic (1948–1960), the post-independence government under Syngman Rhee. The Second Republic (1960–1961) was a short-lived parliamentary government. And the Third to Sixth Republics (1963–present) repreent phases of South Korea’s government under successive constitutions. The Third Republic (1963–1972) under Park Chung-hee (President) transitioned to a presidential system under Park's leadership after a brief period of military rule. The Fourth Republic (1972–1981) was led by Park Chung-hee (until his assassination in 1979), followed by Chun Doo-hwan. It ended after Park's assassination and subsequent political turmoil, including the 1980 Gwangju Uprising against military rule. The Fifth Republic (1981–1987) under Chun Doo-hwan (President) ended with mass protests (June Democracy Movement), which forced the government to agree to democratic reforms. Sixth Republic (1987–present was marked by political liberalization and consolidation of democracy. Continued economic development turned Korea into one of the world’s leading economies.

In Portugal, the First Republic (1910–1926) followed the abolition of the monarchy. The Second Republic (1933–1974) was also known as the Estado Novo, a corporatist authoritarian regime. In Sudan, the First Republic (1956–1969) was the post-independence government. The Second Republic (1969–1985) was established after a military coup.

Some revolutionary or transitional governments in history have adopted a numbering system to signify phases of their governance (e.g., in Latin America or post-colonial states). Some Soviet republics included a numerical designation for their constitutions or phases, though they were not explicitly referred to as "numbered republics."

First American Republic - 1774-1789

The Continental Congress was the governing body by which the American colonial governments coordinated their resistance to British rule during the first two years of the American Revolution. The Congress first met in Philadelphia on September 5, 1774, with delegates from each of the 13 colonies except Georgia. On October 20, the Congress adopted the Articles of Association. The Congress balanced the interests of the different colonies and also established itself as the official colonial liaison to Great Britain.

As the war progressed, the Congress became the effective national government of the country, and, as such, conducted diplomacy on behalf of the new United States. The Congress reconvened in Philadelphia on May 10, 1775. By the time Congress met again, war was already underway, and thus the delegates to the Second Continental Congress formed the Continental Army and dispatched George Washington to Massachusetts as its commander. As British authority crumbled in the colonies, the Continental Congress effectively took over as the de facto national government, thereby exceeding the initial authority granted to it by the individual colonial governments. On July 4, 1776 the Congress took the important step of formally declaring the colonies’ independence from Great Britain. The Second Congress continued to meet until March 1, 1781, when the Articles of Confederation that established a new national government for the United States took effect.

The First American Republic was formalized under the Articles of Confederation adopted by the Continental Congress. Following the Declaration of Independence, the members of the Continental Congress realized it would be necessary to set up a national government. This document served as the United States' first constitution. The Confederation Congress took over the reins of government on March 1, 1781, following American victories at Yorktown that resulted in British willingness to end the war. It was in force from March 1, 1781, until 1789 when the present-day Constitution went into effect. The Articles provided for a one-house legislature, a weak executive, no national power of taxation, a lack of standard currency, and voting by state—flaws that would eventually lead to its failure.

• With the states retaining considerable power, the central government had insufficient power to regulate commerce.

• It established a weak central government that mostly, but not entirely, prevented the individual states from conducting their own foreign diplomacy.

• It could not tax and was generally impotent in setting commercial policy. Throughout the Revolutionary War, the Continental Congress was denied the power to levy truces of any sort and forced to depend instead upon voluntary contributions from the States. This unsatisfactory situation persisted in the postwar Confederation Period as well. First Rhode Island and later New York vetoed proposals to grant· the central Government authority to collect truces. Meanwhile, the individual States practiced a sort of tariff anarchy, imposing discriminatory and arbitrary duties upon the products of one another and presenting foreign traders with a bewildering array of tariff rates. This unstructured system was understandably unsettling, and it stimulated interstate rivalries, hostility, and disunity.

• Nor could it effectively support a war effort. "No vessels of war shall be kept up in time of peace, by any state, except such number only, as shall be deemed necessary by the united states, in congress assembled... every state shall always keep up a well regulated and disciplined militia, sufficiently armed and accoutred, and shall provide and constantly have ready for use, in public stores, a due number of field pieces and tents, and a proper quantity of arms, ammunition, and camp equipage."

• The central government had little power to settle quarrels between states. Disputes over territory, war pensions, taxation, and trade threatened to tear the country apart.

Between March 1, 1781, when the Articles of Confederation were enacted, and November 5, 1781, when a new Congress convened, Samuel Huntington and Thomas McKean served briefly as presidents of the body. Samuel Johnston had declined the presidency when elected. When the first Confederation Congress met on November 5, 1781, it elected John Hanson (1715–1783), delegate from Maryland, as “President of the United States in Congress Assembled.” Hanson was integral to a number of important initiatives later realized later when Washington was Chief Executive.

The Articles created a loose confederation of sovereign states and a weak central government, leaving most of the power with the state governments. Once peace removed the rationale of wartime necessity the weaknesses of the 1777 Articles of Confederation became increasingly apparent. Divisions among the states and even local rebellions threatened to destroy the fruits of the Revolution. The Confederation government’s ineffectual response to Shays’ Rebellion in Massachusetts, convinced national leaders that a more powerful central government was necessary. This led to the Constitutional Convention that formulated the current Constitution of the United States.

Second American Republic - 1789-2025

The Founders were faced with a difficult decision — fix the flawed Articles of Confederation or develop a new system. Nationalists, led by James Madison, George Washington, Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, and James Wilson, almost immediately began working toward strengthening the federal government. They turned a series of regional commercial conferences into a national constitutional convention at Philadelphia in 1787.

Delegates to the Federal Constitutional Convention of 1787 created the instrument of government. When delegates to the Constitutional Convention began to assemble at Philadelphia in May 1787, they quickly resolved to replace rather than merely revise the Articles of Confederation. Five months of debate, compromise, and creative strategies produced a new constitution, adopted on September 17, 1787, creating a federal republic with a strong central government, leaving most of the power with the state governments. The Federalist Papers were a series of eighty-five newspaper essays published anonymously but were in fact written in defense of the Constitution by James Madison, John Jay (1745–1829), and Alexander Hamilton. In lobbying for adoption of the Constitution over the existing Articles of Confederation, the essays explain particular provisions of the Constitution in detail. Rhode Island and North Carolina did not ratify until after the formation of the new government in 1789.

• With his 1803 decision in Marbury v. Madison, Chief Justice John Marshall established the principle of judicial review, an important addition to the system of “checks and balances” created to prevent any one branch of the Federal Government from becoming too powerful. “A Law repugnant to the Constitution is void.” With these words written by Chief Justice Marshall, the Supreme Court for the first time declared unconstitutional a law passed by Congress and signed by the President. Nothing stated in the Constitution gave the Court this specific power. Marshall, however, believed that the Supreme Court should have a role equal to those of the other two branches of government.

• The 12th Amendment, ratified in 1804, simplified the process for selecting a President and Vice President from the same political party. Under Article II as originally ratified, the Electoral College did not vote separately for President and Vice President. Instead, each elector voted for two candidates for President. If one candidate received votes from a majority of the electors, he became President, while the candidate with the second-highest number of votes became Vice President. The original system could [and did in the election of 1796], result in the selection of a President and Vice President with different political alignments. Possibly the theory was that the House would be the domain of the populares, while the Senate would preserve the interests of the optimates.

• The 13th Amendment, passed by Congress on January 31, 1865, and ratified on December 6, 1865, abolished slavery in the United States.

• The 14th Amendment, passed by Congress June 13, 1866, and ratified July 9, 1868, extended liberties and rights granted by the Bill of Rights to formerly enslaved people. Birthright citizenship is a legal principle under which a person is granted citizenship of a country by virtue of being born within its territory. In the United States, this concept was established bythe 14th Amendment to the Constitution, which states: "All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside." United States v. Wong Kim Ark (1898): The U.S. Supreme Court affirmed the principle of birthright citizenship for children of non-citizen parents born on U.S. soil, solidifying the jus soli interpretation.

• The Pendleton Civil Service Reform Act of 1883 marked the beginning of the end of the spoils system. This act established that government jobs should be awarded based on merit, determined through competitive exams, and created the Civil Service Commission to oversee this process. At that time, there were approximately 132,000 federal employees on the U.S. government payroll. The majority of federal employees worked in the postal system. A significant portion of the workforce managed customs duties and internal revenue collection. Over time, the merit-based system replaced patronage in most areas of government employment, though political appointments still exist for high-level positions. The term "spoils system" gained prominence during the presidency of Andrew Jackson (1829–1837). The spoils system refers to a practice in U.S. politics where a political party, after winning an election, rewards its supporters, friends, and loyalists with government jobs and public positions. The system operates on the principle of "to the victor go the spoils," meaning that the winning party has the right to distribute government positions as political rewards. Jackson openly embraced the practice, arguing that it democratized government by allowing ordinary citizens, not just elite bureaucrats, to hold public office. The spoils system was heavily criticized for fostering corruption, inefficiency, and incompetence in government.

• The Tillman Act of 1907 began efforts to control bad behavior by rich people and corporations. That law explicitly forbade any corporation from making “money contributions in connection with any election to any [federal] political office.” By 1925, the Tillman Act had been incorporated into the Federal Corrupt Practices Act, further limiting money in politics, and in 1938 came got the Hatch Act which limited contributions to $5000 per candidate and $3 million per party.

• The 16th Amendment, ratified in 1913, was adopted to address the Court’s 1895 decision in Pollock v. Farmers’ Loan & Trust Co. holding unconstitutional Congress’s attempt of the previous year to tax incomes uniformly throughout the United States. Article I granted Congress authority to collect taxes, but required direct taxes to be imposed proportional to the population of the states. The 16th Amendment clarified that Congress had the power to collect an income tax without apportionment among the states, and without regard to population.

• The 17th Amendment, passed by Congress on May 13, 1912, and ratified on April 8, 1913, provided for the direct election of Senators by the voting public during elections. Initially, state legislatures selected Senators, rendering the Senates semething of a gathering of ambassadors from quasi-independent states. the year before the 17th Amendment was ratified, at least twenty-nine states were nominating Senators on a popular basis, and, as a consequence, the constitutional discretion of the state legislatures had been reduced to little more than that retained by presidential electors.

• The 19th Amendment, proposed in June 1919, and ratified in August 1920. prohibited the federal and state governments from denying or abridging a U.S. citizen’s right to vote on the basis of sex, thereby recognizing women’s suffrage.

• In 1930, once he realized that he had set in motion a general revision of the tariff, President Hoover urged the House and Senate to exercise restraint. Willis C. Hawley, of Oregon, introduced a bill in the House that ignored the limitations Hoover had suggested. In the upper House, Senator Reed Smoot, of Utah, traded support of higher tariffs on imported industrial goods for increases in agricultural duties. Hoover was none too pleased with the monster this process had created. Having set up the highest general tariff rate structure that the United States had ever experienced, it triggered an angry reaction overseas. One nation after another retaliated by raising its own trade barriers. A monumental international depression had begun, which was destroying the whole fabric of world trade, even while Congress was putting the finishing touches on the SmootHawley Act. Under the impact of higher tariffs, competitive devaluations, and heavy-handed financial controls throughout the world, the flow of international trade shrank drastically in 1931 and 1932, and the U.S. economy staggered toward total paralysis.

• The Reciprocal Trade Agreements Act of 1934 totally altered the process of changing domestic tariffs because it authorized the President to negotiate reciprocal trade agreements with other countries for an initial 3-year period. It thus turned over to the executive branch the power to reduce rates, The new agreements led to the reduction of many tariff rate levels, but because they simultaneously stimulated increased trade, the total amount of the duties collected under the reciprocity agreement's tariff concessions was actually higher than it had been under the original Smoot-Hawley rates of duty. Unfortunately, the total volume of U.S. international trade was not fated to return to its predepression levels for some time.

• The 22nd Amendment, ratified in 1951, limited persons to being elected only twice to the presidency. This followed soon after the people had elected Franklin D. Roosevelt to unprecedented third and fourth terms of office, in 1940 and 1944, respectively. This prohibition would not prevent someone who had twice been elected President from succeeding to the office after having been elected or appointed Vice President.

• Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962 (19 U.S.C. §1862) authorizes the Secretary of Commerce to conduct comprehensive investigations to determine the effects of imports of any article on the national security of the United States. The President can concur or not with the Secretary’s recommendations, and, if necessary, take action to “adjust the imports of an article and its derivatives.” In addition, the Secretary can recommend, and the President can take, other lawful non-trade related actions necessary to address the threat.

  For many years the primary function of the U.S. tariff system was to provide the Federal Government with a regular income adequate to finance its operations. Tariffs or customs duties are fundamentally nothing more than taxes levied on imported goods. The duties, collected at customs houses, are turned over to the US Treasury. The importance of the revenue-raising aspect of tariffs has declined markedly in the period since 1913. Until that time customs duties had accounted for between 50 and 90 percent of the total Federal income. The ratification of the 16th amendment to the Constitution in that year permitted the imposition of direct income taxes, a development that greatly expanded the Government's revenue-collection capabilities. As a consequence, tariffs have declined in importance as revenue measures; in recent years customs duties have accounted for only 1 or 2 percent of the Federal Government's total income.

  To prevent or restrict the importation of certain goods from abroad, customs duties had to be set at such a level that the price of imported items (their basic cost after transport plus the import tax) would be higher than the price of similar but domestically produced items. High tariffs were designed to "protect" US industries and producers from foreign competition and to preserve domestic employment levels.

  Many businessmen, politicians, and diplomats had argued for years that the Nation's mature industrial economy required increased exports in order to maintain its economic health. One very effective way to encourage other nations to purchase US-produced goods was to offer to buy more of their products, and the reduction of tariff barriers on both sides might bring about this mutually beneficial result.

• The Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974 (ICA) reasserted Congress' power of the purse. Specifically, Title X of the Act – "Impoundment Control" – established procedures to prevent the President and other government officials from unilaterally substituting their own funding decisions for those of the Congress. The Act also created the House and Senate Budget Committees and the Congressional Budget Office. An "impoundment" is any action – or inaction – by an officer or employee of the federal government that precludes federal funds from being obligated[1] or spent, either temporarily or permanently. But the Supreme Court unanimously held in Train v. City of New York that the President does not have unilateral authority to impound funds. Congress has the power of the purse.

  If the President wants to spend less money than Congress provided for a particular purpose, he or she must first secure a law providing Congressional approval to rescind the funding in question. The ICA requires that the President send a special message to Congress identifying the amount of the proposed rescission; the reasons for it; and the budgetary, economic, and programmatic effects of the rescission. Upon transmission of such special message, the President may withhold certain funding in the affected accounts for up to 45 legislative session days. If a law approving the rescission is not enacted within the 45 days, any withheld funds must be made available for obligation.

  A "deferral" is the withholding, delaying, or – through other Executive action or inaction – effectively precluding funding from being obligated or spent. The ICA prescribes three narrow circumstances in which the President may propose to defer funding for a program: (1) providing for contingencies; (2) achieving budgetary savings made possible through improved operational efficiency; and (3) as specifically provided by law.

Third American Republic - 2025-????

In a charged final rally before Election Day, Donald Trump addressed a packed arena in Grand Rapids, Michigan, delivering a message filled with confidence and signature style. In a striking moment, Trump compared himself to Abraham Lincoln, recounting that Border Patrol agents recently declared him "the greatest president in history" and "better than both Abraham Lincoln and George Washington." Possibly Trump envisions himself as a pivotal figure in American history, the founder of a Third American Republic.

Heritage Foundation President Kevin Roberts said that the country is "in the process of the second American Revolution, which will remain bloodless if the left allows it to be.” The leader of the conservative think tank was orchestrating Project 2025 plans for a massive overhaul of the federal government in the event of a Republican presidential win. He made the comments Tuesday on Steve Bannon’s “War Room” podcast, adding that Republicans are “in the process of taking this country back.” Former Democratic presidential candidate Marianne Williamson wrote on the social platform X. “This is chilling ...Their idea of a second American Revolution is to undo the first one.”

David Walter Runciman argued " the real turning point came in 1978, during the presidency of Jimmy Carter. This was the year the lobbyists and other organised groups who were pushing hard to relax the burden of tax and regulation on wealthy individuals and corporate interests discovered that no one was pushing back all that hard. Despite Democratic control of the White House and both Houses of Congress, 1978 saw the defeat of attempts to introduce progressive tax reform and to improve the legal position of trade unions. ... What took place in the 1980s was therefore an extension of the Carter years, not a reversal of them. The process of deregulation and redistribution up the chain accelerated under Reagan..."

"Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt (FUD)" is a strategy used to influence perception by spreading negative, misleading, or alarming information about an idea. The term is often associated with marketing, public relations, and political propaganda but is also prevalent in discussions about technology and finance. In cryptocurrency and stock markets, FUD can be used to manipulate prices by creating panic among investors. Politicians or interest groups might employ FUD to sway public opinion against policies or individuals. FUD remains a powerful psychological tool but is increasingly scrutinized in an era where misinformation spreads rapidly online.

"Owning the libs" is a political strategy employed by some conservatives in the United States, aiming to provoke or upset liberals to assert dominance or highlight perceived liberal sensitivities. This approach often involves emphasizing divisive cultural issues to elicit reactions, akin to internet trolling. The term "own" in this context originates from hacker and gaming slang, where it means to dominate or defeat an opponent. Over time, this concept has permeated political discourse, particularly among right-wing groups. The strategy focuses on eliciting emotional responses from liberals, thereby portraying them as overly sensitive or easily provoked. In recent developments, the migration of liberal users from platforms like X (formerly Twitter) to alternatives such as Bluesky has raised questions about the future of "owning the libs" as a strategy. With fewer liberals on these platforms, the effectiveness and relevance of this approach are being reevaluated.

In the 2024 elections, the Republican Party won a majority in the Senate and the House of Representatives. In the Senate, Republicans won 53 seats out of 100. In the House of Representatives - 218 seats, which is also a majority. A conservative majority also formed in the US Supreme Court, in which some of the judges were appointed by Trump during his first term in the White House. Congress and the Supreme Court — as the legislative and judicial branches of government — potentially give Trump the ability to quickly pass laws, unimpeded approval of his nominees for key positions, and passage of budgets. Some analysts suggest that this is a potential threat to American democracy. "The next four years will be a test for her," says Robert Benson , a senior analyst at the Center for American Progress. The conservative Heritage Foundation had been pushing Project 2025, a sprawling wish list of free market policies written by more than 100 conservative organizations with ties to Trump. Project 2025 plans will centralize power in the executive office. The Heritage Foundation has also assembled extensive policy plans and a personnel database under its Project 2025 banner, but Trump has distanced himself from and criticized the effort as Democrats have seized on its more extreme proposals. The nearly 1,000-page handbook lays out sweeping changes in the federal government, including altering personnel rules to ensure government workers are more loyal to the president. The Project 2025 team was staffed with Trump's former White House aides and advisers. Yet Trump repeatedly disavowed the document, saying on social media he hasn't read it and doesn't know anything about it. The group continued vetting resumes for its nearly 20,000-person database of potential government officials ready to execute the group's vision for government.

Trump has vowed to sidestep any efforts to block his agenda.