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Trump's Return Echoes Rome's Fall: Is America Next?
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Will Trump make America fall like Ancient Rome? Thom Hartmann reveals how Ancient Rome’s democratic collapse set the stage for America’s current crisis… Trump's second inauguration.
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The Thom Hartmann Program is the leading progressive political talk radio show for political news and comments about Government politics, be it Liberal or Conservative, plus special guests and callers.
#MoreFromThom #Trump
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TRANSCRIPT
Trump's path to power mirrors Rome's darkest days. For 482 years, Rome was a democratic republic—more or less—but largely a democratic republic, the world's second after Greece, a thousand years earlier. America has been a democratic republic, arguably, for 236 years. The end of the democratic phase of the Roman Republic, which was followed by several hundred years of tyranny and then the collapse of the Empire itself, was brought about by a small group of very wealthy Roman citizens.
Marcus Licinius Crassus was the leader of this group. He was the richest man in the Roman Empire—very wealthy—and he hated the fact that his taxes were paying for Rome’s "free bread for all" policy. Remember "bread and circuses"? Give people free bread, give them the Coliseum, and they won’t revolt. Crassus disliked this because it was funded by his tax dollars. He and a few other wealthy men—Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus, probably the most famous and called Pompey the Great—wanted to end the public’s voice in political decision-making, particularly ending the free bread policy funded by their taxes.
Using their immense wealth, they promoted authoritarian populism and bought off legislators in the Roman Senate, creating a gridlock that caused the Roman people to lose faith in their government. The Senate, controlled by senators loyal to the Roman billionaires, refused to take action to benefit the public. Their only agenda was tax cuts for the wealthy.
I’m simplifying, but this is well-documented in multiple analyses of the rise and fall of the Roman Empire. The Roman elite used three main strategies to erode democracy and consolidate power:
Polarization and Gridlock: They set society against itself, preventing progress in the legislative arena.
Erosion of Democratic Norms: They destroyed the ideals of compromise, collegiality, and cooperative governance in the Senate.
Concentration of Power: They funneled influence into the hands of a small elite who controlled senators through their wealth.
This process took decades but ultimately succeeded. The people lost faith in their government, paving the way for the rise of authoritarian rule. Julius Caesar crossed the Rubicon River, seized Rome, and became its first dictator. Within a few leaders after him, democracy was gone, replaced by autocratic rule.
We see a strikingly similar situation unfolding in the United States. A small group of right-wing billionaires, since the 1970s, has been funding efforts to create gridlock, attack social programs, and promote policies that serve their financial interests. These social programs—America’s equivalent of “free bread”—include Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security, unemployment insurance, food stamps, free primary education, and affordable college.
Their first major success came in the 1990s with Newt Gingrich, who became Speaker of the House. He introduced a new era of American politics based on political warfare, delegitimizing government programs, manipulating the media, and using obstruction as a political strategy. This closely parallels what occurred in the Roman Senate before the rise of Caesar.
Billionaire-owned media outlets like Fox News and right-wing talk radio amplify these efforts, trashing New Deal and Great Society programs, promoting tax cuts, and fostering distrust of government. The result has been political gridlock, the erosion of democratic norms, and a concentration of power in the Republican Party, echoing the Roman experience.
Today, more than 75% of Americans say they no longer trust the government. This widespread disillusionment, fueled by billionaire-funded obstructionists, mirrors the conditions in ancient Rome.
MORE FROM THOM
FOLLOW THOM
ABOUT THE PROGRAM
The Thom Hartmann Program is the leading progressive political talk radio show for political news and comments about Government politics, be it Liberal or Conservative, plus special guests and callers.
#MoreFromThom #Trump
✔ Amazon links are affiliate links
TRANSCRIPT
Trump's path to power mirrors Rome's darkest days. For 482 years, Rome was a democratic republic—more or less—but largely a democratic republic, the world's second after Greece, a thousand years earlier. America has been a democratic republic, arguably, for 236 years. The end of the democratic phase of the Roman Republic, which was followed by several hundred years of tyranny and then the collapse of the Empire itself, was brought about by a small group of very wealthy Roman citizens.
Marcus Licinius Crassus was the leader of this group. He was the richest man in the Roman Empire—very wealthy—and he hated the fact that his taxes were paying for Rome’s "free bread for all" policy. Remember "bread and circuses"? Give people free bread, give them the Coliseum, and they won’t revolt. Crassus disliked this because it was funded by his tax dollars. He and a few other wealthy men—Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus, probably the most famous and called Pompey the Great—wanted to end the public’s voice in political decision-making, particularly ending the free bread policy funded by their taxes.
Using their immense wealth, they promoted authoritarian populism and bought off legislators in the Roman Senate, creating a gridlock that caused the Roman people to lose faith in their government. The Senate, controlled by senators loyal to the Roman billionaires, refused to take action to benefit the public. Their only agenda was tax cuts for the wealthy.
I’m simplifying, but this is well-documented in multiple analyses of the rise and fall of the Roman Empire. The Roman elite used three main strategies to erode democracy and consolidate power:
Polarization and Gridlock: They set society against itself, preventing progress in the legislative arena.
Erosion of Democratic Norms: They destroyed the ideals of compromise, collegiality, and cooperative governance in the Senate.
Concentration of Power: They funneled influence into the hands of a small elite who controlled senators through their wealth.
This process took decades but ultimately succeeded. The people lost faith in their government, paving the way for the rise of authoritarian rule. Julius Caesar crossed the Rubicon River, seized Rome, and became its first dictator. Within a few leaders after him, democracy was gone, replaced by autocratic rule.
We see a strikingly similar situation unfolding in the United States. A small group of right-wing billionaires, since the 1970s, has been funding efforts to create gridlock, attack social programs, and promote policies that serve their financial interests. These social programs—America’s equivalent of “free bread”—include Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security, unemployment insurance, food stamps, free primary education, and affordable college.
Their first major success came in the 1990s with Newt Gingrich, who became Speaker of the House. He introduced a new era of American politics based on political warfare, delegitimizing government programs, manipulating the media, and using obstruction as a political strategy. This closely parallels what occurred in the Roman Senate before the rise of Caesar.
Billionaire-owned media outlets like Fox News and right-wing talk radio amplify these efforts, trashing New Deal and Great Society programs, promoting tax cuts, and fostering distrust of government. The result has been political gridlock, the erosion of democratic norms, and a concentration of power in the Republican Party, echoing the Roman experience.
Today, more than 75% of Americans say they no longer trust the government. This widespread disillusionment, fueled by billionaire-funded obstructionists, mirrors the conditions in ancient Rome.
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