On Monday, September 17, 1787, as Benjamin Franklin was leaving the final session of the Continental Congress in Philadelphia, a woman named Elizabeth Willing Powel shouted a question, “Well, Doctor, what have we got, a republic or a monarchy?” Franklin replied at once and succinctly, “A republic, if you can keep it.”
Franklin’s response was as much a warning as it was prophetic. And it has proven to be both: predicting the daunting challenge of keeping the republic for virtually all our nearly 250-year history as a country. And, perhaps, with the exception of the Civil War, that challenge has never been greater than it is right now. We all know the cost in blood America has paid to become and remain one.
With the recent, steady flow of disturbing developments from the Trump Administration, our very republic is being threatened daily. With every word the president speaks we are plunged deeper into division and chaos. While Mr. Trump condemns the Iranian government for attacking its own freedom-seeking citizens, he unleashed his goons, aka ICE agents, on our people in Minnesota and elsewhere. He is stealing oil from Venezuela. He threatened the sovereignty of Greenland and other independent nations. He has dodged releasing the Epstein files. He ignores legal court orders. He is trying to politicize the independent Federal Reserve Bank in HIS favor. He threatens ANYONE who dares to challenge him on ANY level. He attacks media outlets and has moved to eliminate criticism by curtailing free speech. He blatantly uses the Office of the President to enrich himself and his family. He conducts illegal search and destroy missions, killing people without due process. He’s vindictive, illegally withholding Federal funds solely from states run by Democrats. And perhaps the most telling, egregious and frightening statement he has made so far is, “the only thing that can stop me is my own morality. And I’m a very moral person.” Incredibly, the list of republic-destroying transgressions could easily go on! How much more can any reasonable, decent American be expected to accept?
In my mind, we have reached the tipping point and once again must answer the question, “DO we have a republic or monarchy?” I know Mr. Trump’s answer, but how about the country’s? How much more can we take as a republic before ALL is lost? Perhaps history can provide an example.
I love history, particularly ancient Roman history. It fascinates me in so many ways, but perhaps none more so than how Rome shapes our own history and culture. Think of it. From law to language, architecture, and form of government, America is in so many ways a modern-day version of ancient Rome. Like her, we shoulder a responsibility as the world’s dominant superpower. And because of that, Americans, also like the Romans, have a certain, arrogant attitude that implies: We’re so great, everyone should want to be like us!
But the more I studied Roman history, and particularly that of Julius Caesar, the more I realized so much of the Rome glorified in books and film is very far from the reality.
Roman glory was ultimately built on a foundation of conquest, subjugation, and slavery. Yes, their civilization achieved great things. Their magnificent monuments stand to this day. Their influence on modern culture, language, and law cannot be denied. However, eventually their political system became rife with so much corruption, graft, and violence it caused the greatest Western empire ever known to collapse under the weight of its own greed and avarice. It became very much a have- -and-have-not society; if you were part of the patrician class you could live well. But everyone else lived a life of bare existence, struggling to survive daily (sound familiar?). At one point, slaves even outnumbered the number of Roman citizens in the city! So, it became a society destined to fail.
Julius Caesar, the so-called greatest of all Romans, is certainly the most recognizable. His very name is associated with great leadership and has lived on for 2,000 years. Traces of it appear in Kaiser and Czar. Shakespeare immortalized him. But it is often forgotten that in Caesar’s time, Rome was a republic similar in structure to our own. And Caesar changed all of that. He started the empire – HIS empire — by promising to make “Rome Great Again.” And, to many, he did. But at what cost? Well, that just happened to be the Roman Republic.
He spared no expense to achieve HIS greatness that he sold as “for the glory of the empire.” If that included buying the allegiance of government officials, just name the price. He scheduled massive, expensive games and gladiatorial contests at the Coliseum, often at public expense, to win popular support. To demonstrate his military prowess, an essential qualification in any Roman ruler, Caesar attacked and conquered millions of foreign people, enslaved them, and confiscated their lands. Remember, he did this all proclaiming “the glory of Rome” while at the same time consolidating his own power and lining his pockets. Sound familiar? And perhaps most galling of all is the fact that he slaughtered and enslaved millions to achieve his goals. All the Roman people had to do “to be great again” was give Caesar unlimited power – and they did. In my mind, the comparisons to Trump and his unmasked and unbridled lust for power are shocking and cannot be overlooked. Remember, “those who refuse to learn from history are doomed to repeat it.” Rome fell, never to rise again.
So, it’s time to ask the question again: “Do we have a republic? Are we willing to fight to keep it?” Because if we don’t now, chances are that we won’t. And the rest will be history. I fear America, the republic so many have sacrificed to achieve, may fall at the hands of a megalomaniac mad man, never to rise again.
Frank LoBuono is a Nyack resident, photographer, blogger, and retired CBS News journalist.
Editor’s note: The views expressed in this article are those of this independent writer and not the Nyack News & Views editorial staff. We welcome submissions from anybody who is interested in publishing their thoughts, ideas and perspectives about issues facing our community, both large and small. Please send submissions to info@nyacknewsandviews.com.
Photo credit: Frank LoBuono
