Distinguished Professor of History at American University Allan Lichtman has done it again. With his latest book 13 Cracks: Repairing American Democracy After Trump, Lichtman has given readers a deep dive into the historical context entrenched in the Trump administration’s multitude abuses of power. In the process, Lichtman details different historical examples of how both Democratic and Republican presidents have engaged in practices that have overstepped the appropriate and constitutional level of their presidential power. But, as Lichtman lays bare, former President Donald Trump went beyond the excesses of past presidents because he ripped through all the cracks embedded in U.S. democracy and he broke them open more callously than any of his predecessors.
Throughout 13 Cracks Lichtman identifies several specific weaknesses within the U.S. political system that were exacerbated by the Trump administration. A few of these “cracks” include unclear laws governing election results, ineffective campaign finance laws, the executive branch’s tendency to obstruct congressional investigations, blurred lines regarding executive privilege, and the immensity of the President’s extensive military powers. Lichtman retraces the history of each crack while also exposing how the Trump administration’s actions deepened those issues.
Lichtman, though, doesn’t simply highlight the problems brought to the forefront by former President Trump’s manipulations and mistreatments of the U.S. political system. On the contrary, Lichtman also offers practical solutions for attending to those issues. At the core of Lichtman’s important and various solutions is an urgent call for Congress to reaffirm its responsibility as an equal branch of government and assert its authority to firmly check, correct, and discipline presidential abuses of power. Anyone who is interested in repairing and restoring US democracy needs to read this book.