US democracy under threat
Jan 20, 2022, 05:24 PM
The assault on the United States Capitol on 6 January 2021 represents perhaps the starkest manifestation of a US democracy in crisis. But the strains on democracy have been evident elsewhere - from a plethora of bills being put forward across state legislatures that critics warn undermine voting rights, to a series of controversies surrounding the make-up and even legitimacy of the US Supreme Court, itself a vital component of the US democratic apparatus.
The assault on the United States Capitol on 6 January 2021 represents perhaps the starkest manifestation of a US democracy in crisis. But the strains on democracy have been evident elsewhere - from a plethora of bills being put forward across state legislatures that critics warn undermine voting rights, to a series of controversies surrounding the make-up and even legitimacy of the US Supreme Court, itself a vital component of the US democratic apparatus.
Assessing the issues are:
Sarah Turberville, Director of the Constitution Project at the Project on Government Oversight
Sophia Lin Lakin, Deputy Director of the Voting Rights Project at the American Civil Liberties Union
Professor Paul Smith, Professor From Practice at Georgetown Law and Vice President for Litigation and Strategy at the Campaign Legal Center
Fred Davis, former Co-Chair of the IBA Business Crime Committee and a lecturer in Law at Columbia Law School