The U.S. political landscape is increasingly adopting authoritarian rhetoric and tendencies. However, this shift comes without any of the supposed upsides of authoritarianism, such as hyper-efficient infrastructure or public order. The result is a dysfunctional "authoritarianism without the good stuff."

For decades, the US served as the aspirational model for liberal democracy. Its current internal political turmoil signals that the model is flawed, giving credibility to authoritarian alternatives and fueling global pessimism about democracy's future.

Many Americans, particularly in a recent poll of Democrats, support a military coup against a political opponent without realizing such actions historically lead to violent military dictatorships, not a return to democracy, as seen in Myanmar, Egypt, and Chile.

The US is not heading toward a civil war defined by organized armies. Instead, it's experiencing "violent populism," where political violence becomes normalized on both the left and right. This creates a dangerous environment where executive power, such as the use of martial law, expands under the pretext of maintaining order.

The contemporary threat to democracy isn't a violent overthrow. It's a gradual erosion of neutral institutions like courts, media, and electoral commissions by leaders who were democratically elected, a model pioneered by Hungary's Viktor Orbán.

Governments can use the "problem-reaction-solution" model. By allowing a disruptive group to cause public outrage, they create demand for action. The government then introduces broad, restrictive laws, ostensibly to solve the initial problem, but which are ultimately used to curtail civil liberties for everyone.

Hoping for a single charismatic leader to unite a deeply fragmented society is a dangerous fantasy. This desire ignores the underlying mechanics of populism and division. Historically, when a society is in chaos, the call for a strong leader to 'make things right' is precisely what enables dictators to seize power.

Tocqueville saw America as a novel society where citizens, not kings, made the rules. Today, this foundational principle is under fire from a wide spectrum of its own people—from political operatives proud of defying the government to citizens who feel the system has failed them.

The perception of national decline in the US is not limited to one political side. Polling indicates that both left and right-leaning citizens believe the country's constitutional order and institutions are breaking down. The key difference is that each side is simply happy when their faction is temporarily "winning" the process of collapse.