Are We A Democracy? Or Are We A Republic?

Civics 101

NHPR

Education, History, Supreme Court, American History, Elections, Democracy, Society & Culture, Government, Civics, Politics, Social Studies

4.6 • 2.4K Ratings

🗓️ 8 November 2022

⏱️ 24 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

There's a complaint we get pretty often around here, that our tagline contains the word "democracy," but the United States is *actually* a republic. So...do we need to make a change?

Transcript

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0:00.0	And that's New Hampshire's public radio Civic 101 podcast and these are its co-hosts and producers
0:08.2	Hannah McCarthy and Nick Kaffadice. Thank you so much for being with us here this morning. It's a pleasure to be here, Jesse. Thank you
0:16.0	Thank you. Do you remember this? Oh, yeah, I remember this
0:19.5	You want to just tell everyone real quick what it was? Yeah, sure
0:22.7	In November of 2021
0:25.2	Nick and I were on Washington Journal on C-SPAN talking about our show and I remember
0:32.2	Very clearly Nick when they opened the phone lines. Let's talk to James who's calling from port andulous
0:38.7	Washington James good morning. Good morning, Jesse. Are you guys there? We're here. Go ahead James
0:45.5	Yeah
0:47.0	being piped by parts and you guys from New Hampshire. Um, how do you keep?
0:52.2	Um
0:56.2	Your your own opinions to yourselves on your show. I know you're just you're just working on one subject and I want to play one caller's specific beef with us and he's not alone
1:08.1	Let's talk to Murph who's calling from Germantown, Tennessee. Murph good morning
1:14.8	Thank you for taking this call. I have a bone to pick with you two guests
1:18.9	I
1:20.9	Talked American government and civics for 22 years in the American public school classroom in Tennessee
1:28.0	United States of America is not a democracy
1:32.6	There has been never will be
1:35.2	It is a republic
1:37.4	And we pass laws and govern ourselves through our elected representatives and a rule of law
1:43.6	Do you want to investigate a democracy? I suggest you look at the democratic republic of the Congo or the former Soviet Union who allowed people to vote
1:55.2	But they only had one choice
	...

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