Trump shows us how democracy, dictatorship differ

The wonderful thing about Donald Trump’s presidency (I never thought I’d begin a column this way), is that he brings us back to basics. The basic difference between a democracy and a dictatorship comes down to means and ends. Democracy is about means, not ends. If we all agreed on the ends (such as whether to build a wall along the Mexican border), there’d be no need for democracy. But of course we don’t agree, which is why the means by which we resolve our differences are so important. Those means include a Constitution, a system of government based on the rule of law, and an independent judiciary. A dictatorship, by contrast, is only about ends. Those ends are the goals of the dictator — at a minimum, accumulating and preserving personal power. To achieve those ends, a dictator will use any means necessary.