Trump's broken republic

Donald Trump's presidency is threatening the cornerstones of American democracy as he rides roughshod over a legislature designed to prevent authoritarianism, writes Robert Schmuhl

Under scrutiny: Donald Trump is being inundated with demands for information. His staff's first response: How dare you?

Robert Schmuhl

Pity anyone trying to explain the day-to-day workings of the American Republic in 2019. Theory and practice collide with such regularity the original concept gets crushed in the fallout.

Washington today resembles an abstract painting - say, a late Picasso with noses and eyes jarringly misplaced - rather than an Old Master with life-like, realistic human features scrupulously arranged.