The United States Constitution is considered one of the most important documents in the U.S. because it serves as the framework for the government’s institutions. Robert Dahl’s How Democratic is the American Constitution, closely analyzes the elements of the document that was created over two centuries ago. It is universally known that American politics is a structured democracy, however Dahl questions whether the Constitution is as democratic as people believe it to be. American democratic institutions act based off the content of the framework to attempt to protect citizens’ civil liberties, but these institutions have created political inequality due to the undemocratic elements of the Constitution. Dahl’s primary argument of the text is centered around these undemocratic elements which include slavery, suffrage, election of the president, choosing senators, equal representation in the Senate, judicial power, and congressional power. These are considered limitations of the American political system as they are not in line with other democratic countries and do not promote equality and liberty. Additionally, the document allowed states to have the power to create certain legislation that would allow slavery. The…show more content… Both element threaten the fundamental rights of citizens and create controversy in the political system. In Rob Goodman’s “What the King of Hawaii Can Teach Us About Trump,” the author argues that the country’s democratic norms “were historically weak,” meaning the undemocratic elements did not advance the United States in democracy (Goodman, 2). Goodman argues that polarization of elites has taken the voices of the population that is not considered “elite,” even though the Framers wanted to ensure all voices were heard in government (Goodman,
