Former President Barack Obama suggested that Republicans rig elections by warning that “one side tries to stack the deck and lock in a permanent grip on power.”
Obama’s statement came during a speech at the Obama Foundation Democracy Forum in Chicago, Illinois, where the former president called for a commitment to pluralism.
Obama said: “There are going to be times, potentially, when one side tries to stack the deck and lock in a permanent grip on power—either by actively suppressing votes, or politicizing the armed forces, or using the judiciary and the criminal justice system to go after opponents.”
“In those circumstances, pluralism does not call for us to just stand back and say, ‘Well, I’m not sure that’s okay,'” he said. “In those circumstances, a line has been crossed, and we have to stand firm.”
Obama declared that the “concept of pluralism should [be] and is actually familiar to all of us. It means that in a democracy, we all have to find a way to live alongside individuals and groups who are different than us,” The Hill reported.
He reiterated his support for pluralism, saying, “Can the idea of pluralism work in the current moment? And, for that matter, is the concept even worth saving? I believe the answer is yes.”
“I am convinced that if we want democracy, as we understand it, to survive, then we’re all going to have to work towards a renewed commitment to pluralist principles,” Obama added.
Cheryl K. Chumley wrote in an opinion piece for The Washington Times that the idea of “pluralism” is a “red flag for anyone who wants a nation of individual freedom, with rights and liberties that come from God.”
