“One of the greatest threats to democracy is the idea that it is unassailable. The 2016 U.S. presidential campaign taught us not to assume that the country’s political leadership will follow the practices and norms that help guarantee American democracy. In the wake of a campaign in which candidates sometimes showed disrespect for an active, investigative press, demonized immigrants and religious and ethnic minorities, and failed to discourage grassroots political violence, we established Bright Line Watch. Our overarching goal is to use our scholarly expertise to monitor democratic practices and call attention to threats to American democracy.The danger to our democratic norms and institutions has not subsided since the election. It is thus more urgent than ever for scholars to remind leaders and the public how democracy works and to highlight the risks to our system of government. In this spirit, BLW brings together a core group of political scientists to monitor democratic practices, their resilience, and potential threats…”
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