The reason so many people are on his side isn't because they want him to be dictator or something, it's because the media essentially turned him into an anti-establishment symbol in 2016 and it stuck. What the average Republican sees here is Trump being put through a trial for corruption when it's common knowledge that the government is rife with corruption. It just appears to them as the system targeting a Republican (Christian, straight, White, etc.) symbol when there are numerous officials just as worthy of this treatment. This is just going to invigorate his base. This is how you get 2016 all over again. Republicans are going to be riding the high of this perceived injustice while Democrats will be asleep at the wheel because the majority of them will incorrectly believe they've already won. Just like in 2016 when the media projected Hillary winning in a landside.
A quarter of people in this country dislike both candidates. 41% of people ages 18-29 hold that view. This kind of opinion is only going to grow more and more popular as time goes on and people become more and more polarized. This polarization is the only real threat to democracy in this nation. Polarization pushes people to the extremes. Typically not in dramatic ways, of course. You're not going to see many people walking around waving the swastika or the hammer and sickle, for example. But what you will see is more and more people expressing disdain for both candidates each election. You'll see more and more people express distrust in the American electoral system. More often than not, they'll start to blame the other side. This is the kind of thing that leads to further polarization and eventually political violence.
I'm of the opinion that this trial against Trump is malicious in nature. Yes, he is guilty, but it's an active political effort to remove him from the board. The reason this sort of thing hasn't happened before isn't because there haven't been politicians worthy of such a treatment, it's because both parties had an interest in not provoking the other with this sort of thing. If the reds start trying the blues for their crimes while they're in power, then the blues might do the same to the reds later down the line. Better to uphold the cold war. In our case it seems like the Democrats decided to make it hot. This was done likely out of fear brought on by the January 6th incident. Naturally, this will increase polarization. It's a vicious cycle, and the result may very well end up being something like what you see in Russia. A single party totally dominant, supported by oligarchs, focused almost entirely on upholding the regime and making money rather than advancing the interests of the citizenry. Regardless, if something isn't done about the polarization then
you can probably kiss American democracy as we know it goodbye.
Personally, I wouldn't count on depolarization anytime soon. I suspect both parties will try and secure total political control, and I know for certain that the media will continue to assist them in fueling the political divide. There won't be any reconciliation, especially not with the internet ready and willing to provide either side with ragebait, real or fake. In a sense I think technology is simply outpacing political theory, and what we need more than ever is some totally new system of governance that can take into account the new nature of human social structures in an increasingly digital world.
