In this article, the following three subjects are identified: (1) as the quantitative evidence shows in the first section of this article, democracy in the US has deteriorated since 2016; (2) there could be multiple possible causes for the deterioration of American democracy. In particular, conjunctural opportunities give populist leaders an opening to project authoritarian schemes in the US against the backdrop of political sectarianism and the rise of negative partisanship; (3) the presidency of Donald Trump could be regarded as a cause of degradation of American democracy. Many of Trump’s traits and actions as president of the United States were damaging to American democracy. However, because Trumpism has not thoroughly permeated the Republican party, a barrier exists against further deterioration or even a transition to authoritarianism.

在本文中，确定了以下三个主题：（1）正如本文第一部分所显示的定量证据，美国的民主自 2016 年以来已经恶化；(2) 美国民主的恶化可能有多种可能的原因。尤其是，在政治宗派主义和消极党派之争兴起的背景下，临时机会为民粹主义领导人提供了在美国计划威权计划的机会；（3）唐纳德特朗普的总统任期可以被视为美国民主退化的原因。特朗普作为美国总统的许多特质和行为正在损害美国的民主。然而，由于特朗普主义在共和党内并未彻底渗透，因此存在进一步恶化甚至向威权主义过渡的障碍。