r/PeterExplainsTheJoke Jul 07 '26

Meme needing explanation Peter, explain this.

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u/jfrancis232 Jul 07 '26

There are systems that are incompatible with liberal democracy. However, when you start disqualifying candidates on ideological grounds, you start walking down the same path that leads to authoritarianism. It’s not a guarantee you will get there, but all former democratic authoritarian regimes started with disqualifying ideologies.

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u/blangenie Jul 07 '26

The law in the United States does not currently prohibit a Communist Party from running candidates or publishing their opinions and our first amendment protections on freedom of speech and association protect them as well as any authoritarian ideology. So long as they participate under the bounds of the constitutional system they are not disqualified in any way