Trump is trying to thwart democracy itself. But the problem is deeper than one man | David Daley

Republicans have carefully cultivated rot in the voting system. It didn't start with Trump and it won't end after he leaves

Democracy rots slowly. Sometimes its decay is perfectly legal, helped along by legislatures and embraced by the courts. It happens when elected officials deliberately tilt the game to their own advantage.

On Sunday, the Washington Post published smoking-gun audio of Donald Trump pressuring Georgia's secretary of state to find" enough votes to reverse the election outcome and declare Trump the winner, or face potential legal consequences. Even some Republicans have recognized that the bright line between democracy and authoritarianism had been breached.