"What we are seeing today is a new iteration of that very old impulse in America: the quest of some of the propertied...to restrict the promise of democracy for the many,"
Nancy MacLean argues in her book, Democracy in Chains. She highlights that certain wealthy and influential elites have historically sought to limit democratic rights and influence to serve their own interests, often through stealthy and strategic means.MacLean emphasizes that this effort is driven by a specific ideological extreme, often portrayed as greed or greed-infused motivation. She suggests that this obsession with protecting property rights and wealth has repeatedly aimed to undermine broader democratic principles, ensuring that economic and political power remain concentrated in the hands of a privileged few.