It's not really an either/or question. Mostly generally a Republic is a form of government where sovereignty is public, not private, as in a Monarchy. Republic literally translates to "public thing".
It is not incorrect to refer to the USA as a democracy, because the representatives and executives in the US are democratically elected by the people. It's only incorrect if one is saying that the USA is a direct democracy, in which case, it would still be a Republic because the sovereignty of such a nation is public. Since everyone you've likely corrected on this very likely knows that we hold elections for local, state, and national government representatives and executives, I doubt the people who sometimes refer to the US as a democracy are calling it a direct democracy.
We are a Republic, which is democratic, which has the source of its power a social contract called the U.S. Constitution. Our form of government, is republican because our sovereignty is derived from the people, not a monarch. It's a representative form of government because the people don't make and execute laws directly. It's a democracy because the people elect those representatives and executives. It's a constitutional form of government because our laws are based on the US Constitution. It's all those things. Constitutional. Democratic. Representative. Republican. The description is hierarchical.
France is a democratic republic. But I don't people get bent out of shape when people call it a democracy. A republic doesn't have to have democratically elected power. China is a Republic too. It just happens to be a communist dictatorship ruled by a single party, where the party chair is the leader. Great Britain is a representative democracy in that their laws are written by elected representatives in Parliament, but it is not a republic because their sovereignty belongs to the Crown, not the people.
So, it's correct enough for people generally to say the US is a democracy. It is. It is not correct to say the US is a republic AND NOT a democracy. We are both. A democracy doesn't have to be direct. It's still a democracy if political power is wielded through democratically elected representatives. So we should probably stop trying to correct people who are not saying anything incorrect. They most likely do understand that our elected representatives make the laws and not the people directly. However, if you do find people who are really trying to claim the US is a direct democracy, you have reality's full permission to correct them. Otherwise you're...
It is not incorrect to refer to the USA as a democracy, because the representatives and executives in the US are democratically elected by the people. It's only incorrect if one is saying that the USA is a direct democracy, in which case, it would still be a Republic because the sovereignty of such a nation is public. Since everyone you've likely corrected on this very likely knows that we hold elections for local, state, and national government representatives and executives, I doubt the people who sometimes refer to the US as a democracy are calling it a direct democracy.
We are a Republic, which is democratic, which has the source of its power a social contract called the U.S. Constitution. Our form of government, is republican because our sovereignty is derived from the people, not a monarch. It's a representative form of government because the people don't make and execute laws directly. It's a democracy because the people elect those representatives and executives. It's a constitutional form of government because our laws are based on the US Constitution. It's all those things. Constitutional. Democratic. Representative. Republican. The description is hierarchical.
France is a democratic republic. But I don't people get bent out of shape when people call it a democracy. A republic doesn't have to have democratically elected power. China is a Republic too. It just happens to be a communist dictatorship ruled by a single party, where the party chair is the leader. Great Britain is a representative democracy in that their laws are written by elected representatives in Parliament, but it is not a republic because their sovereignty belongs to the Crown, not the people.
So, it's correct enough for people generally to say the US is a democracy. It is. It is not correct to say the US is a republic AND NOT a democracy. We are both. A democracy doesn't have to be direct. It's still a democracy if political power is wielded through democratically elected representatives. So we should probably stop trying to correct people who are not saying anything incorrect. They most likely do understand that our elected representatives make the laws and not the people directly. However, if you do find people who are really trying to claim the US is a direct democracy, you have reality's full permission to correct them. Otherwise you're...
