Our neighbor to the north, the United States, is navigating politically dangerous times. It has an occupant in the White House in President Donald Trump, who was aided in getting there by Russia, according to American intelligence agencies. It is unclear where the Russian scandal will take the country. Some are referencing Watergate, but the comparison is premature at this time.
Trump has been under constant assault by the media and those opposed to him regarding his ties, and those of his associates, to Moscow. Trump is a fighter, however. He calls the media dishonest - though untruths are uttered by members of his administration nearly every day - and lashes out regularly.
It is common for politicians to dislike the media. We see it here in The Bahamas. The last two administrations have accused us of unfairness.
Politicians and the media are supposed to have an adversarial relationship. Our democratic system envisions the free press as a restraint on the power of government and other dominant interests. Journalists should be skeptical. They should ask tough questions. They should be provocative. Tyranny descends when power is consolidated, when it is unchallenged and unquestioned.
The media do not always get it right. The media are not always fair. The media are not always focused on the most important things. But without an independent media, democracy would crumble, quickly.
When Trump tweeted on Friday that the news media are "the enemy of the American people" he did something injurious to the 240-year-old republic. His words were an attempt to delegitimize the media as part of the democratic equation.
Senator John McCain said accurately that efforts to sideline the media are how dictatorships get started.
Here in The Bahamas, we must be thankful for, and fight to protect, our free press. We have four dailies, a popular tabloid, more than 20 radio licenses and three TV news broadcasters. All these media exist in a country of only 350,000.
We have a vibrant public sphere where matters are debated; where dissent is expressed; where power is brought to account; where state policy can be altered or stopped.
We must never believe that any person is greater than democracy. There must be a separation of state powers all watched over by a free press and the rule of law in order to help prevent one person or a select few from ruling in the most abusive manner.
When politicians ask citizens to ignore their media and not to trust them, the citizens are being led down the path to ruin. They end up taking the people's resources, their freedoms and, in extreme cases, their lives.
We are in election season. You read, hear and see the debate for power. Feel proud that this exists in your country. Feel proud you have the vote. But temper that pride with vigilance. We the people are the protectors of our own freedoms. We constantly must fight to ensure the gains are maintained and that there are future expansions of liberty.
We hope our American friends do not choose Trump over their media. In doing so they would choose a dangerous demagogue over democracy.

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