Why Are Conservatives Saying America Is A Republic, Not A Democracy?

I have had that discussion with a number of folks on this site. I post the definition of each word, and they still want to argue.
Bottom line:
A republic is always a democracy, whereas a democracy is not always a republic.

BTW, this was argued clear back at the beginning of this nation.

That was interesting. I always felt the difference between the two was the level of power the majority of people wielded. Every elected official is selected with a popular majority so doesn’t that make us a Democracy? Oh wait...the Electoral College; is that what makes us a Republic? The populace can vote on ballot initiatives but elected representatives can ignore those initiatives; does that make us a Republic?
This was an interesting interview. How today’s average American sees the terms interchangeable because there is zero reason for elected officials to ignore the popular majority even though that’s exactly what politicians do.

Those of us who studied at least a little US civics in high school understand that the United States Constitution sets up a representative democracy within a Republic. This isn't a political point of view, it's a fact. US Citizens can vote in a democratic process for their representatives. A majority of votes, normally 51%, wins the election. Depending on state laws there are instances when a plurality of votes wins.

In a pure democracy, decisions would be made based on the majority vote of the citizens. This type of democracy was not practical in the 18th Century and may not be practical even with today's technology. The US Constitution provides for the citizens electing representatives who then represent them in the law making process. This is why the House of Representative calls itself the "peoples' house." It's also why Representatives must stand for election every 2 years.

The country was formed from 13 Colonies. Each Colony was freed from English rule at the end of the Revolutionary War (Treaty of Paris). Each Colony had its own government. Some had their own Constitution. To pull a country together from 13 colonies, the colonial governments had to have some power. The Senate and Electoral College gave the Colonies-become-States power separate from the citizens. (The Constitution was changed so Senators were elected by popular vote in their States. More power for the people and less power for the State Government.) The Constitution also limits the power of the Federal Government to only the powers listed in the Constitution and all other powers belong to the States and the People.

So today, the people express their will through democratic elections for Representatives and Senators. The States maintain power through the Electoral College, which elects the Head of State and Chief Executive, aka the President and Vice President. The States still have a lot of autonomy and apply representative democracy within their jurisdiction in different ways. For example, some states elect judges, some don't.