Irish Examiner view: US voters should focus on protecting democracy from Donald Trump

Both sides of the political divide should heed the message delivered by former Republican congresswoman Liz Cheney 

Richard 'Bigo' Barnett with his feet on a desk in the office of then Speaker Nancy Pelosi on January 6, 2021, when Trump supporters invaded the US Capitol. Mr Barnett has since been sentenced to four and a half years in prison for his part in the riot. Picture: Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty

With 28 days to go before the US presidential election, one of the main issues facing voters has emerged — protecting democracy from Donald Trump.

It reared its ugly head again last week, both in the debate between vice-presidential candidates, Democrat Tim Walz and Republican JD Vance, and in the explosive 165-page filing by special counsel Jack Smith, which was ordered unsealed by a federal judge last Wednesday and charged Trump with conspiring to subvert the 2020 election.