Some discussion re Weimar may be instructive...
Were a Republican elected, even with a Republican Congress, he would most likely face social disorder from extremists in and out of his own party on the Right, in the first instance, because they are much more violent, well armed, and organized in opposition to any federal government, whereas Democrats are less violent, not well armed, and not opposed to a federal government.
Similarly, the Social Democrats, the party in power in Weimar faced determined violent opposition in the first instance from German extremists on their left although they were a left leaning party. (If I say anything erroneous here, Professor Kaiser can perhaps set me straight with a post on his blog.)
As Kennan pointed out in 'The Rise Of Hitler', in Russia and The West Under Lenin And Stalin, this German extremist left group was supported heavily by the Soviet Communists after 1928, and stayed that way until WWII really began, even though the rise of fascism should have been something to cause Stalin, of all people, great alarm.
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