It's not an either/or. The USA is a Republic. However, the Constitution allows the Congress to create another inner govt within Washington DC. That 2nd, nested govt is a democracy. That nested govt is a corporation by the name UNITED STATES. So, we have the USA and the US. That corporation spawned 50 sub corporations by the be of STATE OF <state name>. Search for yours on Dunn & Bradstreet to confirm it is a corporation of its own. When you say you are a U.S. citizen, you don't realize you're naturalizing yourself as a subscribing party to the DC based corporation with its democracy. What I'm explaining to you is the GREATEST fraud successfully accomplished onto the American people. You should interview someone to explain this for all your listeners' sake.