To add to this, it would simply be remiss for any actual rival of the west to not attempt to stir their democracies against them.
It’s a fundamental weakness that only representative governments have, and authoritarians would simply be stupid not to target it. It’s very inexpensive to operate in the modern information space.
I mean, we got all these checks and balances in the first place because our systems are fundamentally very vulnerable. If you’d like a story on a less-secure system, look into the fall of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.
I mean, in the craziest of crazy scenarios, we could wind up with civil wars. Wouldn’t there be some folks out there that’d just love to see that? You think they can’t make bots, produce content, hire cheap labor?