There are a bunch of problems that contribute to the struggle of the American Democracy.
First off the, just like everyone else has said, the "two party system" has major issues. People have become to defined by the party that they associate themselves with. Therefore, reform policies, new legislature, and even getting rid of old and useless laws has become such a headache because the Republicans and Democrats are split so clearly it's difficult to compromise.
Also, TECHNICALLY, the U.S. is not a true democracy. If it was the American people should be able to vote on every issue every single time. Instead, we are a republic meaning we elect people to do that for us.
This leads into the next issue, today unlike back when the Constitution was first written any politician who wants even a small chance at being elected for any major government position has to be wealthy. Since this limits the perspective candidates by such a large amount it restrains the political potential of the American people, this also makes politicians feel "elite", leading to the corrupt politics of today.
Last, the American people in general are extremely poorly educated on whats going on within our country. If we want to see an improvement within our political system it has to start with people believing they can change things from the ground up, and as of right now most people just don't care enough to do anything substantial.
