Democracy - the people directly decide what to do
Republic - the people select a group of elites who decide what to do
The problem is our elites have failed. They pursue their own self interest rather than the nation’s. Does that mean we should become more democratic and less republican?
I remember the former being referred to as "direct democracy", which obviously is impractical nowadays. But "democracy" as a broad term can be used to refer to any form of government in which authority comes from the citizens. So that could be a Republic, a parliamentary democracy, or even a direct democracy.