I don't think it's a monarchy or a dictatorship at all because about half the population genuinely supports the leader and he came to power and holds power because he was elected... sort of.

Presently the U.S. is a highly polarized republic, therefore whatever group is not in power will find the actions of the group that is incomprehensible. Unfortunately the vast majority of the leaders at both poles are little more than demagogues... which seems to be the natural result of a representative republic with a relatively uneducated and highly egocentric population.

Self-governance requires intelligence, poise, and determination. At this time, our society appears to be severely lacking on all counts... thus the system produces poor results. If good results are to be obtained, we must either change the system, or change the society. Neither will be easy.