One point in How Democracies Die
by AquinasDomer (2024-01-16 13:13:10)

In reply to: Are there common elements that lead to the rise of strongmen  posted by Dutch

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That I found interesting was that elite decisionmaking is often the more important thing in holding them off.

Prior to the modern primary system, the Republican Party could refuse to put a Donald Trump on the ballot because they disliked him. Now you just need to be famous to get people to pay attention to you in a primary.

The ingredients for the embrace of a strong man by the general public do seem to be lacking. No hyperinflation, no mass unemployment, no recent losses in large wars. Hopefully things stay reasonable over the course of the next year and the public can reject him again.

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