Conventional wisdom holds that democracy in both the US and Europe is threatened by so-called populism. Rational and courteous deliberation is being smashed by short-term demagoguery and white identity politics.
The academic Matthew Goodwin, warns against the myth that populism is “a refuge for irrational bigots, jobless losers, rust belt rejects and angry old white men who will soon die”, to be soon replaced by liberal-minded graduate millennials.
None of this is true. The average income of Trump supporters is above the US average. Over 40% of white millennials voted for Trump in 2016, and appear to do so still.
The same is true of Brexit in the UK. A fifth of graduates voted for it, and a fifth of under-35s. So did half of all women, a third of city dwellers and a third of ethnic minority voters. “People are voting for [immigration control] because they want it, not because of their socioeconomic group. It is dangerous to ascribe stereotypes to people just because you disagree with them.
Anti-populists cannot have it both ways.
US will see out Trump and survive, like it survived Nixon, the younger Bush, Obama and others.
On the bright side, I see in Trump’s presidency a refreshing approach to North Korea and Russia, a reset of world trade, a reality check on Nato. [Simon Jenkins The Guardian]
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