Sublime

it’s that extreme polarization can kill democracies.

The abdication of political responsibility by existing leaders often marks a nation’s first step toward authoritarianism.

Populism offers strongmen an ideological basis for making themselves dictators while pretending to be democrats. It is particularly useful when strongmen seek to neutralize or appropriate the self-correcting mechanisms of democracy. Since judges, journalists, and professors allegedly pursue political interests rather than truth, the people’s champi

Tocqueville souligne que l’atomisation sociale est le terreau du despotisme. De la multitude disparate émerge l’appel au tyran. Dans l’éparpillement germe le désir de fusion et de soumission. Nous en sommes là, partout en Occident : nos sociétés de solitude suscitent un tel sentiment d’insécurité que les institutions et les principes de la démocrat

We should worry when a politician 1) rejects, in words or action, the democratic rules of the game, 2) denies the legitimacy of opponents, 3) tolerates or encourages violence, or 4) indicates a willingness to curtail the civil liberties of opponents, including the media.

The weakening of our democratic norms is rooted in extreme partisan polarization—one that extends beyond policy differences into an existential conflict over race and culture. America’s efforts to achieve racial equality as our society grows increasingly diverse have fueled an insidious reaction and intensifying polarization.

politics but Federal