Washington Post (August 29)
“Desperate political leaders of all stripes — Republican, Democratic, communist — have found a common enemy: free trade…. American political forces that are usually at odds apparently agree on the appeal of autarky — that economies should be as closed off as possible, whatever the consequences.” This seems to be part of a global phenomenon, with “nationalists and populists in other countries” also pushing “for more trade barriers. Even China, which has enriched itself through trade with other countries, is now reportedly flirting with curbing trade to demonstrate its lack of dependence on the West as its own economy falters.”
Tags: Autarky, China, Common enemy, Communist, Consequences, Democratic, Desperate, Free trade, Nationalists, Political leaders, Populists, Republican, Trade barriers
Washington Post (January 6)
“The Republican Party’s troubles are severe” and it’s “having a nervous breakdown in full public view…. But it is not alone. In many countries around the world, populists are flailing.” They have emerged “as an opposition movement,” but the “shallowness of its policy proposals” is being exposed. “The world’s complicated problems will always allow for someone who proposes answers that are simple, seductive and wrong. But let us hope that 2023 will see populism exposed for the sham that it is.”
Tags: 2023, Exposed, Flailing, Nervous breakdown, Opposition movement, Populists, Republican Party, Seductive, Severe, Shallowness, Sham, Simple, Troubles, Wrong
Wall Street Journal (January 8)
With 13 days remaining in Trump’s presidency, “the best outcome would be for him to resign to spare the U.S. another impeachment fight.” Though impeachment could send a valuable “message to future Presidents that Congress will protect itself from populists of all ideological stripes willing to stir up a mob and threaten the Capitol or its Members.” Doing this “so late in the term” wouldn’t be “easy or without rancor…. It is best for everyone, himself included, if he goes away quietly.”
Tags: Capitol, Congress, Ideological, Impeachment, Mob, Outcome, Populists, Presidency, Protect, Resign, Trump, U.S.
Reuters (November 10)
“The common element” in the U.S. and Europe “is a revolt, greater or lesser in extent, against rapid change, against liberal elites and against a loss of identity – white, in the main, but also of settled communities of past waves of immigrants. Populists, right to signal these concerns, are wrong to claim that answers are simple. But arguments of complexity are, in an impatient time, suspect. Divisions, not only in the United States, presently deepen.”
Tags: Arguments, Common, Complexity, Divisions, Europe, Identity, Immigrants, Impatient, Liberal elites, Populists, Rapid change, Revolt, U.S.
New York Times (June 3)
“If T.P.P. falls apart, China wins. It’s as simple as that. Nonratification would signal that Beijing gets to dictate policy in the region…. “Like the best trade accords, the Trans-Pacific Partnership is also a strategic boost to liberty and stability in the fastest-growing part of the globe. Congress should resist populist ranting and ratify it.”
Tags: China, Congress, Liberty, Nonratification, Policy, Populists, Ratify, Stability, Strategic, T.P.P., Trade accords
Financial Times (December 30)
During 2014, populists “enjoyed one of their most encouraging years since the second world war. Insurgent anti-establishment movements recorded electoral triumphs and opinion poll gains everywhere from France and Greece to Spain, Sweden and the UK.” Despite this resurgence, the populist movements are often at cross-purposes, differing widely in what they support.
New York Times (May 22)
With nearly 400 million voters registered, the European Parliament elections “are second only to India’s in size.” Yet low turnout may result in the election of “fringe parties whose ultimate goal is to dismantle the very union they’re supposed to be serving.” This would be regrettable. “The problems that Europe has endured in the past five years demonstrate that the need for European unity is greater than ever, and despite what the nationalists and populists argue, these elections matter all the more.”
Tags: Elections, EU, Europe, Fringe, India, Nationalists, Parliament, Populists, Registered, Turnout, Union, Voters
