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XPost: alt.fun, alt.politics.democrats.d
By Richard Hanania
Apr 03, 2025
The mad man has done it. He’s stopped listening to anyone who isn’t a complete
sycophant or the market, and enacted a tariff policy more extreme than we would have seen under what most thought was the worst case scenario. The formula of “reciprocity” being used is so stupid I approach the topic with awe, and have an
almost superstitious feeling that if I even describe it I’ll somehow become stupider myself, though you can read about it here. I don’t think this ship can
correct course. The Trump movement has been selecting for loyalty to Trump above
all else, and we’re seeing the results. As Vice President Vance said during his
trip to Greenland, “we can’t just ignore the president’s desires.”
Trump is not only wrecking the economy, but it’s notable how the people around
him and his base are relatively muted. On a vote to end Canadian tariffs, only four Republican senators joined Democrats in rebuking Trump, even though many more certainly know better. The effort will go nowhere in the House, even though
it would likely be in Republicans’ interest to take a stand and try to force the
president to take a less self-destructive path. Maybe not in the interests of individual members though, since GOP voters still love Trump above all else and reward and punish GOP officials on that basis alone, and we will likely need to see serious consequences for the economy if that has any hope of changing.
As unique as Trump is, however, I think that there’s a broader lesson here about
the dangers of populist governance. Shortly before the election, Noah Smith wrote that “Trumpism is kakistocracy.” The word “kakistocracy” means rule by
those least suited to govern. His argument, similar to one I’ve made before, is
that Trump only cares about loyalty, and a movement that prioritizes loyalty to a single extremely flawed man is going to facilitate the worst people rising to the top. Practically every high-ranking official in Trump’s first term ended up
hating the man and saying so officially, with the only exceptions being those who ended up in legal jeopardy. Decent people have principles beyond “seek power” or “kiss up to Trump,” which means that they are unlikely to remain in
good standing with MAGA.
https://www.richardhanania.com/p/kakistocracy-as-a-natural-result
The worst and the stupidest — that's the criminal Nazi filth Trump regime summarized in five words.
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