John Menadue

Trump and American Decay.

 

In this article in Foreign Affairs, Francis Fukuyama says:

The decayed American political system can be fixed only by a strong external shock that will knock it off its current equilibrium and make possible real policy reform. Trump’s victory does indeed constitute such a shock but, unfortunately his only answer is the traditional populist-authorian one, trust me, the charismatic leader to take care of your problems. As in the case of the shock to the Italian political system administered by Silvio Berlusconi, the real tragedy will be the waste of an opportunity for actual reform.

Francis Fukuyama is an American political scientist, political economist and author. Fukuyama is known for his book “The End of History and the Last Man” (1992).

John Menadue

John Menadue is the Founder and Editor in Chief of Pearls and Irritations. He was formerly Secretary of the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet under Gough Whitlam and Malcolm Fraser, Ambassador to Japan, Secretary of the Department of Immigration and CEO of Qantas.