By Artchil B. Fernandez
“So this is how liberty dies, with thunderous applause,” Senator Padme Amidala sighed in Revenge of the Sith. Replace “liberty” with “democracy” and this aptly describes the result of the just concluded election in the United States (US). In place of Sith, put Donald Trump.
Trump made the most sensational political comeback in modern American history by winning the presidency for the second time after losing reelection. He is the second US president to achieve this. Grover Cleveland did it in 1893.
America’s turn to populist authoritarianism in Schmittian sense is remarkable. It appears Americans are getting tired of liberal democracy and are embracing democratic sovereignty, a concept advanced by Carl Schmitt.
A sovereign according to Schmitt “is he who decides on the exception.” Schmitt argued that democracy is not a contest for votes or support among various political parties but the establishment of the connection between the sovereign and the people or the masses. The sovereign articulates the sentiments and feelings of the people they rule.
In Schmitt’s view, for the sovereign to advance the will of the people or serve their interests he must be unencumbered by institutional restraints (unlike under liberal democracy) and should override the juridical order (the “rule of law”). This makes the sovereign a dictator which for Schmitt is not a negative term which people usually associate with loss of freedom or totalitarian system. Schmitt contended that “all political sovereigns are dictators by power and definition.”
Schmitt fused sovereignty and dictatorship coming up with the idea of sovereign dictatorship. “A sovereign dictator is a dictator who does not defend an already existing constitution but attempts to create a new one and who does so not by his own authority but in the name of the people.” Sovereign dictatorship Schmitt controversially asserted “is an eminently democratic institution. It can exist only where it has become possible to take a sovereign decision on the exception in the name of the people.”
Trump packaged himself as a “sovereign dictator” who can fix the problems of the American people – high inflation, immigration, crimes, the economy, etc. He successfully convinced the American public that the current political regime (liberal democracy) failed to deliver or cannot deliver and he is the only one who can fix what bedevils American society.
This time, majority of those who voted in the election are susceptible to Trump’s messaging amplified by fake news, lies, misinformation, and disinformation. He cleverly used identity politics, the “us and them” divide to win votes. One of Schmitt’s major idea is politics is fundamentally a distinction between “friends and enemies.” Schmitt attacked the “all are equal before the law” notion of liberal democracy as hypocritical for in practice this is not the case. In reality “all states are based on a distinction between ‘them’ and ‘us,’ between ‘friend’ and ‘enemy’” Schmitt maintained. Trump has masterfully weaved this narrative as his entry point to American politics.
In Schmittian universe, America turns dark or goes to the dark side in this week’s election. American frustration with liberal democracy with its gridlock, backroom deals, and paralysis as well as its neglect of the welfare of ordinary people made Trump’s populist authoritarian vision palatable to US electorate.
It will be interesting to see the interplay between the populist authoritarianism of Trump 2.0 and liberal democracy in the US. In Trump 1.0, liberal democracy and democratic institutions were badly bloodied. Question is how the institutions of American democracy will survive in the second Trump rule. Like all sovereign autocrats, Trump will try to rule without restrain and will upend the principle of check and balance.
In the next four years, Trump will seek to reshape US politics by attempting to dismantle liberal democracy. He laid this out in his public speeches during the campaign and the Republicans are ready with a blueprint, Project 2025, which proposes to transform and remake American politics into Schmittian image. Will Trump and the Republicans succeed and if not how far can they go? Americans will live in an interesting time in the next four years. They have four years of Trump before and kicked him out for they did not like what they saw. Yet this week, American voters either forgot the erratic, bashful, and toxic Trump 1.0 or decided to gamble with him again.
The critical question is “Can populist authoritarianism deliver?” Trump vowed that he will fix the problems of Americans. He promised paradise, but can he conjure one? Using history as guide, populism especially the authoritarian variety is good in fiery rhetoric but a disappointment in turning it into reality. Hitler promised a thousand year Reich, but his rule lasted twelve years.
Result of the elections reveals the transactional mentality of American electorate. Moral standing, decency, integrity, credibility, honesty, living by example, no criminal record are no longer the qualities they look for in their leaders but who they think can give them their material needs. Trump promised material prosperity and only this matter the most to American voters, disregarding his horrendous record. It’s bread over liberty.
Return of Trump to power shows the enduring appeal and seductive nature of populist authoritarianism. The allure of Schmittian politics is its promise of quick and easy fix to complex social problems. Desperate mass of people, filled with fear and full grievances are susceptible to the charm of populism.
Given global role of the US, the world is in for another roller-coaster ride under Trump. It’s time for the international community to move away from a world order dominated by America to shield itself from the vagaries of US politics.
