Now more than ever, we need to understand Vladimir Putin and his rise to power—because he is pulling the strings. M. Gessen breaks it down in the NYTimes today.
For those bewildered by why so many Americans apparently voted against the values of liberal democracy, Balint Magyar has a useful formulation. “Liberal democracy,” he says, “offers moral constraints without problem-solving” — a lot of rules, not a lot of change — while “populism offers problem-solving without moral constraints.” Magyar, a scholar of autocracy, isn’t interested in calling Donald Trump a fascist. He sees the president-elect’s appeal in terms of something more primal: “Trump promises that you don’t have to think about other people.”
I am not unfamiliar with the Russian government, as I adopted two children from Russia in 2006. Understanding why Russians embraced the Putin regime early on (and why Putinism is probably not going to do so well in the US) is essential for all who oppose an encroaching Autocracy in the United States.
Russia has a long history of rule by Autocrats. WWII was brutal in the Soviet Union, and the country remained in a weakened state thereafter. Each handover of power after Stalin led to further and further weakening of power by the leaders. Entrenched bureaucracy and widespread corruption in every facet of government and society was the norm. When Putin took over from Boris Yeltsin, he slashed taxes and used the sale of Russian oil and gas to bring a measure of prosperity to many Russians. I would note that most Americans would not see the lifestyle of these newly “prosperous” Russians as desirable. While the price of goods, including gasoline, were astoundingly low, Americans enjoy a far greater standard of living overall. Although the American middle class has shrunk, about 50% of Americans have a middle class level of income, which in Russia that percentage was 14% as of 2019 and shrinking rapidly. Interest rates and inflation are rising.
The incoming Trump administration’s tariff proposals would cost the average American household between $1700 and $2600, depending on whose calculus you choose. The repeal (partial or full) of the Affordable Care Act would likely result in a net loss of income (or loss of healthcare) for those with annual household incomes below $75K and a net gain in tax savings for those who make more—with the highest savings among the wealthiest households. According to some experts, these tariffs raise the potential for a recession in the US to around 75%.
Trump is weak. He is losing it mentally and enters the White House as a lame duck. His heir apparent J.D. Vance is wildly unpopular among the American people. Democrats need to be a constant, loud voice of opposition. They can’t just say, “This is breaking the law,” or “This is unprecedented.” They need to say, “This is hurting you and we will stop it.”
