How Democracies Die. Understanding the Insurrection of January 6, 2021

Send us Fan MailThe Insurrection of 2021, An Anniversary PodcastOn January 6, 2021 there was an attempt by an insurrectionist mob to block the certification of the 2020 Presidential Election.  This uprising came within the context of an American political system that had become seriously weakened over the past decades.  This weakened political system made it possible for an authoritarian leader to step into the breach.  Shockingly, this pattern of the elected autocrat has been seen in other countries.  The book How Democracies Die by Steven Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt  (2019) discusses the phenomenon.  In this discussion I use this book as a jumping off point for an analysis of some of the causes and patterns of this frightening new development.  There is also an excellent book by Anne Applebaum, The Twilight of Democracy, 2020, that addresses some of the same issues. This book is interesting because Applebaum is an American with a close connection to Poland, which has its own problems with democratic authoritarianism.   I do not discuss this book but you might find it interesting.  I make reference to two previous podcasts which listeners might find of interest , one on Impeachment and one on The Replacement Wars:  The Ideology of Radical White NationalismAt the time of this podcast, I was sniffling  so my voice fades at time.   Drat! Also, there were two glitches.  The 2020 German state election when Merkel challenged her own party leader was in Thuringia.  Sorry about that.   And, also, Madison wrote Federalist Ten.   Oh, my.  Generations of students would turn on me if I did not acknowledge this error.