Franklin, Andrews, Kramer & Edelstein

[scion]

Donald Trump embodies how great republics meet their end

Martin Wolf
MARCH 1, 2016 by: Martin Wolf
https://www.ft.com/content/743d91b8-df8d-11e5-b67f-a61732c1d025

What is one to make of the rise of Donald Trump? It is natural to think of comparisons with populist demagogues past and present. It is natural, too, to ask why the Republican party might choose a narcissistic bully as its candidate for president. But this is not just about a party, but about a great country. The US is the greatest republic since Rome, the bastion of democracy, the guarantor of the liberal global order. It would be a global disaster if Mr Trump were to become president. Even if he fails, he has rendered the unthinkable sayable.

Mr Trump is a promoter of paranoid fantasies, a xenophobe and an ignoramus. His business consists of the erection of ugly monuments to his own vanity. He has no experience of political office. Some compare him to Latin American populists. He might also be considered an American Silvio Berlusconi, albeit without the charm or business acumen. But Mr Berlusconi, unlike Mr Trump, never threatened to round up and expel millions of people. Mr Trump is grossly unqualified for the world’s most important political office.
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https://www.ft.com/content/743d91b8-df8d-11e5-b67f-a61732c1d025