A Victory for the People
On Guy Fawkes Day, Donald Trump has succeeded in blowing up the liberal elite
Donald Trump's victory is a crushing defeat for the global elite. It is a success for democracy and a boost for America. His slogan ‘Make America Great Again’ is one that, assuming that majorities in Congress allow him to follow his programme of renewal, will reassert the success of Western values and power which were being undermined by the global elite.
In this election the Democrats showed absolute contempt for voters. First, they staunchly supported an incumbent president whom they knew was failing. They had no doubt that President Biden did not have the energy or mental capacity for another four years in office. Yet they lied to voters about his health and tried to use him as a puppet for their own ambitions.
Once his condition became undeniable and even a compliant media could no longer cover it up, they made their second mistake. Even though they had a low opinion of vice-president Kamala Harris, she was installed as the Presidential candidate without any democratic mandate. She did not stand in primaries but was imposed upon the party in time for the convention.
This behaviour is symptomatic of the ‘we know best’ approach of the global elite. Those in charge ought to carry on regardless because, guided by the backroom apparatchiks, they will govern best. Anyone who has watched the West Wing will know how this is meant to work.
It is why they use the word ‘populism’ as an insult, when to be popular is surely the way to win votes. Their cover was blown in both elections that Trump has won. In 2016 Hillary Clinton referred to a ‘basket of deplorables’, and more recently Joe Biden called Trump supporters ‘garbage’. This de haut en bas manner towards electors, the people politicians are meant to serve, is loathsome. Hence their defeat is welcome.
Yet Trump's victory is much more than about those whom he defeated. It is about what he will do and how he will restore democracy. In his campaigns he focused on issues that matter most to citizens. Is your standard of living higher today than it was yesterday? How do we keep our country safe?
The economic question means he has no time for virtue-signalling politics that make people poor. He has no interest in net zero policies which have cost Europe, including the UK, over a decade of economic growth without any measurable benefit to the climate.
Trump also sees, as he proved in his first term, the benefits of tax cuts. His reforms to Corporation Tax led to strong growth and high employment.
If he really does appoint Elon Musk, that will be a further indication of his desire to serve. Elon Musk is a great salesman who understands what his customers want. Although I have no wish to buy an expensive electric car, Musk has made himself the richest man in the world by marketing his cars as high quality and good performance.
In his purchase of Twitter, or X as he wishes it to be known, Musk has championed free speech against the global elite, who want to censor people. This may allow some impolite points to be made, but free speech is an essential component of democracy. As people move away from the historic media outlets, an open forum is invaluable.
The previous owners of Twitter banned Trump from it, which was a clear attack on free speech and democracy, while allowing the Iranian rulers to continue to spew forth their bile. This is inconceivable under Musk ownership as he does not censor, which is much healthier.
Musk is a disruptor, as is Trump, in an age when disruption is needed. The cosy consensus has failed. Western nations are suffering from a deep malaise. Governments do too much, do it badly and tax too much to pay for it, putting a burden on economies that they cannot bear.
This is reducing growth and living standards, which is why voters in so many Western nations are deeply disillusioned with their current serving politicians. If Musk can really cut $2 trillion from US government expenditure, he will show the world a route back to prosperity and intergenerational growth.
Javier Milei is achieving remarkable success in Argentina by closing ministries and simply cutting back the forest of governmental activity and regulation. If what he is doing in a small economy could be repeated in the world's largest one, then the path to prosperity will be reopened.
Trump also wants to make his nation safe. This is what voters want too. The mass movement of people that has brought so many criminals to the United Kingdom is an even more serious problem in America. The land border with Mexico is inevitably hard to police and the early Biden administration, under Kamala Harris's auspices, could not be bothered to try.
Yet voters are deeply concerned about it and Trump will tear up liberal assumptions about migration, especially the deliberate conflation of economic migration with asylum-seeking.
This is all part of re-legitimising the nation-state against an internationalist approach. It is the exit of Davos man and where America leads, others, I hope, will follow.
Democratic legitimacy depends upon the nation-state, it is the Westphalian settlement that has worked well since 1648. Yet the global elite in their own power-seeking way have sought to move away from the nation-state to international organisations.
These are formal, such as the International Criminal Court, or informal with Environment, Social and Government (ESG) and Diversity, Inclusion and Equity (DIE) that large corporations like so much, as they exclude small competitors who cannot afford the administrative burden.
Perhaps the greatest folly of internationalism has been the environmental agreements, the Conference of the Parties (COP) or the Paris Accord, which have slowed economic growth by making energy more expensive, while doing nothing to help emissions.
The importance of Trump's victory is shown by the hostility of his opponents. The US campaign became absurd with accusations that he was like Hitler or a fascist. It was quite funny to watch some of the interviews on the BBC as the results emerged, with outraged liberals who could not bear the thought that American voters had disobeyed them. The rule that any discussion that mentions Hitler has been lost applies, but that such accusations were made illustrated the derangement of his opponents.
The politically motivated legal actions against him were also a dangerous part of this, trying to replace the view of voters with fake charges is a real threat to democracy, a much greater one than has ever been posed by Trump, even when he questioned the legitimacy of the last election.
The disgust emanating from some English commentators is telling. As with Brexit, they think the voters are wrong. They, the elite in their ivory towers, know what is best for Americans. It is wonderfully delusional, but a reminder that the real threat to democracy is far more likely to come from the left, as they have views about ‘false consciousness’ that the right simply do not have.
On Guy Fawkes Day, 5th November 2024, Donald Trump has succeeded in blowing up the liberal elite. This is an exciting day, and we know from last time that he will not allow the grass to grow under his feet. Executive orders will be issued as soon as he is inaugurated to reverse regulations and remove any lingering Biden legacy. He will be responding to voters' needs, not those of Davos man.
It is a glorious reaffirmation of ‘government of the people, by the people, for the people’ which Americans once again ensure ‘shall not perish from the earth’.
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Now time for the Conservative Party to learn
What a great time for sanity. I have regained some optimism for our future.