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/169/ Authoritarian Liberalism and Its Discontents ft. Amber A'Lee Frost & Daniel Bessner (Patreon)

Published:
2021-01-12 08:01:04
Imported:
2026-06
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On the Biden administration and Trumpist reaction.

We discuss the riot at the US Capitol and why it was not a (failed) coup attempt. How serious was the event, and what next for Trumpist reaction - will it lead to a split in the Republican Party?

Our guests - journalist Amber Frost and political science academic Daniel Bessner - help us preview what the Biden administration has in store for the US. With Democratic control of both houses, it should be able to pass legislation - but does it have any substantial plans to do so? In foreign policy, we can expect more foreign adventurism and at home, an ominous anti-domestic terrorism bill. Does the alliance of the Democrats with an increasingly domineering Silicon Valley signal the coming-out moment of authoritarian liberalism?Readings:

Riot on the Hill, Mike Davis, NLR Sidecar blog

Render unto Ourselves, What is Ours—or Caesar Will Seize It, Alex Hochuli, Damage

What Experts on Extremism Want From the Biden Administration, James D Walsh, NYMag

Morbid Symptoms Can Persist for a Long Time, Barry Eidlin, Jacobin

Violence in the Capitol, Dangers in the Aftermath, Glenn Greenwald, Substack

The revenge of the blob, Alex Ward, Vox

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J P 3

If federal authorities had taken the potential threat Jan. 6th, as seriously as the Washingtonian (a magazine, which rates 'best restaurants" and "best places to see" in DC), relying entirely on information on public forms and social media, no one would have penetrated the security permitter outside the Capitol building complex. (e.g. search "Washingtonian" and "Proud Boys" and look at the dates of reporting between Dec. 2020 and Jan 5, 2021). That one thing that is abundantly clear. I do think this is probably a lot more serious than people probably realize. e.g. the carnivalesque aspects of the day, obscure the fact that there was clearly weeks of planning and coordination that went into an effort to effectively reverse the 2020 election result through a campaign of violent intimidation. Trump failed because he is still something of a political outsider, and because American business elite decided that Trump family rule wasn't something that they were interested. The fact that he is lazy, and doesn't seem to attract and keep top talent, probably doesn't help matters either. Still five people are dead (so far), dozens were seriously injured, including Capitol Hill police, and the entire federal elected leadership (minus Trump and his allies in Congress) were almost run over by a violent mob. Trump did nothing to de-escalate and still refuses to do so. The very fact that he held his event and a series of other events in the lead up to an otherwise anondyne and proforma certification process is a major departure from precedent. The fact that a sitting president who lost an election decisively, but who still continues to assert that he "won in a landslide" is hilarious on some level. Less so when you consider that there are tens of millions of people who actually believe him and his brazen lies. Trump's continuing denial just adds more fuel on the fire. As far as what this means for the GOP, I think a successful impeachment will fracture the party. I don't know if this will manifest itself through disengagement on the part of Trump's voters, or a desire for revenge against the apostates. It won't expand the coalition. McConnell and the old guard can afford that risk, they have entrenched a tremendous amount of power within the judiciary and the economy in ways that should check even an expanded Democratic coalition. The first mid-term in 2022 should provide greater clarity about potential long-term realignments.

Daniel L

Excellent analysis!

Joel

After the UK election you guys had a good bit about how the anti-austerity left was at a loss to respond to the Johnson government's abandonment of austerity. A similar critique should apply at least as much to the U.S. left, who, after spending months convincing themselves that the Biden administration would be pro-austerity or not do any significant domestic policy, will now have to make sense of Biden's willingness to dole out trillions in welfarist economic relief.