Trumpism has an essence, and that essence is nationalism. It is bigger than President Trump and certain to outlast his tenure in office.Like many who’ve considered the issues, both Goodhart and the article’s author are good at describing the problem. Somewhat less good at posing reasonable solutions.
His campaign and presidency have been strikingly similar to the nationalist movements in England and Europe.
In each case, the insurgents have claimed that their nation’s political and business leaders are part of an international elite that sacrifices national sovereignty in ways—from free trade and open immigration to murky treaties and remote bureaucracies—that harm many of their countrymen.
Goodhart describes those being hurt as the “somewheres” and those in opposition as “anywheres.”
The Anywheres are cosmopolitan, educated, mobile and networked. (snip) Their attachments to place are secondary.
The Somewheres are rooted in local communities. (snip) Whatever their partisan leanings, they tend to be socially conservative and patriotic and less disposed to vote with their feet.
An important cause of this turmoil is the decline of representative government, in which law is enacted by elected legislatures, and the rise of declarative government, in which law is dispensed by bureaucracies and courts.
The most educated, articulate, mobile and networked are well-positioned to influence the administrative state and the judiciary. (snip) They think that policy should be determined by reason, science and expertise rather than legislative horse-trading and nose-counting.
As I read this it reminded me of an model - cosmopolitans vs. locals - put forward by sociologist Alvin Gouldner when I was a grad student several decades ago. Some ideas aren’t new, but merely recycled.
