Left, right, Harris, Trump: all prisoners of political nostalgia in an era few understand | Rafael Behr

The digital age has turbo-boosted extremism, and analogue democracy is struggling to keep up

Donald Trump’s record of refusal to concede defeat after the last US election should have disqualified him from running in this one. His criminal indictments should have meant banishment from mainstream politics. His campaign rhetoric – a rambling litany of bigotry and spite – should not have carried beyond the paranoid fringe.

But what use are should and shouldn’t against the brute force of can and does? Things that are supposed to be self-evident in a constitutional democracy have ceased to be obvious to millions of Americans. We don’t need to wait for all votes to be counted to wish for a stronger cultural inoculation against tyranny.

Topics

Badenoch's win and Labour's big Budget mean we now have sharper left-right divide
Top stories - BBC News - 3 days ago
Harris will offer an alternative to Trump-era politics in closing argument speech
Business - CNBC - October 29
Starmer is stuck in a British bubble, but it will soon be burst by a turbulent world | Rafael Behr
World - The Guardian - October 16
The big idea: is nostalgia killing politics?
World - The Guardian - October 21
Harris’s Hope: Getting Right-Leaning Voters to Shift to the Left
Top stories - The New York Times - 3 days ago
Can you ‘undo’ political polarization? Left and right might be closer than we think, study finds
World - The Guardian - 2 days ago
A 22-year-old political prisoner has died in Belarus, rights campaigners say
World - ABC News - 3 days ago
The era of political polarization is over
Politics - The Hill - Yesterday
Trump-Harris loser to face political upheaval for party
Politics - The Hill - 12 hours ago

Latest in World

Early indicators point to bumper turnout across US swing states
World - Financial Times - 16 minutes ago
US election 2024 live: democracy and state of the economy top issues on voters’ minds, exit poll suggests
World - The Guardian - 18 minutes ago
Middle East crisis live: protests in Israel after Benjamin Netanyahu sacks defence minister
World - The Guardian - 20 minutes ago
US election results 2024 live: Donald Trump and Kamala Harris vie to be president
World - The Guardian - 30 minutes ago
Fired Gallant reveals points of contention with Israel's Netanyahu
World - Yahoo News - 37 minutes ago

Left, right, Harris, Trump: all prisoners of political nostalgia in an era few understand | Rafael Behr

Topics

Related

Badenoch's win and Labour's big Budget mean we now have sharper left-right divide

Harris will offer an alternative to Trump-era politics in closing argument speech

Starmer is stuck in a British bubble, but it will soon be burst by a turbulent world | Rafael Behr

The big idea: is nostalgia killing politics?

Harris’s Hope: Getting Right-Leaning Voters to Shift to the Left

Can you ‘undo’ political polarization? Left and right might be closer than we think, study finds

A 22-year-old political prisoner has died in Belarus, rights campaigners say

The era of political polarization is over

Trump-Harris loser to face political upheaval for party

More from The Guardian

US election 2024 live: democracy and state of the economy top issues on voters’ minds, exit poll suggests

First US election result is three-all tie between Trump and Harris

When will we know the result of the US presidential election?

US election results 2024 live: Donald Trump and Kamala Harris vie to be president

US election night guide: what to watch for

Latest in World

Early indicators point to bumper turnout across US swing states

US election 2024 live: democracy and state of the economy top issues on voters’ minds, exit poll suggests

Middle East crisis live: protests in Israel after Benjamin Netanyahu sacks defence minister

US election results 2024 live: Donald Trump and Kamala Harris vie to be president

Fired Gallant reveals points of contention with Israel's Netanyahu