The stillborn revolution

Abstract

Right-wing populism appears to be on the rise throughout Western democracies. In 2016, most political observers, in both the United States and abroad, were shocked when Donald Trump unexpectedly won the US presidency on a nativist platform. During that election cycle, Americans also witnessed the rise of the so-called Alt-Right, the most recent iteration of the American white nationalist movement. The other great political surprise of 2016 was the United Kingdom’s referendum on exiting the European Union, which the exit supporters narrowly won. Populist governments are now in place in Hungary, Poland and Italy. It is tempting to look at the United States as a particularly important example of this trend, and perhaps a leader of this turn towards the political right. As the world’s largest economy, and a dominant power in culture, military and politics, events in the United States are certainly important to other countries. This chapter nonetheless argues that the far right in the United States is weaker than it first appears. Trump’s movement, as well as peripheral movements such as the Alt-Right, may not outlast his presidency. Nationalist populism will likely prove less resilient in the United States than in many European countries where it is presently consolidating its gains.