24 november 2019
Mounk starts from the given that Liberal Democracy as a political model is under attack all over the world. He sees how illiberal democracies and undemocratic “liberal” states come into existence and formulates the proposition that Liberal Democracy maybe only functioned well within certain constraints (“scope conditions”). (Fareed Zakaria had years ago already conceptually decoupled Liberalism and Democracy).
In Part Two of his book , he tries to define the origins of the current breakdown of Liberal Democracies. He sees in essence three items which have changed substantially and which also impact the proper functioning of Liberal Democŕacy. First, the development of the internet has reduced the cost to communicate alternative versions of the truth and the cost to set up alternative command structures. This enables challengers to break or to pass by the traditional political channels with ease. Second, the slowdown of economic progress or the more limited distribution of the existing economic progress (increased inequality) creates uncertainty over the future. Third, Mounk states that successful democracies were in the past in general momo-ethnic. The current levels of migration threaten that stability. He however takes note that populists are especially strong where immigration is still limited (but not in the area with high levels of immigration) and concludes that it is only fear for the unknown that generates that uncertainty.
I’m positively surprised to see how Mounk puts forward the idea that successful democracies are/were in general mono-ethnic. Unfortunately Mounk does not focus on the importance of language and the possibility of an inclusive approach; mono-ethnicity is not necessarily exclusive if it is based on language. His wordings might suggest the opposite
Further, he seems to forget that in areas with high levels of migrants, populists might indeed no longer have political relevance if the immigrants with voting rights already form 40% or more of the population. I assume California is already in this situation. That populists are not so strong in those areas might be the result from the fact that they have already been put in a minority position from an ethnic point. This most plausible solution is not even mentioned by Mounk.