In 1944, Austrian economist
Friedrich Hayek published his landmark book, The Road to Serfdom.
Written during the height of World War II, it was meant as a warning to the
United States and Great Britain that the flawed economic policies being pursued
by each nation would eventually lead to an outcome that had befallen the German
people living under the tyranny of Adolf Hitler.
Hayek, in a chapter on why the
worst types of people often end up on top of political movements argued that:
“…. in general the higher
the education and intelligence of individuals becomes, the more their views and
tastes are differentiated and the less likely they are to agree on a particular
hierarchy of values. It is a corollary of this that if we wish to find a high
degree of uniformity and similarity of outlook, we have to descend to the
regions of lower moral and intellectual standards where the more primitive and
"common" instincts and tastes prevail. This does not mean that the
majority of people have low moral standards; it merely means that the largest
group of people whose values are very similar are the people with low
standards.
If, however, a potential
dictator had to rely entirely on those whose uncomplicated and primitive
instincts happen to be very similar, their number would scarcely give
sufficient weight to their endeavors. He will have to increase their numbers by
converting more to the same simple creed.
Here comes in the second
negative principle of selection: he will be able to obtain the support of all
the docile and gullible, who have no strong convictions of their own but are
prepared to accept a ready-made system of values if it is only drummed into
their ears sufficiently loudly and frequently. It will be those whose vague and
imperfectly formed ideas are easily swayed and whose passions and emotions are
readily aroused who will thus swell the ranks of the totalitarian party.”
Could there be a more prophetic
statement to encapsulate the Republican party in 2016?
The Republicans, once a party
that stood for Constitutional rights, free trade, pro-business immigration
policies and economic freedom has devolved, under the “leadership” of Donald
Trump. It has gone through a bizarre metamorphosis that is driven by
economic ignorance, bigotry and the art of blaming others for the ills that
have come upon our nation.
Hayek would argue that Trump
has successfully descended into the lower regions of conservative “thought” by
insisting that Mexican immigrants, Muslim refugees and trade deals with China
are at the root of our country’s problems. Of course no Trump supporter
seems interested in the economic facts concerning the benefits immigration; the
low probability of refugee-generated terrorist attacks and the historical
merits of international trade. They simply see in Trump a savior who
vulgarly and bombastically speaks for them. Even when detractors point
out the fact that Trump has been a champion for the use of eminent domain to
take away the property rights of other citizens or that he routinely shows
virtually no understanding of the checks and balances of the Constitution, his
fans simply ignore the evidence and cheer him for “telling it like it
is.”
It is ironic that only three
decades ago our nation was led by a Republican who supported amnesty for
illegal immigrants; free markets and liberalized trade agreements and managed
to assist Soviet dissidents who wanted to flee to America all while showing the
world that America could exhibit genuine leadership in the global fight against
Communism without bluster, threats or other irresponsible acts.
If Ronald Reagan were running
against Trump today his reasoned and intellectual approach to foreign and
economic policy would probably get him booed off the debate stage by angry
Americans who are more interested in discussions about hand size and the
“beauty” of torture.
I hope Hillary Clinton is
watching closely because this fall she is going to have to be the composed
adult in the room that keeps our nation from electing a person who is much more
like the leader Hayek was warning us about.
