Is Left-Wing Illiberalism the Greatest Threat to American Democracy? Finale

Is Left-Wing Illiberalism the Greatest Threat to American Democracy?

Daniel Drezner

Finale

LAST UPDATED SEPTEMBER 24TH, 2020

I get the last word, so let me start by wishing all debates were as stimulating as this one. I obviously disagree with Cathy about the relative importance of left-wing illiberalism as a threat, but we agree that illiberalism writ large should be addressed. 

I want to focus on power, however. To flip Young’s formulation around: the dangers of right-wing illiberalism include the fact that it boosts left-wing illiberalism—especially in the age of Trump. This is the crux of our disagreement. Young looks at liberal institutions and sees an illiberal cancer on the rise. I share the concern to a degree, but then I look at conservative institutions and conclude that cancer is the only thing propping them up. 

No less a critic of cancel culture than Andrew Sullivan agrees with me on this point: “the most powerful enabler of this left extremism has been Trump himself…. He has tainted conservatism indelibly as riddled with racism, xenophobia, paranoia, misogyny, and derangement. Every hoary stereotype leveled against the right for decades has been given credence by the GOP’s support for this monster of a human being.” 

Young argues that “large-scale street violence threatens democracy,” and I would not disagree. In 2020, however, the overwhelming majority of protests have been peaceful. Furthermore, if that changes, the problem is self-correcting. Political scientists like Maria Stephan & Erica Chenoweth and Omar Wasow have detailed how nonviolent resistance is a far more potent tactic than violent action. If violent unrest persists, then Wasow would predict that the media framing of such violence will hurt liberals and empower a law-and-order shift in the electorate. What worries me here are actions like what the DHS did in Portland, which helped to inflame violence rather than contain it. 

Young acknowledges the right’s political power but asserts that the left’s cultural power is “dominant.” This is an empirical question, and again I doubt her assertion. Tucker Carlson cannot be written off as a cultural anomaly – he is literally the most-watched show in cable news history. Joe Rogan, who recently claimed that Portland protestors were responsible for starting wildfires in the West, has one of the most popular podcasts in America. Take a daily glance at the top performing link posts on Facebook, and 80 percent of them are on the conservative fringe. 

As I finish this essay, liberals are reacting to news that the Trump campaign is laying the groundwork to sow just enough confusion on Election Night to stay in power. When prompted by reporters, Trump refused to guarantee a peaceful transfer of power, criticized the balloting process, and asserted that without mail-in ballots there will not be a transfer of power. Rhetoric like this is far more dangerous than anything said by a professor this year. 

Let me conclude with this proposition to Young: if you want to reduce left-wing illiberalism, criticize right-wing illiberalism with equal vehemence. Once Donald Trump no longer holds political power, then we can rebuild small-l liberalism across the political spectrum.