These days, we’ve been hearing a lot of talk about “authoritarianism.”
Typically, when we use that word, it’s to understand something happening far away, but we’re hearing it more often in the context of American politics.
Cardinal & Pine exists to de-mystify stuff like that. So what is authoritarianism, and what does that have to do with us?
Put simply, it’s when all the power is centralized in one figure at the top. Encyclopedia Britannica defines it as the “blind submission to authority and the repression of individual freedom of thought and action.”
In American history, the term’s been used from time to time to refer to presidents who’ve used their power aggressively or to punish their political rivals, like, for instance, Andrew Jackson or Teddy Roosevelt—two presidents who showed a withering disregard for lawmakers or judges who tried to put checks on their power.
“I don’t think any harm comes from the concentration of power in one man’s hands,” Roosevelt once wrote, “[as long as] the holder does not keep it for more than a certain, definite time.”
Our idea of authoritarianism has changed with the times, though. It doesn’t always happen in one fell swoop, like through a military takeover. There’s something called the “salami” method, where pieces of a democracy are sliced off piece by piece.
In recent years, you can spot the salami technique in Hungary, Russia, and Turkey, and, according to Trump’s opponents, here in the United States.
In these places, similar tactics are deployed. The authoritarian makes once nonpartisan institutions partisan. They use their office to punish their opponents. They revel in bad information. They question the validity of elections.
Pushing back against authoritarianism isn’t hopeless. You can do it by getting involved and getting informed.
We want your 2 cents. Should we be worried about authoritarianism in America today?
