The Path to Paralysis

How did the worlds oldest democracy lose its mojo? How did we get to a point where we face existential crises like climate change yet leaders cant agree that theres a problem let alone develop solutions? Political leaders bear some of the responsibility. Newt Gingrich, Sarah Palin and Donald Trump, to name a few, have shattered political norms and transformed our politics into a free-for-all in which personal attacks, appeals to bigotry and fear, disregard for truth, and disdain for governing have become the norm. But they are more a symptom than the cause. The Path to Paralysis examines changes in political culture during the past 60 years conflict over race, religion and gender; wrenching economic changes and growing concentration of wealth; the end of the Cold War; hardening regional divisions; and dramatic changes in communications that made Donald Trump possible, if not inevitable. Long in the making, these cross-currents came together in the early 21st century as the United States experienced the deepest recession since the 1930s and elected its first Black president to create the perfect storm. The result was toxic and deeply polarised politics that threatened the existence of constitutional government.