How to Lose a Democracy: A Conversation with Damon Linker (Episode 398)

Sam Harris speaks with Damon Linker about the erosion of American democracy. They discuss the right-wing populist movement, the mechanisms by which Trump is consolidating authoritarian control, the Insurrection Act, the Right’s weaponization of wokeness, the potential for civil unrest, Trump’s punishment of Democrat-run cities, the new Christian Right, and other topics. Damon Linker is a senior lecturer in political science at the University of Pennsylvania, and the author of the Substack newsletter Notes From the Middleground. He is the author of The Theocons and The Religious Test. His essays and reviews have appeared in numerous outlets, including The New York Times, The New Republic, The Wall Street Journal, and the Washington Post. He is currently writing a book for Princeton University Press about the political philosopher Leo Strauss and his contested influence on the American Right. Website: https://damonlinker.substack.com X: https://x.com/damonlinker 00:00 Introduction 03:27 The State of American Democracy 10:15 Immigration, Law & Order, and the New Right 25:00 Executive Power & Democratic Erosion 34:27 The Insurrection Act & Authoritarian Red Lines 40:43 Undermining Science and State Capacity 50:19 Populism, Inequality & Global Backlash 59:07 Culture Wars & the “Woke Mind Virus” 1:03:04 Defending Liberal Democracy