Ben Goldsmith

The End of US Democracy and the Implications for International Relations Trump's illiberalism will leave the world with three dominant military powers that are all non-democratic: China, Russia and the US.

Not very surprising to me that he seems to be serious about this. The more rule of law is undermined, the more a third term becomes a political question: www.e-ir.info/2025/03/17/t...

Ronald Reagan: The original RINO Try to imagine, in an age of cable news and social media, leaders of each party working together to address the myriad crises impacting this country.

Ronald Reagan, RINO: thehill.com/opinion/whit...

Trump’s Personality Cult Plays a Part in His Political Appeal Personality measures suggest Donald Trump exerts a cult of personality over his followers, people who are psychologically susceptible to his appeal. This could help explain how he has succeeded in U.S...

@BillKristolbulwark.bsky.social I think there is too little serious analysis of Trump’s personality cult. It has played a crucial role: www.scientificamerican.com/article/trum...

Violence Against Politicians Drives Support for Political Violence Among (Some) Voters: Evidence from a Natural Experiment Abstract. We investigate whether a real-world episode of physical violence committed in October 2023 against Thierry Baudet, leader of the Dutch far-right

Good point to highlight study by @alessandronai.bsky.social Patrick van Erkel and I showing that political violence rather increases than decreases support for violence especially among voters disliking the target and experiencing Schadenfreude academic.oup.com/poq/article/...

Calling all scientists and science supporters! You have a crucial role to play in countering the authoritarian threat we currently face in this country. Learn more about how you can stand up for the facts and truth that are essential for a free and democratic society. blog.ucs.org/gretchen-gol...

An advance look at “On Parade,” David Plunkert’s cover for next week's issue. #NewYorkerCovers

Pride Month kicked off Sunday across the globe with parades, performances, protests and more.

The celebrations take place in the month of June to commemorate the June 1969 Stonewall uprising in New York City, an event that sparked activism in the United States for LGBTQ rights.

Our paper now published in the April issue of @pnasnexus.org - and perhaps getting a real-world test of its propositions... @yusakuhoriuchi.bsky.social, @kmatush.bsky.social , @kepowers.bsky.social (I don't necessarily like Trump's research design, though - how did he get that past the IRB?). :^(

Thanks, Kate!

Our new research in finds that US democratic backsliding damages its image in democratic partner countries. But this may not affect support for foreign policy cooperation. Favorability and soft power are not always the same. Also, I have amazing collaborators! :)

Teamed up with the brilliant trio of @yusakuhoriuchi.bsky.social, @kmatush.bsky.social, and @begoldsmith.bsky.social for this paper about the effect of US democratic backsliding (at pre-2025 levels) on foreign public opinion. Open access link below!

The end of US democracy and what this means for international relations Once the pillar of democracy, the US now flirts with authoritarianism. ANU expert Ben Goldsmith unpacks what this means.

Is US liberal democracy doomed? Unfortunately I think so. Here is the short(ish) version of why: reporter.anu.edu.au/all-stories/...

Lol, this is great. Will share with all prospective PhD students! (Too late for the rest of us…).

The personality of a personality cult? Personality characteristics of Donald Trump's most loyal supporters The unusually loyal supporters of Donald Trump are often described as a cult. How can we understand this extreme phenomenon in U.S. politics? We develop theoretical expectations and use the Big Five ....

onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10....

There are no tariffs being put on Russia. Hmmm

Maybe us political scientists, too. Jeez.

And we might get a 3d term ( www.cbc.ca/amp/1.7497480): www.e-ir.info/2025/03/17/t...

The End of US Democracy and the Implications for International Relations Trump's illiberalism will leave the world with three dominant military powers that are all non-democratic: China, Russia and the US.

Every day brings new damage to US democracy: today's voter ID exec order (wapo.st/4kWM5Zb); pressure on law firms is working (wapo.st/41XkLl3). Trump team clearly has eye on manipulating elections. The End of US Democracy and the Implications for International Relations www.e-ir.info/2025/03/17/t...

Harvard Professor Steven Levitsky: "Right Now, the U.S. Is Ceasing to Be a Democracy" Donald Trump is currently transforming the U.S. into an authoritarian state, argues Harvard Professor Steven Levitsky, author of "How Democracies Die." And he is using an unexpected twist in the autho...

Levitsky: „We are currently witnessing the collapse of our democracy“ www.spiegel.de/internationa...

The End of US Democracy and the Implications for International Relations @alexpanetta.bsky.social Thanks for your CBC article on VDem assessment of US democracy.

“The End of US Democracy and the Implications for International Relations”
by
Benjamin E. Goldsmith - Professor in the School of Politics & International Relations, Australian National University

www.e-ir.info/pdf/107784