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The Republican Devolution

July/August 2019 43

culprit behind the failure o the U.S.

political system: the Republican Party.

Over the last two and a hal decades, the


 has mutated from a traditional

conservative party into an insurgent force

that threatens the norms and institutions

o American democracy. I Americans are

to once again harness the combined

powers o democracy and markets for the

public good, they must have a clear

picture o what has gone wrong with the

Republican Party, and why.

FROM GOLDEN AGE TO BROKEN AGE

Even with the best leadership, the last

few decades would have presented big

challenges. Like many wealthy coun-

tries, the United States has undergone a

disruptive transition from an industrial

manufacturing economy to a postindus-

trial knowledge economy. Along with

the decline o unions, the deregulation

o‚ ƒnance, and the federal government’s

retreat from antitrust enforcement, that

transition has tilted opportunity and

DINA

LITOVSKY

/ REDUX

Preaching to the choir: Sean Hannity at the Republican National Convention, July 2016

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