About this episode

The episode discusses the rise of populism and its implications, featuring Richard Hanania's critique of the phenomenon.

Something called 'populism' is on the rise across much of the world. It's difficult to pin down exactly what the term means, but most of us have a sense that we know it when we see it. Trump in the United States, Farage in Britain, Hanson in Australia – all of these politicians have adopted a particular kind of posture towards the public and towards the political establishment.  Richard Hanania thinks that populism is a very bad thing, since he argues that it reliably leads to 'kakistocracy' – that is, government by the worst, least qualified, and most unscrupulous.  Richard didn't always feel this way. He used to be on the far right and, as a pseudononymous writer, endorsed white supremacist and other radically anti-progressive positions. He later disavowed those views and shifted towards a more mainstream conservative position, gaining influence on the MAGA Right. Recently, he's shifted again, becoming one of the most vehement Right wing critics of MAGA and of populism more broadly.  Richard Hanania is an UnHerd columnist, the president of the Center for the Study of Partisanship and Ideology, and the author of a Substack focused on foreign policy, American…

People in this episode

Host: Louise Perry

Guest: Richard Hanania

Topics covered

• populism
• politics
• government
• kakistocracy
• conservatism
• MAGA
• social science

Keywords

• populism
• kakistocracy
• political establishment
• MAGA
• conservatism
• Richard Hanania
• politics
• government

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Center for the Study of Partisanship and Ideology, UnHerd

Places: United States, Britain, Australia

More episodes of Maiden Mother Matriarch with Louise Perry

• The spectre still haunting us · September 9, 2026 · 20 min
• The Status Game | Maiden Mother Matriarch 212 · September 6, 2026 · 1h 16m
• Are mothers oppressed by their children? · September 2, 2026 · 15 min
• Against Heteropessimism | Maiden Mother Matriarch 211 · August 30, 2026 · 1h 3m
• Are young adults actually poor? · August 26, 2026 · 6 min
• The post-literate society | Maiden Mother Matriarch 210 · August 23, 2026 · 1h 15m

Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Maiden Mother Matriarch with Louise Perry podcast page.