Welcome to the Year of Trump
New Thinking for a New World - a Tallberg Foundation Podcast
01/09/25
•38m
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When Donald Trump becomes the 49th President of the United States, the whole world will be watching, with people holding their breath in expectation of almost Biblical levels of chaos and confusion. Ironically, it seems that his return to power may be seen as less dramatic by many Americans: after all, he made his way back to the White House by somewhat unexpectedly (at least at the time) winning the Republican primaries, gaining complete control of the Republican Party, and then winning a majority of the national presidential vote.
For many Americans, Trump never went away.
The fact is that Donald Trump has dominated American and global politics like no one since Franklin Roosevelt. That’s rare company and undoubtedly will be considered outrageous by many who think Trump is no more than a lucky, narcissistic sociopath. While he may be all that, he is also incredibly powerful. In any event, the corollary is that, like FDR, Trump's power is a function, not just of his own personality, but of his unique bond with a majority of the American people.
In other words, if you want to understand what's likely to happen during Trump II, you need to understand the voters.
This episode of New Thinking for a New World aims to shed light on what drives the soon-to-be re-inaugurated president, at least partly by answering a simple question: why did a majority of American voters choose Trump?
Scott Miller has answers. He is a seasoned political and corporate consultant who has had a successful career electing (or sometimes defeating) political candidates and helping to build some of the most successful global American corporate brands. Miller knows Trump; so what does he think?
And, what do you think:how will Trump change America or the world? (But please tell us after you listen to the podcast!)
Previous Episode
Best New Thinking: Truth, and Nothing But
January 2, 2025
•32m
We live in a world where facts are everywhere, recorded and shared ubiquitously. That ought to make this an era where arguments, journalism, and politics are routinely rooted in fact; unfortunately, it is more a world where too many people insist not only their own opinions, but on their own “facts.”
The problem is technology running amok, a bit like the broom in Goethe’s Sorcerer’s Apprentice (or the perhaps more familiar versions starring Mickey Mouse or Nicolas Cage). Wouldn’t it be a better world if endless open-source information and smart, widely distributed technology shed light instead of heat?
The good news is that there are people trying to do exactly that, starting with Eliot Higgins, founder of Bellingcat, an investigative collective focused on online open-source investigation. Listen to this episode of New Thinking for a New World, as he discusses how he and Bellingcat separate fact from fiction.
This podcast episode was originally published on May 23, 2024, and has been re-released.
Next Episode
The Worry List
January 16, 2025
•33m
The start of 2025 is burdened with no shortage of things to worry about. The war in Ukraine; conflicts throughout the Middle East; tensions around Taiwan; the Los Angeles inferno; the possibility of Chinese and Russian financial or economic collapse. And, of course, the biggest known unknown that preoccupies the whole world: what will Donald Trump actually do when he's president after all of the noise he’s made on his way to the White House?
The list is almost endless—and quite scary.
Somewhat surprisingly, the global threat of ideological extremism and terrorism doesn't appear on most such lists. After all, we all know Al-Qaeda has been degraded; Islamic State defeated; the Taliban struggling to govern. Most importantly, Iran, the sponsor of so many terrorist groups operating in so many countries, at the least has been wrong-footed by the Israelis.
But, what if that benign assessment is wrong?
In fact, that’s the well-informed view of today’s guest on New Thinking for a New World. Dr. Rohan Gunaratna, a Singapore academic, is a widely recognized expert on global terrorism who believes that the threat of terrorism is rising—and is urging the great powers to develop a coherent anti-terrorism strategy as they did after 9/11, before it is too late.
What do you think? Should we fear a new wave of fundamentalist terror assaults?
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