The Trumpification of Republican America

Canadians, the late, great homegrown journalist Peter Jennings used to say, have an edge over Americans at his old craft because “we’re used to being observers on the world stage, while Americans expect a leading role.” One exception is another expat—Canadian-raised, Washington-based author and commentator David Frum. For decades, Frum enjoyed a place in the higher reaches of the Republican Party through books, speeches, columns and television appearances in which he provided erudite promotion of traditional conservative philosophies and policies. But he has never gone along with prevailing thought just for the sake of it.

Trumpocalypse, Frum’s second go at excoriating the present president of the United States in book form, is the latest example of that trait. (His previous was the 2018 Trumpocracy.) The title arguably does the book a disservice, because Frum does more than just profess his disgust with Donald Trump (although there’s plenty of that.) He analyzes Republican policy shifts and problems—regretfully concluding the party has done the U.S. more harm than good so far this century. He dissects the social and political conditions that led to Trump ‘s election; explains why the Democrats may still blow the election this fall; and provides ideas to bridge the enormous disconnect between Washington and much of the rest of the country. [MORE]