Michael Sandel: “Workers without degrees who lag behind the elite, Trump’s supporters”

Michael Sandel, a professor at Harvard University who is well-known as the author of the book ‘What is Justice?’ said, “As income and wealth inequality in the United States has deepened, the elites have achieved great success in the era of globalization, but many workers who do not have a college degree are feeling the relative deprivation of being looked down on. They are the supporters of President Trump.”

In an interview with the South China Morning Post (SCMP) in Hong Kong on the 3rd, Professor Sandel said, “The rise of President Donald Trump is similar to the rise of candidates from right-wing populist parties in many countries.”

He pointed out that, based on the expression of dissatisfaction from his supporters, President Trump is “trying to exercise executive power beyond the constitutional constraints of separation of powers between the President, Congress, and the Judiciary, and to exercise control over civil society, universities, and the media.” Externally, he explained, “It shows a transactional and hostile attitude toward not only traditional competitors but also allies,” and “There is a tendency to harass foreign countries by attempting to impose tariffs and threatening them.”

Regarding the cause of political polarization in the United States, Professor Sandel said, “In the era of globalization, the United States has enjoyed economic growth and gains for decades, but most of the benefits went to Wall Street financial industry workers and highly educated professionals, which originated from the dissatisfaction of workers who were relatively marginalized,” adding, “President Trump took advantage of this and amplified it.”

To resolve this polarization, he emphasized, “As a first step, we need to find a way for politicians as well as ordinary citizens to participate in dialogue beyond differences of opinion,” and added, “We need healthy public dialogue, not social media, which is very lacking in public dialogue and respectful debate.”

Professor Sandel described President Trump’s efforts to exert pressure on higher education institutions, including Harvard University and many Ivy League universities, as “an attempt to expand power beyond government power and into civil society.” He said, “The biggest purpose of a university is to serve the public interest by contributing to a healthy civic life,” and added, “Now is the time to focus more on the essential values ​​that higher education has to offer, such as reflection and critical thinking.”

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