The other night I had dinner with a luminary of America’s political scene, who I’ll call “Bob”. This politician is from the Republican party but has spent his career endorsing (mostly) centrist policies in a pragmatic way and has a record of tangible achievements.
Bob likes bipartisan action, is described by the media as “nice” (or as nice as anyone who has spent some years in Washington can be) and is sufficiently well-known to be a potential presidential candidate. He gives a decent speech. But Bob has a big problem: how to turn “nice” or “centrist” into a killer political sales pitch. “Most Americans are where we are on many issues — but how do we get the message across?” one of his aides laments. Or, as a journalist might say, how do you make “sensible” sound sexy in political terms?
There is a curious cultural disconnect here. If you were to peruse the political news in America these days — or indeed in much of Europe — you might presume the west was in the grip of a populist, polarised rage.