Populists hate to be unpopular. That is why they have proved so bad at handling Covid-19, a crisis that brings nothing but grim news — death, economic destruction and curtailed freedoms.
Donald Trump, the US president, and Jair Bolsonaro, Brazil’s president, are the two most prominent populist leaders in the western world. The disastrous results of their approach to coronavirus are now becoming apparent. Last week, Brazil became the second country in the world, after the US, to record more than 50,000 Covid-19 deaths.
The distinguishing characteristic of the Trump-Bolsonaro approach to Covid-19 is a fatal inability to face reality. Mr Trump virtually ignored the virus through January, February and half of March. At various times he has suggested that it would disappear by magic and that injections with disinfectant might be a good remedy. As new cases and deaths continue to surge, Mr Trump’s latest bright idea is to argue that America should simply stop testing, in the hope that reality will disappear if it is simply ignored.