US Politics: An Audience with Governor Howard Dean at Chatham House, Monday 22nd February 2016

“People often think of Americans as acting without thinking.  I love coming to speak in Europe as it’s full of people who think without acting”.

Howard Dean, Chatham House, London

I just went to see a former Democratic Presidential candidate speak at Chatham House.  I thought that the discussion was going to revolve mainly around American politics and the presidential candidate race.  Whilst America was discussed, it was not the only focus of the evening.  Governor Dean addressed an audience that spanned young students to retired diplomats, braiding together the next generation and the ones preceding, old school institutions with the young’s desire for instantaneous, heart felt and passionate change.  He talked about how both sides could work together to effect this.

Democracy was discussed, as was the tendency for people to value stability over democracy in times of instability: this, I felt, was less centred around America and more centred upon European countries.  Dean cited Hungary and Poland as examples, both of which have become increasingly right wing and nationalistic in the wake of the migrant crisis.  For me, I have seen this pattern emerge in 3 other countries, all of which are at the midst of this turmoil:

1. In Egypt, a military dictator (Sisi) ousted the democratically elected President from the Muslim Brotherhood (Morsi) who had replaced the previously ousted military dictator (Mubarak).  Things have turned full circle and the same oppressive, intolerant, stifling regime has returned to take the helm.
2. Erdogan had been Prime Minister in Turkey from 2002-2014, winning three consecutive terms in office.  In 2014 he was succeeded by hand picked Ahmet Davutoglu and Erdogan became President.  He has challenged the traditional role of neutrality that the President is constitutionally obliged to take whilst Davutoglu, the current Prime Minister, has moved into a more passive, submissive role.  Amidst the frenetic chaos in the Middle East, his popularity has soared with the conservative Turkish electorate preferring the safety of what they know.  He has increasingly violated the constitution vis a vis his continued affiliation with the AKP, the Justice and Development Party, which he led during his office as Prime Minister; adopting a partisan stance instead of one of neutrality.  Under his watch, legislation has been enacted allowing parliament greater control over the independent judiciary and the Kurdish peace talks have broken down.
3. Netanyahu was re-elected as Prime Minister of Israel in 2015 and his now serving his fourth term in this office (having initially taken the post in 2009).  In the same year, he announced that he would run for an unprecedented fifth term in the next general elections.  Netanyahu has long adopted an aggressive military stance against Palestinian Arabs (in some cases, responding to attacks; in some cases, pre-emptive of attacks) and continues to promote Israeli expansion in the West Bank which the international community see as illegal.

All three of these leaders are strong leaders, aggressive in character and show no intentions of relinquishing their positions of power any time soon; irrespective of what the constitution demands.  Yet, in times of instability, the electorate in this part of the world has shown that it would rather back down on issues of democracy in favour or a strong leader who makes them feel safe. The turmoil that envelopes countries like Egypt, Turkey and Israel today serves these leaders well. They are people of action more than people of diplomacy.  To bring back Poland and Hungary into the mix, they all form a growing number of leaders who would rather build walls than bridges to shut out the alleged enemy or migrant rather than talk to them.  It is a sorry sight.  Fear and uncertainty are veritable trump cards for these leaders when it comes to securing their seat in government.

To my delight, Governor Dean moved on from talk of this to Europe and today’s dilemma of a possible ‘Brexit’.  He is unashamedly pro-European and believes that the founding of Europe is one of history’s greatest achievements:

‘The creation of the European Union is the most extraordinary experiment in human government since the creation of the United States’.

I have read with great anxiety about a Conservative party that has been ripped in two by their differing opinions on the matter: those who want to remain (under Cameron) and those who want to leave (such as Zac Goldsmith and Boris Johnson).  It is sad for me that these latter two are popular politicians with a large following inside London and beyond.  It is within their power to launch a charm offensive (particularly in Goldsmith’s case) and convert a large section of the public who are not sure which way to turn.  Here Governor Dean and I have something in common: we do not want to see this great institution that came about with the intent of forging peace, unity and cohesion, ripped apart, thereby rendering the work of all our great predecessors obsolete.

I have mentioned in previous articles that if we vote to leave Europe, it is highly likely that Scotland will hold another referendum and may well vote to sever their relations with the United Kingdom, thereby possibly making David Cameron the last Prime Minister of a United Kingdom.  Scotland have no desire to leave Europe and strongly support the staying in campaign.  I for one do not want to have to choose between being Scottish and English; having been born in Scotland, to Scottish parents, I lived there until the age of seven and still feel that it is a large part of my identity but I have lived in England a long time.  I am British and I do not want to lose that.  In the same sense, while I consider myself to be more British than European (we are separated from the continent by the English Channel after all), I do feel a sense of belonging to something greater; of aspiring to share more with my European neighbours.  I am flattered to be included in their number.  Whether Scottish, British or European, neither one to me negates the other and I want to keep them all.  That is who I am and who I want to continue being: there is strength, camaraderie and might in numbers.

Governor Dean pointed out that if England voted to leave the EU and Scotland subsequently voted to sever their ties with England then Wales could follow suit.  Think of it like a jelly baby if you like (these are my words not his): you eat the head first, the legs follow and it is inevitable that the middle gets swallowed up eventually.

Mr Dean went on to speak of leaders that he admired; of which Merkel was one.  (I have written about her before in an article filed under Inspirational People).  Here I find myself in agreement with Mr Dean yet again.  I like and respect her a great deal; she is a leader who doesn’t follow the crowd and is strong in times of momentous challenge.  There are those who may not agree with her recent stance vis a vis migration but she has stuck to what she believed in, whether that was a popular decision to make or not.  Furthermore, her interest is not merely confined to Germany; she considers Europe as a whole.  Her unwavering stance is admirable but it puts her at the mercy of her many adversaries.  It makes me think of Prometheus, who was chained to a rock by Zeus for stealing the art of making fire from the Gods.  Once on that rock, his liver was devoured daily by an eagle (it would grow back every night only for the horror to recur the following day).  If we imagine that liver as a heart, the heart of Europe, perhaps (although it may seem a little far fetched to make this analogy); then the eagle swoops in with its anti-European fervour, chiseling away at the heart and ripping it to pieces, bit by bit, until it no longer beats: it no longer has purpose.  Rising nationalism comes in the guise of that eagle and this once beating heart that represented our forefathers’ hopes of Europe as a cohesive, ever beating, ever expanding organ that would thrive on the pulse of other nations is cruelly discarded and thrown to the side.  Separating from Europe?  It would be a political thrombosis.

Whilst Merkel’s response to the migrant crisis may well lead to her political downfall, it is that response that will put her down in history as one of the world’s great leaders.

Governor Dean talked about a poll that was conducted in the United States, (at considerable expense, of course); amongst a group of evangelical christians.  For those above the age of 35, what mattered to them most, in a political sense, were issues such as homosexuality and christianity.  Those under the age of 35 had a surprisingly more secular agenda: their political compass steered them in the direction of climate change and poverty.  This, according to Dean, is very representative of what he describes as the ‘first Global Generation‘ (he does not like to refer to the younger electorate as ‘millennials’).  Whilst this generation may have a tendency to navigate away from the hierarchical corridors of politics, they pull together their resources and embark upon unchartered territories.  Let us not stand aside and watch the sun set over what our forefathers’ gave their lives work to bring into being.  Europe is what they fought for and what they have stretched out their arms to embrace, accepting all those countries that are in need of its protection and will be for years to come.

I was recently doing some research for an article on the history behind the creation of the state of Israel and the many, many conflicts that have arisen since that time in defending it and amassing greater geographical territory, irrespective of who they eject in the process.  It is a terrible state of affairs that seems to be never ending and makes my heart sink.  The old continue to breed hate in the young and walls are built where they could so easily be torn down and bridges could be put in place instead.  I read about an Israeli Prime Minister, Yitzhak Rabin (one of the more left leaning of the few), who had spent a great deal of time working on the Oslo Peace Accords and hoped to sign a Peace Agreement with the leader of the Palestinian Liberation Organisation, Yasser Arafat.  In these talks, Arafat agreed to remove the denial of Israel’s right to exist from the Palestinian National Authority charter.  Rabin was assassinated on 4th November 1995 not by an enemy, but by one of his own countrymen; albeit that he was an ultranationalist who was not in favour of the peace talks and unable to embrace any form of compromise that did not fall into line with the Zionist agenda.  I read about many, many people who literally gave their lives in an effort to seek peace and solidarity.

The aftermath of the Second World War forged an alliance between two previously warring countries: Germany and France.  Who would have thought that could happen so soon after the many lives that were lost?  Now we have a more global outlook and are looking at trade alliances with Japan; again, another former enemy during the Second World War.

When I look at Europe now and the threat that looms over it, in the guise of that eagle if you like, casting a shadow with its wings over its future; I think back on all these great people who gave their lives with the sole intention of leaving a more peaceful planet for the next generation and so many seem to be blind to this.  I see a light going out where once it shone and walls going up where barriers were once torn down; I see an end to all the openings that were created and the pathways that were built; I see a society that is increasingly fractured and torn apart and I see a new generation of people who, it is my fear, without knowledge of the past, are afraid to question the present.

Governor Dean believes that there is hope and he sees the next generation as the key to the future.  In his lifetime he has seen many changes: from a black political activist, Martin Luther King, being assassinated in 1968 to the election of a black American President.  This is progression.  As a young university student, Dean’s father told them had he had the benefit of being able to look forwards and back and that he, as a young man, could only look forwards.  Today’s youth need not lack that hindsight if it learns from the past.  As an optimist who views the glass as half full rather than half empty, perhaps today’s youth see that whatever the scenario, it clearly needs topping up.  With an increased education and standard of living in many countries, eventually enough people will have the courage to question convention, challenge the pre-existing state of affairs and start navigating an alternative path taking peace and global togetherness with them at the helm.  The protests of the late 60s in Europe and America resulted in violence; protests in Eastern Europe, China and the Middle East have all, respectively, been brutally suppressed.  Perhaps the next generation will seek an alternative discourse.

Here is the link to the talk that Governor Dean gave at Chatham House.  I hope, if you watch (or listen) to it, you will find it as inspiring as I did.

https://www.chathamhouse.org/event/us-elections-2016-and-future-liberal-democracy

Image source: Governor Howard Dean, courtesy of the Huffington Post. http://i.huffpost.com/gen/1333870/thumbs/o-HOWARD-DEAN-facebook.jpg