Former prime minister Kevin Rudd will be heading to Washington in the new year, having been appointed Australia’s new ambassador to the US. The task will be a challenge for a relative progressive as US politics departs further and further from reality.
A Harvard-Harris poll released this month showed how weird things are getting, examining the most favourably viewed figures and institutions nation-wide. Stunningly, America’s most favourably viewed institution as of December 2022 was Amazon. 37% of Americans view the company very favourably and 41% favourably for a total of 78%.
Just behind Amazon is the US military at 77% and the police with 66%. By contrast, 48% view the Department of Justice favourably and 36% approve of the job being done by the parliament.
The backing for a billionaire magnate’s empire, the military and a militarised police force is matched by support for right-wing populists.
Of public figures, Donald Trump has the highest absolute approval rating, with support from 46% of Americans. Florida Republican Governor Ron de Santis has the highest net approval, at +14% and 45% absolute approval. Coming in second in terms of net approval is another billionaire, Elon Musk.
Among politicians, the worst net approval rating went to Mitch Connell, a Republic senator who criticised Trump over January 6. The next lowest was Nancy Pelosi, a hated figure among Republicans whose husband was subject to a vigilante attack in October.
All of this comes amidst an alarmingly aggressive and xenophobic political climate. After banning books that recognise LGBT people, this month more than a dozen states have gone on to ban TikTok on government devices in, for example, school offices.
A leading advocate of the ban is Kristi Noem, South Dakota Governor. On Christmas Day, Noem tried out a flamethrower in her backyard, saying she received it as a Christmas present.
Needless to say, this fawning over militarism and billionaire business magnates is an extremely dangerous confluence of factors occurring in the world’s most powerful country.
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