The West Forgets Democracy
In the early 1990’s, America and the rest of the West — basically, Europe and Canada — held an unprecedented influence over global affairs. With the culmination of the Cold War, advocates of global democracy reflected on the famous “Third Wave of Democratization.” Taking place from 1974 to 1990, the Third Wave entailed the institutional transformation of several nations nations towards democracy. These changes have been well documented by researchers and international development practitioners. Freedom House, for example, has produced its Freedom in the World Report on political rights and civil liberties since 1973. As the 21st century arrived, global freedom and the liberal order seemed firmly established. But are they?
At first glance, the United States and Europe were bastions of democracy that had weathered two World Wars, a clash of civilizations, and internal strife. Once established, these rich and generous countries got to work on the rest of the world. Their efforts were rewarded with democratic transitions. But as the prominent scholar Larry Diamond has argued in an article, Democracy in Decline, the last decade has been marked by threats to democratic governance, stability, and order — in other words, “backsliding.”
Western diplomats and donors were largely concerned with democratic disconsolation in nations that were just getting their institutional footing, such as the Thailand, Turkey, Kenya, and several countries in Eastern Europe. Many of these governments and their citizens had once expressed interest in foreign assistance and donor support from the West. In response, pro-democracy actors from the West invested through bilateral programs and multilateral institutions such as the United Nations and the Bretton Woods system to provide resources, and rightfully so.
A key goal of strategic plans for foreign assistance in recent years has been “Governing Justly and Democratically.” In the past several years, the U.S. Government has spent approximately 2 billion dollars on this effort annually. Other Western governments have focused on governance, too. Even Western non-profits like the National Endowment for Democracy have given 100’s of millions of dollars in support of governance and human rights.
While focused on building good governance abroad, the West has forgotten to take care of themselves. Western leaders have neglected concerns with domestic governance, resulting in decaying political systems that struggle to handle crises of power, partisanship, and community. The “backsliding” reached Western borders.
What is Governance?
To understand why the disregard for governance explains domestic backsliding, it is essential to explain the term. The 2017 World Development Report, which focuses on Governance and the Law, provides a definition:
“Governance is the process through which state and non-state actors interact to design and implement policies within a given set of formal and informal rules that shape and are shaped by power…the ability of groups and individuals to make others act in the interest of those groups and individuals and to bring about specific outcomes.”
For Western democracy promoters, the solution to failed policies is to strengthen the institutions. Through the global liberal system, Western leaders and citizens have sought to convince developing countries that principles and systems for good governance are necessary for success. Authoritarian rule is expedient, but democracy is the best in the long term.
The World Bank identifies commitment, coordination, and cooperation as the key institutional drivers of policy effectiveness. The authors of the report conclude that “policy effectiveness depends not only on what policies are chosen, but also on how they are chosen and implemented. Policy making and policy implementation both involve bargaining among different actors.”
In Why Nations Fail, scholars Daron Acemoglu and James Robinson ascribe a nation’s success or failure to institutions. Their argument is that a people’s incentives and ability to control power, grow prosperously, and alleviate poverty is shaped by the institutions that bind them together. Policy matters. But governance — the process and framework by which leaders and citizens use institutions — matters. If it is neglected, the value of a democratic society is lost.
Cleaning Up Our Backyard
British Prime Minister Winston Churchhill famously said, “No one pretends that democracy is perfect or all-wise. Indeed it has been said that democracy is the worst form of Government except for all those other forms…” Democracy is a challenging political system that constantly requires adjustment. People’s preferences change, the economy changes with market successes and failure, and culture evolves. However, in global affairs, nations have been socialized to aspire to become “developed” and “established” democracies. It is as if countries have made it or still have work to do.
This categorization is necessary to compare countries on a spectrum. Nevertheless, this habit sheds light on a deeper concern. Democracies at the top of the liberal order have become complacent. Citizens and their leaders have forgotten to clean up their backyard. Busy with promoting values abroad (rightfully so), Western countries have narrowly focused on domestic policy and abandoned rigorous discourse about their own institutions and the culture that informs them.
In the Paradox of American Democracy Promotion, prominent scholar Walter Russell Mead said:
“If the study of democracy over the past two hundred years teaches anything, it is that democracy is historically rare and reluctant to evolve…all kinds of people in the democracy-promotion movement failed to think historically in the years after 1989.”
Governing by democracy is a long-term process and ultimately, one without an ending. Any country, however prosperous, is susceptible to backsliding and decay. But it is also capable of growth and development. The promotion of good governance around the world is a likely necessity for global stability and progress. But to do so successfully requires solidarity and legitimacy at home. If the West appears to the rest of the world as arrogant and self-assured — as it often has — democracy loses its significance.
Democracy remains a great experiment. While policy is essential, the bedrock of democratic success is not the outcome, but the process. To remember this, the West has to begin asking important questions:
- How can healthy civic engagement and debate be restored?
- How can we improve bureaucracy? How can we get citizens informed?
- What are the proper roles of local, state and federal government?
- How can an overpowered and out of touch political class be avoided?
- What system can keep leaders honest and willing to compromise?
- Are Western elections and campaign finance the best they can be?
America and its fellow democrats cannot let perfect be the enemy of good. But Western countries should not mistake good for perfect, lest they forget to improve themselves while seeking to make the world a better place.
The views expressed here are my own.
