Political economy of the West: Populists versus policy wonks

Abstract

An attempt is made to understand the political upheaval in the West following the Brexit vote, the election of Donald Trump as President of the United States, and the emergence of populist patriotic parties throughout Europe, and why much of the anger is directed at economists and other experts. One possibility is that migration, international trade, technological advances, the introduction of the Euro and climate policy hurt the working and much of the middle classes without them being properly compensated. Part of the anger is directed at new people who seem to be able to jump the queue and at the rich who seem to get richer why wages for the poor remain stagnant. Refs 9. Table 1.