E123: Trump & The Game of Populism w/ Samo Burja

20 snips

Mar 6, 2025

In this discussion, Erik Torenberg chats with Samo Burja, founder of Bismarck Analysis and a seasoned political scientist. They delve into the challenges of populism, revealing how electoral wins often fail to translate into real change. The duo explores the historical context of populist movements, particularly in the U.S. and Europe, and how digital democracy reshapes political dynamics. They also discuss the implications of social media for political engagement and speculate on future candidates’ strategies to connect with voters.

Ask episode

AI Snips

Chapters

Transcript

Episode notes

INSIGHT

Populism's Challenge

Populism, appealing to popular sentiment, is a recurring political strategy throughout history.
Modern populism faces a unique challenge in confronting the entrenched 20th-century administrative state.

ANECDOTE

Orban's Cultural Win

Viktor Orban achieved a cultural win in Hungary by staffing the government with conservatives.
However, he hasn't solved core economic issues or significantly raised fertility rates despite subsidies.

ANECDOTE

Brexit's Unfulfilled Promise

Brexit, a populist victory, didn't lead to the desired outcomes or break the existing establishment.
Winning elections doesn't guarantee effective governance or desired changes.

Get the Snipd Podcast app to discover more snips from this episode

Get the app

Erik Torenberg and Samo Burja discuss the limitations of populist politics, the difficulty populists face in effecting change despite electoral wins, and the influence of digital democracy on modern governance.

—

📰 Be notified early when Turpentine's drops new publication: https://www.turpentine.co/exclusiveaccess

🙏 Help shape our show by taking our quick listener survey at https://bit.ly/TurpentinePulse

—

RECOMMENDED PODCASTS:

🎙️Live Players

Samo Burja and Erik Torenberg provide analysis of the news and case studies of Live Players, as well as key institutions and technologies that make up the global power landscape.

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/live-players-with-samo-burja-and-erik-torenberg/id1718925188

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5fbMTkHBnom1JIBWYNVBK1?si=01ed191c74264f55

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@LivePlayerswithSamoBurja

—

SPONSORS:

☁️ Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI) is a single platform for your infrastructure, database, application development, and AI needs. OCI has four to eight times the bandwidth of other clouds and offers one consistent price. Oracle is offering to cut your cloud bill in half. See if your company qualifies at https://oracle.com/turpentine

🎯 Say goodbye to the headaches of out-of-home advertising. AdQuick combines technology, OOH expertise, and data to enable efficient, seamless ad buying across the globe. Visit https://adquick.com/ to start reaching your customers in the real world.

🕵️‍♂️ Take your personal data back with Incogni! Use code UPSTREAM at the link below and get 60% off an annual plan: https://incogni.com/upstream

💥 Head to Squad to access global engineering without the headache and at a fraction of the cost: head to https://choosesquad.com/ and mention “Turpentine” to skip the waitlist.

—

LINKS:

Bismark Analysis: https://brief.bismarckanalysis.com/

—

X / TWITTER:

@samoburja

@eriktorenberg

@turpentinemedia

—

HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE EPISODE:

Populists win elections but struggle to govern effectively against entrenched bureaucracies.
Modern populism confronts administrative states, unlike historical populism that opposed monarchies.
The administrative state was ironically strengthened by early 20th century populist movements.
Case studies (Hungary, Brexit) show winning elections doesn't guarantee successful implementation.
Trump faces resistance from within the Republican Party, limiting his appointment power.
Elon Musk and X.com provide Trump stronger tools than he had in 2016.
Left populism offers direct benefits while right populism promises protection from threats.
Samo suggests tech elites could pool money to counter traditional Republican donors' influence.
Future Democratic success may come from candidates combining progressive policies with family-oriented messaging.
Populism emerged through internet's bypass of traditional media gatekeepers.
Western democracies need a new balance between populist movements and administrative institutions.