The Polarization Obsession

Despite what many want to believe, polarization is not the biggest problem in American political life.

For close to a decade, the punditry, self-proclaimed serious thinkers about American democracy and the chattering classes more broadly have bemoaned the rise of polarization in the US. More recently, the assassination of Charlie Kirk has bolstered this already powerful narrative. However, while there is no question that the US is a deeply polarized country, this fetishization of the problem of polarization is damaging because it obscures the more grave threat to the country.