Democracy Expert Larry Diamond: Trump’s re-election would be a catastrophe for US and global democracy

Larry Diamond is one of the world's most renowned scholars of democracy. In an interview with Biznews, the senior fellow at the Hoover Institution and the Mosbacher Senior Fellow in Global Democracy at Stanford University's Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies (FSI) highlighted the perils democracy currently faces. Prof Diamond warned that a potential victory for Donald Trump in the 2024 US presidential election would not only be a catastrophe for the United States but also have profound global implications. He expressed concerns about Trump's admiration for authoritarian leaders and his contempt for Africa. Shifting his focus to South African politics, Prof Diamond, who had recently visited Cape Town, stressed the essential role of improved governance in attracting domestic and foreign investment to create jobs. He believed that South Africa's energy crisis could be resolved through renewable energy solutions and a new generation of battery and nuclear technology. Prof Diamond also voiced disappointment regarding the Democratic Alliance's (DA) inability to progress towards a multiracial leadership. He said South Africa has enormous talent across the board and needs leadership to make the strategic decisions that will harness that talent.