The Nobel laureate who co-wrote ‘Why Nations Fail’ warns U.S. democracy won’t survive unless these two things change

Most critics of President Donald Trump view him as the ultimate threat to American democracy. But to Nobel prize-winning economist Daron Acemoglu, Trump’s merely a fever, the result of an infection that’s been brewing for years before he rode down the golden escalator to announce his presidency.

The MIT economist has spent decades studying the origins of economic and political decay, specializing in how institutions foster inclusive growth—or succumb to extractive systems. In the 2012 book Why Nations Fail...