Not so very long ago, autocratic leaders—aka “strongman” rulers—were enjoying a moment. Leaders such as Vladimir Putin, Viktor Orban, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Xi Jinping, Mohammed bin Salman, and Jair Bolsonaro were rising in prominence and power and envied by ambitious would-be autocrats like U.S. President Donald Trump. Democracy and freedom were in retreat around the world. Even in the United States, the checks and balances enshrined in the Constitution seemed passé, and so-called conservatives were touting the virtues of a “unitary executive.” Pundits and scholars were writing books like The Age of the Strongman or Strongmen: Mussolini to the Present, explaining How Democracies Die, and pondering the possibility of a “concert of kingpins.”

The allure of strongman rule was a predictable response to the various missteps that mainstream democratic leaders had made over the previous few decades. The United States fought and lost several stupid wars, suffered a financial crisis, never held any of the responsible parties accountable, and continued to be led by gerontocratic politicians reluctant to relinquish power to a new generation. Great Britain suffered through a revolving door of inept prime ministers whose main accomplishment was providing fodder for comedians and satirists. France endured the Nicolas Sarkozy presidency, Italy had to survive Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi’s opéra bouffe, and even more competent leaders such as German Chancellor Angela Merkel eventually stumbled. In an era of economic stagnation, rising refugee and migrant flows, overhyped concerns about terrorism, and other worries, the temptation to turn to a “strong leader” promising to protect ordinary people from an uncertain future proved irresistible to many.

Not so very long ago, autocratic leaders—aka “strongman” rulers—were enjoying a moment. Leaders such as Vladimir Putin, Viktor Orban, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Xi Jinping, Mohammed bin Salman, and Jair Bolsonaro were rising in prominence and power and envied by ambitious would-be autocrats like U.S. President Donald Trump. Democracy and freedom were in retreat around the world. Even in the United States, the checks and balances enshrined in the Constitution seemed passé, and so-called conservatives were touting the virtues of a “unitary executive.” Pundits and scholars were writing books like The Age of the Strongman or Strongmen: Mussolini to the Present, explaining How Democracies Die, and pondering the possibility of a “concert of kingpins.”

The allure of strongman rule was a predictable response to the various missteps that mainstream democratic leaders had made over the previous few decades. The United States fought and lost several stupid wars, suffered a financial crisis, never held any of the responsible parties accountable, and continued to be led by gerontocratic politicians reluctant to relinquish power to a new generation. Great Britain suffered through a revolving door of inept prime ministers whose main accomplishment was providing fodder for comedians and satirists. France endured the Nicolas Sarkozy presidency, Italy had to survive Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi’s opéra bouffe, and even more competent leaders such as German Chancellor Angela Merkel eventually stumbled. In an era of economic stagnation, rising refugee........

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