In Donald Trump’s first term, the alarm was about a “post-truth” world — fake news, alternative facts, and the erosion of trust in journalism and expertise. But as Trump’s second administration unfolds, the central anxiety has shifted. Critics from across the political spectrum now describe this era less as one of deliberate deception and more as a time of profound stupidity — a collapse not only of honesty but of basic competence and foresight.

From Lies to Incompetence

Trump’s relationship with truth has not improved; his falsehoods remain constant. What has changed is the level of administrative chaos and the pursuit of policies so self-defeating that they appear senseless even to his own supporters. High-level national security mishaps — like senior officials accidentally adding journalists to private group chats about military operations — highlight dysfunction at the core of government.

Even more striking is a set of policies with no rational gain: aggressive tariffs disrupting trade, deep cuts to medical research, and the appointment of anti-vaccine activists and wellness influencers to key health positions. Some Republican-led states have even banned fluoride in tap water, abandoning decades of public health evidence. This isn’t just dishonesty; it’s the deliberate sidelining of scientific reasoning.

The Meme Politics of Stupidity

Observers once tried to decode Trump’s actions as clever strategy — “4D chess.” But increasingly, analysts warn that over-interpretation only lends undeserved intelligence to what is, in fact, incoherent. Much of today’s right-wing discourse is better understood as meme-driven politics: slogans and accusations circulate online until they become ritual affirmations of loyalty, regardless of accuracy or consequences.

This dynamic is powered by social media platforms that reward repetition and engagement over truth. Wild claims — such as blaming diversity programs for disasters — gain traction not because they’re believed but because they generate clicks, outrage, and group identity.

Platforms and Markets Have Replaced Judgment

The essay connects this “age of stupidity” to a deeper structural shift: the outsourcing of judgment to algorithms and markets. For decades, neoliberal thinkers argued that free markets could coordinate society’s knowledge better than experts. In the 21st century, digital platforms took this further — promising that big data and AI could replace human reasoning with pattern recognition.

But these systems are indifferent to meaning. False rumors can move global markets just as much as verified facts. Viral speculation about tariffs once caused U.S. stock indexes to swing wildly within hours. Such volatility exposes a world where impact matters more than accuracy, and stupidity can be as economically powerful as intelligence.

The Deeper Challenge

Yet the danger isn’t only Trump himself. As philosopher Hannah Arendt warned, stupidity can become a social condition — a widespread abandonment of judgment when people stop thinking critically and simply follow signals from systems or leaders. The risk today is that data-driven platforms, financial incentives, and media outrage cycles train societies to behave reflexively rather than thoughtfully.

The antidote Arendt suggested lies not just in “expert orthodoxy” but in imagination and independent judgment — the ability to step outside closed systems of metrics and memes and think anew. Politics requires creativity and moral reasoning that cannot be automated or delegated to algorithms.

Beyond Trump

Trumpism exposes how fragile truth and intelligence become when institutions surrender decision-making to markets and platforms. Even if his policies collapse under their own weight — as Britain saw when Liz Truss’s economic miscalculations triggered market revolt — the underlying conditions remain. A culture of anti-intellectualism, conspiracy thinking, and algorithm-driven engagement will outlive any single leader.

Resisting this trend demands more than fact-checking. It calls for reclaiming space for human judgment, rebuilding trust in institutions, and cultivating a political imagination capable of navigating new crises rather than recycling slogans. Without that, the “age of stupidity” may persist long after Trump.