What is the central thesis of Daron Acemoglu's new book on liberal democracy's crisis, what "soft straitjacket" does he describe, how does he connect AI's dysfunction to democracy's, and what "working class liberalism" solution does he propose?

In "What Happened to Liberal Democracy? Remaking a Politics of Shared Prosperity" (published August 11, 2026), Daron Acemoglu argues that the crisis of liberal democracy is a self-inflicted wound: the system abandoned its core promises of shared prosperity, inclusive governance, and free pursuit of knowledge, thereby losing the trust of the working class .

Central thesis

Liberal democracy is not being destroyed by external enemies (populists, authoritarians, or social media alone) but by its own internal failures. Acemoglu's central claim is that liberalism is dying primarily of self-inflicted wounds . The system flourished when it delivered broad-based economic gains, democratic participation, and open inquiry, but faltered when it stopped doing so .

The "soft straitjacket"

Acemoglu describes a "soft straitjacket" —a gradual, elite-driven narrowing of political and economic choices that constrained democratic debate and excluded working-class concerns. This manifested as:

• Abandonment of shared prosperity: liberal elites presided over rising inequality and stagnant wages for non-college workers .
• Elevation of a college-educated elite: policy and culture drifted toward the priorities of professionals and credential-holders, alienating the working class .
• Drift away from free expression and democratic self-government: institutions became less responsive to popular will, and the culture of open debate eroded .

This soft straitjacket, rather than overt repression, suffocated the democratic responsiveness that once gave liberalism legitimacy .

AI dysfunction as a mirror of democracy's crisis

Acemoglu connects the dysfunction in AI development to the same pattern that broke liberal democracy. In both domains, elite-driven escalation replaces deliberative, broadly beneficial progress . The AI debate, he argues, "has a tendency to escalate everything," driven by the same divide between an educated, credentialed elite and everyone else . Instead of democratically shaping AI to augment workers and serve public needs, the technology is being deployed to empower corporations and governments against workers and citizens . The polarization and loss of trust in AI governance mirrors identical dynamics in political life .

The solution: "Working-class liberalism"

Acemoglu's proposed alternative is "working-class liberalism" (described in promotional material as a "Roosevelt-like" project) . Its core elements are:

• Rebuilding shared prosperity: redirecting economic policy to benefit non-college workers through stronger bargaining power, better wages, and inclusive growth .
• Democratic renovation: revitalizing institutions of self-government and free expression so that liberalism again responds to popular demands rather than elite consensus .
• Technological redirection: shaping AI and automation to augment human capabilities and empower workers, rather than replacing them or concentrating power in fewer hands .

Acemoglu frames this not as a return to mid-20th-century social democracy but as a new political philosophy that reclaims liberalism's original promise—broad freedom and shared prosperity—for a post-industrial, technologically disrupted world .