History has known authoritarian leaders who possessed extraordinary oratorical power, using it to manipulate crowds and lead them toward catastrophe. With Trump, however, it is difficult to find any rhetorical brilliance that could explain the enormous following he commands. Crude language, repetition, vulgarity, and insults — yet an audience that enjoys it and applauds.

So what has declined: the quality of political discourse, or the standards of the audience?

Are we living in an age of decline?