The Edition: Rowan Williams on America's 'demonic' political climate

This episode of The Spectator's 'The Edition' explores the escalating political and cultural tensions in America, focusing on the dramatic rift between President Donald Trump and Pope Leo, the first American pope. The conversation unpacks Trump's increasingly bizarre public attacks on the Vatican, including a deleted AI-generated image of himself as Jesus Christ, which many interpreted as demonic. Former Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams offers a profound analysis of the 'demonic' undercurrents in American political culture, arguing that the normalization of violent rhetoric and the blurring of religious and political authority—exemplified by figures like Pete Thiel and Trump’s spiritual advisors—reflect a deeper spiritual crisis. The discussion also turns to the erosion of generational stability in London, where young people face a housing crisis as property values in flats have plummeted, trapping millennials in unaffordable, high-service-charge homes. This economic reality, combined with declining birth rates and the absence of families in urban areas, threatens community cohesion. Finally, the panel debates the future of vegetarianism, the ethics of meat consumption, and the controversial proposal to charge foreign tourists for museum access, with Williams and others defending the universal, free-access model of institutions like the British Museum as essential to cultural democracy.