Back in September, the San Miguel de Allende lecture series “i3: Ideas that Inform and Inspire” announced its new season and among the most-anticipated speakers is veteran journalist and author Hedrick Smith. 

His speech, titled “The Road Ahead for American Democracy,” is set for Nov. 19.

Way back in September, the title seemed an anticipation of the celebration that would be democracy in action – a successful election during which the majority of the people would choose as their leader an intelligent, earnest, and compassionate woman over an aging and angry revenge-driven criminal.

That didn’t happen.

Since Tuesday, that “road ahead” has changed dramatically. Taken a sharp right-hand turn, you might say. Some say we’ve gone around the bend and over the cliff.

Well, the title of Hedrick Smith’s talk hasn’t changed but the focus sure has.

“I have a couple of ideas I want to share with the audience that haven’t been mentioned in the coverage,” the ever-enthusiastic 91-year-old Smith says from his Washington D.C. home this week. “Things not in the exit polls.”

The surprising finish to the presidential election has sent Smith back into doing the thing he does best – research, research, research. Just as the two-time Pulitzer Prize-winner did for The New York Times and PBS Frontline and in his best-selling books.

Over the decades, Smith has made a name for himself partially by heading out far beyond the Capitol Beltway. He’s listened to the people who live in the small towns and rural countryside, the heartlanders and laborers. His books, like “Who Stole the American Dream?” and “Rethinking America” are hailed for their insightfulness.

We couldn’t be in store for a more timely talk.

When last here in 2020, Smith talked about his three years crisscrossing the United States, studying the grassroots-level actions being taken to reform voter rights, politics, and election financing. The research resulted in the documentary “Reforming Our Ailing Political System.” Many of those reforms in part helped elect Joe Biden as president.

But in politics, as in life, for every action there is a reaction. That counter-movement re-elected Donald Trump this week.

His 2012 book, “Who Stole the American Dream?” Smith talked about the growing disparities between the rich and poor and the tearing down of the middle class. His recommendations for salvaging the U.S. read like the Biden presidential playbook – including such proposals as revitalize transportation, invest in research, spur a manufacturing renaissance, shore up Social Security and Medicare, and rebuild the middle class.

“Biden will be seen as having the most effective and productive administration since Lyndon B. Johnson,” predicts Smith. Unfortunately, he adds, many of the Bidin Administration initiatives aren’t appreciated just yet. 

“They will take a while to play out. Over the next four years many will come to fruition,” he says. “And Trump will take credit.”

There are bigger concerns ahead. “There are guardrails in place (to protect democracy) and stacks of laws on the books,” says Smith. “But they all depend on human beings to be effective. They are exploitable by the unscrupulous.”

One glaring example he cited has been Trump’s yearslong refusal to release his tax returns, a good faith gesture made by all presidents during the past 50 years.

“There is talk about Trump starting fast,” says Smith.”Knowing Trump, he’ll be inclined to interfer well ahead of his inauguration.”

Indeed, hours before we spoke, the president elect was on the telephone with Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelensky, during which he included his top financial backer, the billionaire Elon Musk, in the conversation.

Smith predicts that Trump early on will go after the centers of power in the U.S. government that thwarted many of his plans during the first administration.

Other factors in the mix that will affect Trump’s speed and strategy include winning the Senate majority and possibly the House. The recent Supreme Court decision which essentially places the president above the law adds a dangerous element. With each victory, Smith sees a “bolder and faster strategy” for enactment of Trump’s policies.

All of these elements are things Smith will be researching between now and his Nov. 19 talk.

If there are still safeguards, he wants to know what they will be. He does not see the MAGA victory as a solid mandate, as Trump won the popular election by far fewer votes than when he lost in 2020.

But he acknowledges that we are in a “difficult and dangerous situation.”

That road ahead?

Hedrick Smith is heading down it well ahead of the rest of us. He can’t wait to help us navigate the bumps and potholes ahead.

Hedrick Smith’s talk, “The Road Ahead for American Democracy” will take place Nov. 19 at  5 p.m. at La Casona Event Center, Josephina Orozco #2, (across from Luna de Queso), followed by an informal reception with complimentary light botanas and beverages for purchase.

You can purchase tickets (290 pesos) here: https://i3sma.org/tickets/