Palantir's CEO warns the US is facing a 'legitimation crisis' as defense experts meet at Reagan forum
Politicians and industry leaders gathered at the 2024 Reagan National Defense Forum on Saturday to address global threats and U.S. national defense in a time of transition.
While the U.S. has numerous international threats to address, one key stakeholder warned America is facing a "legitimation crisis." Palantir CEO Dr. Alex Karp noted the incoming Trump administration has a "massive mandate" to correct this.
"What we have in this country is a legitimation crisis," Dr. Karp said during a panel at the Reagan National Defense Forum moderated by CNN's Abby Phillip.
"There is no one in this country, no expert, where they say something and the American people are going to say 'I 100% believe that's true.'"
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During the Reagan National Defense Forum, available to stream on Fox Nation, Dr. Karp argued the country has roughly six months to "cure" the crisis.
"The only thing that will cure a legitimacy crisis is measurement and that's where we are in this country and anything else is a platitude," the CEO said. "Because, honestly, and I tell this with great respect to experts: no one's listening. Everyone thinks you have an agenda... My favorite example of this are analysts on Wall Street. The whole methodology they have is just a way of telling you if they like you."
Dr. Karp pointed to President-elect Donald Trump's new advisory body as a "crucial" element to restoring legitimacy and enabling the country to better address foreign threats. The Department of Government Efficiency [DOGE] will be led by Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy.
"This is why I think the DOGE is...crucial... We have to measure what it is being spent on. What is the output? Is the input less than the output? And then you have to explain, what is that output?"
By tackling the country's "legitimation crisis," he said the incoming Trump administration can restore America's standing on the world stage.
"We need to stand up and those people need to be scared," Dr. Karp noted, referring to the U.S.'s foreign adversaries.
"We cannot have parity. Our adversaries do not have our moral compunction if it's even. They will take advantage of our niceness, kindness, our desire to be at home in Nebraska or New Hampshire or wherever we live in our peaceful environments. And they need to wake up scared and go to bed scared."
Dr. Karp, whose company builds the software that underpins much of the military's technology prowess, emphasized his "version" of service is to help make U.S. soldiers "happier" and leave the nation's enemies "scared."
"My version of service is the soldiers are happier, the enemies are scared, and Americans go back to enjoying the fact that we're the only one with a real Tech scene in this country, and we're going to win everything."
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