Why the cost of lying in domestic and international politics should not be underestimated.

The principle issue with leaders and politicians consciously lying to their constituents is that it prohibits people from making informed and rational choices. In the case of China, this is specifically the reason why they are being lied to, since an informed and rational Chinese public, in all likelihood, would not support Xi Jinping’s brinkmanship over a few rocks in the Western Pacific (“Mourir Pour Scarborough Shoal?” Anyone?).

In the case of the United Kingdom, a Western democracy, the fact that Boris Johnson’s acolytes got away with lying to the public without serious repercussions not only spreads mistrust between those who govern and the governed, but more importantly, and alas more troublesome to a democracy, it is poised to undermine the rule of law—the lifeblood of the democratic experiment—since trust in elected leaders and the law is the sinew that holds any democratic system together.

Brexit and the South China Sea: Why Politicians Lie | The Diplomat

Hmmm…