He is the “Trump before Trump,” said Steve Bannon. During a presentation in Zurich this past spring, the ex-adviser of the U.S. President was not referring to Silvio Berlusconi or Viktor Orbán, veteran European populists well known on the international stage. Bannon was talking about Christoph Blocher, a man from a small, neutral country in the heart of Europe best known for its banks, cheese, and stability. “Actually everything began in Switzerland in 1992,” added the American populist mastermind. Bannon was not wrong. Of all places, it was Switzerland that, almost 30 years ago, hosted the dress rehearsal for what...