Takes On Populism

The scuttlebutt is that the Republican Party has assumed a new populist mantle, not least in the person of faux-Hillbilly J.D. Vance. For a while I was on a populist kick, on the misguided notion of some fundamental divide between industries that produce goods and services, and Finance that juggles paper. No more. The fact is that all corporations tend to have their fingers, if not more, in financial dealings. As Marx emphasized, the entire point of a business firm is to turn money into more money. (“M-C-M” y’all).

Applications of the term “populism” still tend to be indiscriminate, and I’ve expended words over the years objecting to that lack of discernment. Here, thanks to Google and the forever nature of the Internet, are some of my golden oldies, including ones I’ve forgotten writing myself.

Before humping my own scribbling, I’d like to recommend Mike Kazin’s book, “The Populist Persuasion” as well as Lawrence Goodwyn’s “The Populist Moment,” or if you have time, its extended version, “Democratic Promise.” The latter is deep and a revelation, my favorite book about politics.

When I was on my populist kick I did this on the dubious case for Pat Buchanan being a populist. Buchanan was the prototype for Trump. I debated him once on Crossfire, in the 90s. Contrary to his TV persona, he’s actually kind of diminutive. Like a nasty leprechaun. Is that an ethnic slur? I don’t care. Fuck you, Pat.

Here I reviewed “The Populist Reader.” (Paywalled)

More recently I wrote about Trump’s unPopulist tax policy.

Here is a discussion of my engagement with the exotic variety sometimes referred to as libertarian populism.

Here’s a short bit on the narrow subject of taxing soda. I had to reread it to remember if I was for or against. (I was against on distributional grounds, among other deficiencies.)

Here’s an excerpt from a piece I wrote for TPM Cafe, before the entire site and my columns along with it were taken down. Also before Josh Marshall decided he hated me.

Here’s a book review that sees Bernie in a populist frame, and an older piece for The Baffler that does not see Trump in any such frame.

The axe I’m grinding in all of these is that U.S. populism has a glorious tradition that is still worth recovering, though it includes blemishes as well, mostly in the vein of xenophobia.