Particularly since the Citizen’s United SCOTUS decision in 2010 one of the Nazi party’s strategies has been has been with their megawealthy business interested coalition to swamp election campaigns with so many dollars that an election win is expected
But despite the Muskrat spending $20M in the weeks before the Wisconsin Supreme Court race to support the Nazi candidate who lost Now the billionaires are at it again outspending the Mamdami campaign $8 to $1 Obviously the billionaires don’t want to see NY city taxes increase under Mamdami This isn’t about disagreement with policy it’s about the megawealthy avoiding paying their fair share And Muskrat, Theil, and their billionaire buddies are planning to use their mega$ to influence future elections so they can harness political power with Cheeto at the helm, pouring millions of dollars into the Virginia and New Jersey gubernatorial races
It’s now gotten to the point of greed Nazi billionaires not wanting to pay their fair share in a society that has given them more than enough to live comfortably And Americans are waking up to the wealth inequality as measured by an ever expanding income gap in the country
Thank you for that wonderful analysis and comparisons. Yes, Andrew is no Mario. And the NYT and WaPo are now more maga than stalwarts of democracy. Both rages are more fox new lite than a confrontational Fourth Estate. I am reading your great work because I become completely disillusioned with corporate media and cancelled both my NYT and WaPo subscriptions as both news ords sanewashed the repulsive trump, who is the a horribly incompetent, vulgar, reprehensible, racist, convicted criminal. Both news outlets betrayed America,along with the vast majority of compliant, cowering, cash hunfry, corporate media. As they all moved closer to being a Murdoch type enterprise, the further I walked away from them. They are now all closer to America's Pravda and the All the President's Men WaPo of the past.
I often mention this due to frustration with bland, boring, corporate, squishy, middle of the road dems: what have they brought to America? Two trump terms, a GOP House, a GOP Senate, a corrupt, conservative SCOTUS, most state legislatures being GOP, and the coddling of murderous dictators while dismantling alliances of democratic allies. Those are the accomplishments of the middle approach.
As you wisely noted. FDR and LBJ, warts and all, were no middle of the road bores. They constantly put their political lives at risk to fight for the people. From a social safety net, and labor laws to voting and civil rights, both of those dems were transformative individuals. They didn't shy away from a fight, they took it head on. FDR fought the fascists and now HOP embraces fascism. LBJ fought for civil and voting rights and republicans have succeeded in dismantling both.
Those fighting for democracy are much stronger than the middle of the road democratic party. Sure, Mamdani likely wouldn't win in Oklahoma City, but he would likely be more popular than Eric Adams. Sadly, the lower the quality of life in a state, the more likely it votes republican. It's as if red state America self flagellates each day in order to be sure no trans person is allowed a bathroom entrance. And most red states are welfare states where they receive more in federal taxes than they pay. Yet they are the people who consider blue states as freeloaders. If it wasn't for blue states, red states would starve or have to raise taxes.More progressive states pay for the subsidies sent to more fascist leaning trump rates.
No pain, no gain. Maybe as maga stand in food lines, unemployment lines, and as red state farmers and ranchers for trump hold their hands out for billions in subsidies as their crops rot in the field, they may see a glimpse of light through their own self imposed darkness. They have been conned, scammed, fooled, and taken for rubes as trump throws lavish parties for the connected, corrupt, and the mega wealthy. As trump says, let them eat marble, I hope maga and the ambivalent see the error of their ways before America goes full tilt Russia.
And my advice to dems is to not shuffle your way toward fascism, but to embrace democracy and honest populism that helps the many and not just the few. Stop playing pattycake with the bully and be on the offense, always. No more defensive postures which have led to the disasters we currently face. I heard Rick Wilson, or maybe Stuart Stevens say, better to be strong and wrong than weak and right...
Thank you for your comments. It is interesting that those "red" states were once strongly for real populism and Oklahoma early in the twentieth century had the highest per capita membership in the Socialist Party of Eugene Debs. The Western states were also strong for FDR and LBJ. As a congenital optimist, I like to think they can be won back to supporting their own interests after the realize that Trump is not "where it's at."
I am almost in tears from your essay, Professor McElvaine. I've watched this dismantling all my adult life and still people adhere and suffer. Americans are a sorry lot, to put it mildly. How do we even overcome? I know, "economic constituentionalism," exercised aggressively and kindly. Perfect. I so hope Mamdani wins today and by a very large margin.
The emergence of " Democratic Socialist Zohran Mamdani" why did you describe him this way? You know the uninformed boil at the word "socialist" Our government as a whole (until trump completely destroys it) has "Socialist" under pinnings ... What is Medicaid ,SNAP, Welfare ?( (you cannot ignore the "Corporate Welfare" crowd siphoning off money ) even Medicare but we pay into it all our working lives and boy do they want to keep our money now...I would be humiliated if I turned my back on people in need ...
The Dems experiment with the "center" has been a failure. Why would Republicans vote for "Republican Lite" when they can vote for Republicans? I think Americans would welcome a Nordic style social democracy, if only Dems can come up with the winning message for it. Instead, the powers that be have pigeon-holed the Party into this wishy washy stagnancy.
The problem for the Democratic Party is that it has become the 'everything else' party. Many people still think on a scale of liberal to conservative, but the issue today is autocracy versus real representative democracy. On the latter scale, one party could not represent both the mayors of Kansas City and New York City, but on this new scale of autocracy/democracy, why not? We just have to stop the purists from imposing their will across the board as the Republicans do. Instead of fighting over which ideology, we should embrace political diversity and regionalism as a feature instead of a civil war. The wants and needs of those two cities are not the same. In a country as vast as this, culture varies, which is why we are a collection of separate states. Something as simple as population density or ethnic diversity can impose completely different missions on governing.
The answer to Republicans is that we have for decades embraced socialism as in Social Security and Medicare. SNAP is each according to their need, which is a feature of communism. Wall Street is pure capitalism. America's success is due to not trying to fit one solution to everything; instead we use the best solution for each separate problem - at least we used to before Republicans turned politics into religious dogma. Perhaps that's why they can't distinguish their favorite religion from government and the First Amendment. We should reassure the country that the states still are laboratories of democracy, and therefore we do not intend to impose the New York experiment on the unwilling elsewhere. This is just a test. The subjects are willing by a majority vote. (For those pointing to the Soviet Union's failures, I must point out that Russia has always been an oligarchy and kleptocracy except for moments too short to take root despite claiming to be socialist or communist.)
I have three sets of Collected poems on my bookshelf: Robert Frost, Wallace Stevens, and William Butler Yeats. I found myself going back to the Yeats exactly as you said, and finding the quotations about the beast slouching towards Bethlehem and the winding gyres and the centre cannot hold because it just spoke to my heart. So many people view these times as apocalyptic. And no wonder. We might be witnessing the end of our Democratic Republic and with a dementia patient/ malignant narcissist holding the keys to the nuclear arsenal, we could literally be back as the old protest song said, “on the eve of destruction” (remember “nuclear winter?”)
This is an amazing article. Thank you Robert S. McElvaine for putting all the pieces together. The words we use to describe each side in the political realm are faulty. Words that drag us further apart while the middle ground is a suicide tract. Words that many of us don't even understand in a world that is run by those that just take and don't give. This was a needed history lesson that sure connected the dots. Thanks again. Take care.
Although I no longer live there, I was a New Yorker for more than 60 years. And probably too young to appreciate the senior Cuomo as much as I could have. But can honestly agree that Andrew sadly does not come close to his father. The last year of his governorship his true colors came out. Many I know referred to him as a thug.
Your essay perfectly captures the state of play on this election day. There is sizable minority in this country that would not mind a christofascist white supremacist theocracy. They rightly feel that they would do just fine under that kind of system. In fact, many red states already, de facto, have this system in place. The rest of us want to maintain a pluralistic constitutional democracy. Compromise between these two factions is not possible. As you indicate, what would it even look like. There can be no soft landing. The resulting conflict between these sides will not end well. The best we can hope for is an eventual split into two new nations. One that carries on the founding principles of this country so well expressed by Abraham Lincoln in his Gettysburg Address and later by FDR in his “Four Freedoms” speech. The other devolving into the kind of country that’s yours and mine worst nightmare.
Cheeto And Nazi Billionaires Buying Elections
Particularly since the Citizen’s United SCOTUS decision in 2010 one of the Nazi party’s strategies has been has been with their megawealthy business interested coalition to swamp election campaigns with so many dollars that an election win is expected
But despite the Muskrat spending $20M in the weeks before the Wisconsin Supreme Court race to support the Nazi candidate who lost Now the billionaires are at it again outspending the Mamdami campaign $8 to $1 Obviously the billionaires don’t want to see NY city taxes increase under Mamdami This isn’t about disagreement with policy it’s about the megawealthy avoiding paying their fair share And Muskrat, Theil, and their billionaire buddies are planning to use their mega$ to influence future elections so they can harness political power with Cheeto at the helm, pouring millions of dollars into the Virginia and New Jersey gubernatorial races
It’s now gotten to the point of greed Nazi billionaires not wanting to pay their fair share in a society that has given them more than enough to live comfortably And Americans are waking up to the wealth inequality as measured by an ever expanding income gap in the country
Thank you for that wonderful analysis and comparisons. Yes, Andrew is no Mario. And the NYT and WaPo are now more maga than stalwarts of democracy. Both rages are more fox new lite than a confrontational Fourth Estate. I am reading your great work because I become completely disillusioned with corporate media and cancelled both my NYT and WaPo subscriptions as both news ords sanewashed the repulsive trump, who is the a horribly incompetent, vulgar, reprehensible, racist, convicted criminal. Both news outlets betrayed America,along with the vast majority of compliant, cowering, cash hunfry, corporate media. As they all moved closer to being a Murdoch type enterprise, the further I walked away from them. They are now all closer to America's Pravda and the All the President's Men WaPo of the past.
I often mention this due to frustration with bland, boring, corporate, squishy, middle of the road dems: what have they brought to America? Two trump terms, a GOP House, a GOP Senate, a corrupt, conservative SCOTUS, most state legislatures being GOP, and the coddling of murderous dictators while dismantling alliances of democratic allies. Those are the accomplishments of the middle approach.
As you wisely noted. FDR and LBJ, warts and all, were no middle of the road bores. They constantly put their political lives at risk to fight for the people. From a social safety net, and labor laws to voting and civil rights, both of those dems were transformative individuals. They didn't shy away from a fight, they took it head on. FDR fought the fascists and now HOP embraces fascism. LBJ fought for civil and voting rights and republicans have succeeded in dismantling both.
Those fighting for democracy are much stronger than the middle of the road democratic party. Sure, Mamdani likely wouldn't win in Oklahoma City, but he would likely be more popular than Eric Adams. Sadly, the lower the quality of life in a state, the more likely it votes republican. It's as if red state America self flagellates each day in order to be sure no trans person is allowed a bathroom entrance. And most red states are welfare states where they receive more in federal taxes than they pay. Yet they are the people who consider blue states as freeloaders. If it wasn't for blue states, red states would starve or have to raise taxes.More progressive states pay for the subsidies sent to more fascist leaning trump rates.
No pain, no gain. Maybe as maga stand in food lines, unemployment lines, and as red state farmers and ranchers for trump hold their hands out for billions in subsidies as their crops rot in the field, they may see a glimpse of light through their own self imposed darkness. They have been conned, scammed, fooled, and taken for rubes as trump throws lavish parties for the connected, corrupt, and the mega wealthy. As trump says, let them eat marble, I hope maga and the ambivalent see the error of their ways before America goes full tilt Russia.
And my advice to dems is to not shuffle your way toward fascism, but to embrace democracy and honest populism that helps the many and not just the few. Stop playing pattycake with the bully and be on the offense, always. No more defensive postures which have led to the disasters we currently face. I heard Rick Wilson, or maybe Stuart Stevens say, better to be strong and wrong than weak and right...
Thank you again for an excellent read.
Thank you for your comments. It is interesting that those "red" states were once strongly for real populism and Oklahoma early in the twentieth century had the highest per capita membership in the Socialist Party of Eugene Debs. The Western states were also strong for FDR and LBJ. As a congenital optimist, I like to think they can be won back to supporting their own interests after the realize that Trump is not "where it's at."
I am almost in tears from your essay, Professor McElvaine. I've watched this dismantling all my adult life and still people adhere and suffer. Americans are a sorry lot, to put it mildly. How do we even overcome? I know, "economic constituentionalism," exercised aggressively and kindly. Perfect. I so hope Mamdani wins today and by a very large margin.
The emergence of " Democratic Socialist Zohran Mamdani" why did you describe him this way? You know the uninformed boil at the word "socialist" Our government as a whole (until trump completely destroys it) has "Socialist" under pinnings ... What is Medicaid ,SNAP, Welfare ?( (you cannot ignore the "Corporate Welfare" crowd siphoning off money ) even Medicare but we pay into it all our working lives and boy do they want to keep our money now...I would be humiliated if I turned my back on people in need ...
The Dems experiment with the "center" has been a failure. Why would Republicans vote for "Republican Lite" when they can vote for Republicans? I think Americans would welcome a Nordic style social democracy, if only Dems can come up with the winning message for it. Instead, the powers that be have pigeon-holed the Party into this wishy washy stagnancy.
Montgomery County Ks ! In Coffeyville we vote for school board members etc… Every Vote counts! Go vote America!
Thanks for the article! It was very informative and helpful!
The problem for the Democratic Party is that it has become the 'everything else' party. Many people still think on a scale of liberal to conservative, but the issue today is autocracy versus real representative democracy. On the latter scale, one party could not represent both the mayors of Kansas City and New York City, but on this new scale of autocracy/democracy, why not? We just have to stop the purists from imposing their will across the board as the Republicans do. Instead of fighting over which ideology, we should embrace political diversity and regionalism as a feature instead of a civil war. The wants and needs of those two cities are not the same. In a country as vast as this, culture varies, which is why we are a collection of separate states. Something as simple as population density or ethnic diversity can impose completely different missions on governing.
The answer to Republicans is that we have for decades embraced socialism as in Social Security and Medicare. SNAP is each according to their need, which is a feature of communism. Wall Street is pure capitalism. America's success is due to not trying to fit one solution to everything; instead we use the best solution for each separate problem - at least we used to before Republicans turned politics into religious dogma. Perhaps that's why they can't distinguish their favorite religion from government and the First Amendment. We should reassure the country that the states still are laboratories of democracy, and therefore we do not intend to impose the New York experiment on the unwilling elsewhere. This is just a test. The subjects are willing by a majority vote. (For those pointing to the Soviet Union's failures, I must point out that Russia has always been an oligarchy and kleptocracy except for moments too short to take root despite claiming to be socialist or communist.)
Very thoughtful article. Got me to really connect some dots. Thank you for your work.
Andrew Cuomo is a dirtbag,Trump supports him because he recognizes a fellow dirtbag. And let’s not vote for Dems who trash other Dems….
I have three sets of Collected poems on my bookshelf: Robert Frost, Wallace Stevens, and William Butler Yeats. I found myself going back to the Yeats exactly as you said, and finding the quotations about the beast slouching towards Bethlehem and the winding gyres and the centre cannot hold because it just spoke to my heart. So many people view these times as apocalyptic. And no wonder. We might be witnessing the end of our Democratic Republic and with a dementia patient/ malignant narcissist holding the keys to the nuclear arsenal, we could literally be back as the old protest song said, “on the eve of destruction” (remember “nuclear winter?”)
This is an amazing article. Thank you Robert S. McElvaine for putting all the pieces together. The words we use to describe each side in the political realm are faulty. Words that drag us further apart while the middle ground is a suicide tract. Words that many of us don't even understand in a world that is run by those that just take and don't give. This was a needed history lesson that sure connected the dots. Thanks again. Take care.
Although I no longer live there, I was a New Yorker for more than 60 years. And probably too young to appreciate the senior Cuomo as much as I could have. But can honestly agree that Andrew sadly does not come close to his father. The last year of his governorship his true colors came out. Many I know referred to him as a thug.
Your essay perfectly captures the state of play on this election day. There is sizable minority in this country that would not mind a christofascist white supremacist theocracy. They rightly feel that they would do just fine under that kind of system. In fact, many red states already, de facto, have this system in place. The rest of us want to maintain a pluralistic constitutional democracy. Compromise between these two factions is not possible. As you indicate, what would it even look like. There can be no soft landing. The resulting conflict between these sides will not end well. The best we can hope for is an eventual split into two new nations. One that carries on the founding principles of this country so well expressed by Abraham Lincoln in his Gettysburg Address and later by FDR in his “Four Freedoms” speech. The other devolving into the kind of country that’s yours and mine worst nightmare.