What is Populism?

Populism is a word that is commonly used today to describe political trends across the globe. It is not a new concept and has existed throughout the history of human society. Populism appears under specific circumstances and acts as a warning sign of problems in a political system.

Historian Michael Kazin defines populism as “a language whose speakers conceive of ordinary people as a noble assemblage not bounded narrowly by class; view their elite opponents as self-serving and undemocratic; and seek to mobilize the former against the latter”.

In other words, when government fails to meet the needs of a group or groups, within the society, a reaction will appear that opposes the government. Populism on the Left is different than populism on the Right. Left-wing populists take the side of the people against an elite group or the establishment. Their energy comes from the common man opposing the elites. Right-wing populists take the side of the common man against elites they accuse of favoring a third group.

In the last decade and a half, a populist movement emerged in America when white men became frustrated by the federal government’s lack of interest in addressing their concerns. The media commonly report that the movement is driven by blue collar workers but the constituency is actually much broader than that. The group also includes evangelical men, men over 50, men earning at least $ 50,000 per year, and non-college educated men.

White men in America feel that all of the other identity groups are ahead of them in line: women, African-Americans, Hispanic, Gays, immigrants, etc. They see the other groups receiving attention and benefits from the government they have no access to. In addition, the radical Left’s attack on “white man’s privilege” ignores the important role white men have played in building our country.

In recent decades, post-industrial societies have embraced a neoliberal agenda of free movement of capital and labor to achieve prosperity. This view supports increased immigration as a way to adapt to changes in labor requirements. In the United States, both parties supported free trade deals. These policies impacted white men, especially after the Great Recession, when the housing bust destroyed Americans most important asset – the equity in their homes. The loss of asset value and the risk of job loss due to the immigrant pool and increased automation has caused the reaction against the government.

Donald Trump is the first populist candidate, in American history, to be elected president. He sailed through the nomination process by beating back a large group of establishment candidates who didn’t understand the populist wave. He won the election by holding the Republican base and using populist rhetoric to convince white men to vote for him. His slogan of “make America great again” suggested the renewal of a time before identity politics and political correctness began to dominate the American cultural narrative.

Populist movements are temporary, exhibiting an emotional response from the electorate that eventually burns out. These movements may or may not achieve their objectives, depending on whether the practical demands of implementing programs that fix the problem are achievable. Often, populist demands are co-opted by the major parties as attempts to entice the constituencies to join their ideology. As we saw in 2016, adding the populist constituency to the votes of one of the major parties can win an election.

Oddly, with less than a year to go before the 2020 election, the Democrats don’t seem to be addressing their problem with white men. Is it possible that the most radical elements of the Left are opposed to that effort because it would compromise their narrative?