In analyzing the election results this past Tuesday, both in New York and around the country, the one trend to be seen, was that when groups of people rallied behind a candidate that candidate one. This could be called the return of populism, but in many races the result was not for the people. Some of the populism, ended up in results where if the candidates get elected in November it will consolidate the rule of the elites. In many cases it was fake populism to rile people up to work against their best interests. There were cases, particularly in some New York races, where the will of the people elected someone who will fight for them.
In the race for Attorney General, Eric Schneiderman united the progressive coalition. Made up of liberals, minorities, good government groups, unions and others of the same ilk, this coalition made a cause of Eric’s campaign. In a race with four men against one woman, this coalition of support made Eric stand out from the crowd. Eric’s progressive record and years of activism and work as a reformer, made him the candidate of choice of this coalition. The group of supporters and their passion for Eric’s campaign grew as the campaign went along and led him to victory. Somebody at the victory party told me she had never received more emails from friends as she did on behalf of Eric. Other populist victories in New York, included the people finally saying they had enough of Pedro Espada and HiramMonserratte. The people want elected officials who will work in the people’s interest, not their own self-interest.
On the other hand there is Carl Paladino. Riding the Tea Party wave, he has railed against taxes and government spending. However, instead of arguing for tax cuts for the low and middle class he wants regressive tax cuts that prmarily benefit the wealthy. Meanwhile he would cut 20% of government services that the majority of people need. Paul Krugman called this the “Rage of the Rich” in today’s New York Times. He has got the people believing they are part of a populist movement, when in the end the policies he will enact if elected will mostly benefit those in the highest income brackets. This is the same on the national level, where the Tea Partiers have rallied as a popular movement to preserve the Bush Tax Cuts that benefit the upper 2% of the populations. Instead of populism this is popular manipulation, particularly when you read that the Tea Party Express was started by a Republican Political Consultant.
