The Populist Pundits
Krystal Ball and Saagar Enjeti’s The Populist’s Guide to 2020 offers a powerful rebuke to liberal elitism and ruling class neglect. But only one of its authors has the solutions it will take to remake our unequal society.
19643 Articles by: Opal Lee
Opal Lee is a writer.
Joe Biden Helped Pull the Democrats to the Right
Ronald Reagan successfully dismantled the New Deal order and pulled liberals rightward. Reagan transformed the Democratic Party — and he was aided by Democrats like Joe Biden.
The Robots Are Not Coming for All of Our Jobs
There’s lots of breathless talk these days about robots replacing all of our jobs. But if you look at the data, there’s little indication that’s actually going to happen.
From the United States to a Socialist Germany That Never Was
The Westemigranten were communists who fled Nazism for the United States, only to resettle in East Germany after 1945. Their biographies are a monument to the hopes of the twentieth-century communist movement — and how they were disappointed by the reality of the postwar Eastern Bloc.
After the Nevada Blowout, It’s Bernie’s Party Now
Bernie Sanders’s decisive victory in Nevada today shows that he has a working-class base committed to fundamentally transforming our radically unequal political and economic system. He’s on his way to not just the nomination, but the White House.
The Making of Joe Biden’s Conservative Democratic Politics
Joe Biden’s early years in politics established a pattern he would follow for the rest of his career: champion progressive values at select times to select audiences while on the whole running away from any association with such values.
“It’s the Working Class That Creates the Wealth in This Country”
Newly endorsed by AOC’s Courage to Change PAC, democratic socialist Samelys López is running to represent the South Bronx, fight for affordable housing — and take on the Democratic establishment in the process.
Deporting Immigrants to Their Death Is Unconscionable
When the United States sends Salvadoran immigrants back to their home country, it’s sending them back to the very violence they were trying to flee — and that the United States itself helped create.
Bernie’s Democratic Socialism Is a Strength, Not a Weakness
All the best things in America were once decried as socialist: Medicare, unions, Social Security. Bernie’s democratic socialism is his strength, and we shouldn’t shy away from talking about it.
Superyachts and the Super Rich
Superyachts, like the billionaire class, shouldn’t exist. We need to institute a global wealth tax, shut down tax havens, and, yes, take their boats.
Right-Wing Social Democrats for Coal
The Australian Labor Party’s right wing has a new faction, the “Otis Group,” that uses the language of jobs and economic prosperity to pit working-class interests against the fight to stop global warming. It’s a cynical strategy that won’t pay off — and will continue cooking the planet in the meantime.
The Internal Emails Big Tech Executives Never Wanted You to See
Congress is demanding that Silicon Valley companies release their internal emails. If history is any guide, we know what to expect: revelations of anti-worker scheming, corporate power plays, and all sorts of other malevolent machinations.
Michael Bloomberg’s Threat to Democracy Cannot Be Exaggerated
By next month, Mike Bloomberg will likely have spent more money than the entire Hillary Clinton campaign spent through Election Day — and hers was the most expensive in history. If he isn’t stopped now, Bloomberg will permanently change US politics in profound and frightening ways.
Call: Send Us Your Health Care Horror Stories
Jacobin is launching a column that showcases how health care in the United States affects the lives of ordinary Americans. We are asking for personal essays on your experience with health care — whether as a patient, a loved one, a doctor, or a nurse.
“Liberals Speak Up for the Poor, But Never Let the Poor Speak for Themselves”
Unite’s general secretary, Len McCluskey, told us why all working people should be in trade unions — and why we can’t rely on anyone else to speak up on our behalf.
We Need to Learn Lessons From Labour’s “Antisemitism Crisis”
The British Labour Party botched its response to false allegations of rampant antisemitism among the party membership. Left-wing movements in other countries can’t make the same mistake.
Democratic Party Elites Are Ready to Steal the Nomination From Bernie Sanders. We Need a Plan to Stop Them.
Wednesday’s debate confirmed it: Democratic elites are willing to steal the nomination from Bernie Sanders at this summer’s convention in Milwaukee even if he has the most delegates, and no other candidate will lift a finger. We need a plan to stop them.
Michael Bloomberg Has Six Times More Wealth Than the Bottom 125 Million Americans
Michael Bloomberg is so rich it’s hard to comprehend. So here’s a comparison: the bottom 38 percent of US households have a collective net worth of $11 billion. Bloomberg alone has $64 billion.
Michael Bloomberg Isn’t Going Anywhere
As badly as Michael Bloomberg performed in his first debate last night — and he was gloriously bad — he’s not going anywhere. Even if he doesn’t get a nomination, his billions will be a massive weapon for Bernie Sanders opponents within and outside the Democratic Party.
Ending “Endless War” Can’t Just Become an Empty Slogan
A consensus is growing that the worldwide post–9/11 “forever war” must come to an end. But that goal is in danger of being watered down to the point of meaninglessness by politicians and think tanks still in thrall to the national security state and its war on terror.