Here’s What Bernie Could Do in Power
From climate change to criminal justice and student debt: here’s what Bernie Sanders could do if he had executive office and mass popular support, but faced a hostile Congress.
19186 Articles by: Ryan Switzer
Ryan Switzer is a PhD candidate in sociology at Stockholm University. He researches right-wing politics in welfare states.
The Exercise of Power
The “class-struggle social democracy” of Bernie Sanders is exceedingly difficult to pull off. If he wins, he’ll face structural pressure to compromise: administering a capitalist state requires maintaining corporate profits. We’ll need to create our own pressure through strikes and protests.
Amazon and the Jobs Charade
Critics are blasting leftists like Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez for chasing Amazon away from New York City. But we have nothing to apologize for — it’s the Left that is fighting for unionized, well-paying jobs.
“I Was Proud and Humbled to Stand With Such Brave Educators”
Last week, Oakland charter school teachers took a brave step, joining striking public school teachers on the picket lines. Two teachers, one charter and one public, explain what it was like to organize side-by-side.
No More Steve Mnuchins
In a new book, Rebecca Burns and David Dyen document Steve Mnuchin’s charmed, care-free life of looting. The tragedy is, there’s more than one of him.
Spain’s Troubled Spring
Unable to pass its budget, Spain’s Socialist government is calling snap elections. But reactionary forces are on the rise in the country.
Worked to Death at FedEx
Recent workplace deaths at FedEx suggest a serious safety problem there. Yet Trump is still trying to confirm a FedEx executive for the most important worker safety position in the country.
Elizabeth Warren’s Childcare Proposal Should Be Better
Elizabeth Warren’s childcare proposal is a good start — but it needs to go much further and be a truly free program guaranteed as a social right.
The Wilderness Years
Splitters from Labour want to create a new centrist force in British politics. The Social Democratic Party of the 1980s offers plenty of reason to hope they’ll fail.
Ilhan Omar Is a Threat to US Empire
Progressive politicians like Ilhan Omar aren’t being attacked because they’re antisemitic. They’re being attacked because they threaten the bipartisan consensus on Israel and US empire.
“We’re Fighting a Mean-Spirited and Antidemocratic Attack on Public Education”
Oakland teachers aren’t just fighting for a living wage and better working conditions. They’re fighting against the closure of dozens of schools, which would pave the way for the privatization and destruction of public education.
Rojava Is Under Existential Threat
Rojava, the site of a remarkable peoples’ revolution, is on the brink of colonization and extermination. The international left must stand against it.
From Faculty to Factory
In 1990 Albania’s students were key to bringing down a decrepit regime. Today, they are fighting the order that replaced it.
Dead Center
The Labour Party defectors keep repeating the tired centrist refrain that the public is hungering for moderation. The whole history of the past generation shows otherwise.
A Season of Discontent
Three months since the gilets jaunes protesters first blockaded roads around France, the movement has created a crisis in Emmanuel Macron’s presidency — and one that’s due to last.
“I Love Chicago. I’m Gonna Fight to Stay Here.”
Jeanette Taylor is a community activist on Chicago’s South Side running for city council. In an interview, Taylor explains why she participated in a month-long hunger strike to reopen a school, how to fight inequality in the city, and her vision for a working-class Chicago.
Modern Monetary Theory Isn’t Helping
MMT is billed by its advocates as a radical new way to understand money and debt. But it’ll take more than a few keystrokes to change the economy.
Where Are They Now?
We went looking for our favorite Obama and Clinton campaign alums. We found them in corporate America.
The Hater Class
As long as the upper middle class exists, it’s going to be at best ambivalent about our program.
The Whitlam Coup
In 1975, the Queen’s loyal representative, governor-general John Kerr, decided he’d had enough of Australian social democracy.