Doom and Gloom Democrats

Democrats Learned to Love Class Dealignment

The neoliberal economic program embraced by the Clinton-era Democratic Party alienated many working-class voters. Democrats responded by reorienting their electoral strategy toward professional-class voters, accelerating workers’ departure from the party.

Once More, With Feeling: America Must Abolish the Electoral College

Whatever the final outcome of the vote, there has rarely been a more vital moment to champion democracy and majority rule. That means abolishing the Electoral College.

Organizing the Void

The new left in Europe and North America hasn’t made the transition from being a symptom of democratic crisis to offering an effective cure for it.

Can I Talk to a Manager?

Liberals believe in a society ordered like a restaurant: some eat, some serve, and there is a manager to keep it all going.

Populism Belongs to the Left

In an interview, writer Thomas Frank discusses how populism brought together workers, farmers, and all those struggling against the wealthy for a more egalitarian society — and why that’s made it a dirty word for the elite, both in the 1890s and today.

Inside the Latest Plan to “Bankrupt” and Privatize Social Security

President Donald Trump’s motivation behind a payroll tax holiday is not to help families through this crisis, but to set the stage for devastating cuts to Medicare and Social Security. And Democrats might end up helping him.

The Good, Bad, and Extremely Ugly of the 2020 Election

Looking beyond Joe Biden’s unexpectedly modest victory, the 2020 election was a historic failure for the Democratic Party. On the other hand, despite some painful hitches coming out of this campaign season, the Left has reason to be hopeful.

Donald Trump Being Prosecuted for His Crimes Is Good, Actually

Donald Trump’s apologists argue that his indictment for conspiring to overturn the 2020 presidential election is overreach. They’re wrong. Presidents and ex-presidents shouldn’t be above the law.

We Don’t Need George W. Bush Telling Us How to “Protect Democracy”

Earlier this month, presidential centers representing 13 former presidents put out a letter calling for Americans to “protect democracy,” in an implicit rebuke of Donald Trump. Given past presidents’ own assaults on democracy, it’s a hard pill to swallow.

No Easy Answers, Just Bad History

A Vox writer sets out to prove social-democratic policies aided the far right. He fails.

QAnon Will Not Be Leaving Us Anytime Soon

Will Sommer, author of the new book Trust the Plan: The Rise of QAnon and the Conspiracy That Unhinged America, explains where QAnon came from, why it isn’t going away anytime soon, and how material deprivation helps drive conspiracy theories.

Engines of Solidarity

The struggle against Trump must be powered by the fight for generous, universal, and visible social programs.

The Groypers’ Battle Within the GOP

As Donald Trump takes office, various factions within the GOP are vying to assert their dominance. Among them are the “Groypers,” the furthest-right fringe of Trump’s coalition, who want the party to adopt an overtly white nationalist agenda.

Donald Trump and the GOP Are Trying to Steal the Election

Donald Trump and the Republican Party are trying to stop ballots from being counted by flooding the courts with lawsuits and sowing doubts about mail-in ballots. We can’t let them steal this election.

Understanding the Immigrant Swing Toward Trump

Liberal pundits have puzzled over increasing support for Trump by immigrants and people of color. To understand the trend, we should look to economic issues and the way institutions like unions and churches affect political socialization.

After Donald Trump, the Last Thing We Need Is Unity

Joe Biden has long prized bipartisanship above all, and some of his early actions indicate he simply wants to restore the country to its pre-Trump form. That would be a disaster.

Joe Biden and the Democrats Will Pay a Heavy Price for Betraying Young Voters

The Biden administration has reneged on key promises that candidate Biden used to entice younger voters to turn out for him in 2020. Surprise: his approval ratings with the young are now in free fall.

Staring Into the Trumpian Abyss

We are about to be in for a long period of suffering in American and global politics at the hands of a deranged, reactionary president who will be up against little in the way of an opposition party.

You Can Thank George W. Bush’s War on Terror for Donald Trump

The Bush administration’s war on terror meted out unthinkable violence in the Middle East while imposing an atmosphere of repression and nativism at home. It was the perfectly malignant petri dish for helping produce Donald Trump.