Lecture 13.1

The Populist Backlash in the West

Emmanuel Teitelbaum

The Origins of Populism

A political movement that champions the people against the establishment
Left-wing populism: dyadic and vertical, mobilized along class lines
- Government/elites have forgotten about the ordinary people
- “Ordinary people” could be the middle class or the poor, depending on the country or region
Right-wing populism: triadic and horizontal, mobilized along class and ethnic lines
- Government/elites have forgotten about the ordinary people in the racial or ethnic majority
- Attacks establishment for siphoning resources to immigrants and minorities
Crucially, populists operate inside of a democratic system
- As opposed to fascists or left-wing extremists in Europe or Latin America

Reaction to changes in the economy (and immigration)
Often spurred by laissez-faire economic policies that benefit the rich
Frequently the long-term result of economic crisis (1870s-1880s, 1929, late-1970s, 2008, etc.)
- Populists accuse mainstream parties of ignoring crisis altogether, not addressing the root causes of the crisis, or selling out ordinary voters in order to resolve crisis

Most left-wing populist movements demand government intervention that will reduce inequality and restore the middle class
But populist demands can be coupled with demands to get the government out of the economy
- Usually a component of right-wing populist groups
- The government “distorts” the economy by taxing wealth and giving it to poor minorities
- Or to middle class bureaucrats

Birthplace of neoliberalism
- Home of “Washington Consensus”
Reaction to competitive challenges faced by U.S. business starting in the 1970s
- Factories in Western Europe and Japan
- Steel production throughout Asia
- Textile production in developing countries

People’s Party in the U.S. (1890s)
- Formed by members of Kansas Farmers’ Alliance and Knights of Labor
- Reaction to Grover Cleveland and “robber baron” capitalism of 19th century
Grew out of farm revolt of 1870s and 1880s
- Steep fall in agricultural prices
- Aggravated by increased transportation costs
  - Railroad monopolies

Saw themselves as representing people vs. elites
- People = farmers and workers
- Elites = capitalists, speculators and mainstream parties
Won lots of seats in 1894 but was coopted by mainstream parties in subsequent years

George Wallace
- Governor of Alabama (four terms)
- Government “full of rich people” who wanted to give their money to the poor
- Led conservative backlash to Civil Rights Act, Voting Rights Act and racial integration
- Framed opposition to integration as defense against “big government”

Reaction to rise of neoliberalism
Ross Perot
- Attacked trade deals and distortion of politics by big business
- Ross Perot’s Giant Sucking Sound
Pat Buchanan
- Also attacked trade deals, but also immigration

Tea Party
- Attacked Obama’s mortgage bailouts, Obamacare and illegal immigration
Occupy Wall Street
- Attacked Obama for not being tough enough on bankers, focused on inequality
- The Occupy Movement

Trump
- Prior to running in 2016, he was a moderate on social issues (like abortion) and social spending (supported idea of universal health care)
- Always opposed free trade and immigration
Sanders
- Main target is the “billionaire class” (the 1%)
- Advocates Nordic-style social democracy as an antidote to rising inequality

Was Trump’s support more due to a reaction to neolibarlism or to immigration?
Why was Bernie Sanders, who focused on inequality and the one percent, ultimately less successful than Trump as a presidential candidate?
In your discussion, reference the chapter you read from Judis’s The Populist Explosion