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There have been two major reformations of the practice of American politics during my time in or near the arena. One was launched in 1980 by a movie actor whose lines were given to him by a coterie of wealthy backers and cynical political operatives. The other was detonated in 2016 by a reality-TV host with no experience in or knowledge of politics, acting virtually alone. (My concern here is with practical politics, not issues, so I am laying aside for the moment such things as the obvious impact of the Civil Rights movement.)
Prior to 1980, politics was widely defined as “the art of the possible, the attainable — the art of the next best,” in the words of Germany’s Iron Chancellor, Otto von Bismark. Political combatants were expected to go into the committee room or the legislative assembly and hammer out their differences, giving a little here, taking a little there until the result was not perfect, in anyone’s view, but was acceptable in everyone’s view. The focus was on what needed to be done, and how to get it done.
It was hard work. And both the reformations I refer to had to do with professional politicians finding ways to keep their offices but avoid the hard work.
The dogma of the Reaganauts who took over the presidency in 1981, as he expressed it in his first inaugural address, was that government is not the solution for the many problems plaguing the public welfare, “government is the problem.” If it weren’t for taxes and government regulations, everything would be fine. When it occurred to someone to point out that the only people being restrained by taxes or government regulations were the very rich, the answer was “trickle-down economics” — let the rich get richer and money will trickle down to you. Eventually.
As the saying went at the time, Republicans run for office claiming that government doesn’t work. Then they get elected and prove it. (See Texas, winter storm of 2021.)
Attacking the government for its failures was far easier than figuring out how to solve the problems, and it proved to be wickedly effective politics, especially as practiced by people so intent on winning at all costs that they were willing to indulge in lies and character assasssination to get their hands on the prize. The consultants behind Reagan and his successors — people such as Lee Atwarer, Paul Manafort and Roger Stone — transformed politics from a well-mannered debate to a no-holds-barred cage fight.
They were so good at it, and won so many elections, that they intimidated an entire generation of Democrats, who convinced themselves that the only way to win an election was to run as Republican Lite. The most successful Democratic president of the era, Bill Clinton, mostly followed a Republican playbook. He achieved welfare reform (“the end of welfare as we know it”); he achieved a balanced budget (the Republicans used to care about that); the Clinton crime bill read like a Republican rally (“lock them up”); and when he tried to achieve a Democratic objective, single-payer universal health care insurance, as the country song says, they stomped that sucker flat.
We’ve had 40 years of reducing taxes, privatizing government functions, deregulating essential industries, calling each other names and waiting for wealth to trickle down. And then a deadbeat billionaire named Donald Trump, who until 2015 had never been involved with a political campaign or party, showed politicians how their lives could be made even easier.
The Trump revolution consisted of the rise of what one of his sycophants called “alternative facts.” If something happens you don’t like, or you are faced with a problem that demands work, you simply deny its existence. The climate’s changing drastically and we have to do something? No it’s not. A serious pandemic threatens to kill a half million of us? No it doesn’t. You lost the election? No I didn’t.
What could be easier? Imagine the world as you want it to be, and proclaim it to be so. Whatever exists in the world that you don’t like, proclaim that it does not exist. You don’t have to look anything up or figure anything out. Politics in America is now the perfect profession for stupid, ignorant people with no work ethic and no empathy.
The rest of us are surely doomed.
I ran across this one yesterday. 93% of Americans are now in favor of a Federal Jobs Guarantee!
The 93% hits keep coming! The Socialism juggernaut has finally* arrived! Giggle.
What a tragedy. The American people figured it out too late. It took a pandemic, it took seeing conjured trillions being thrown about to everyone but them to realize their government has no interest whatsoever in their welfare.
And never will.
“Politics in America is now the perfect profession for stupid, ignorant people with no work ethic and no empathy.”
Couldn’t agree more. With everything. Excellent piece Tom.
*Been waiting 50 years for it!
As to Pres. Trump what I tell people is this. He is a two horse act. He is a RE builder. He builds great buildings. Nobody complains about the buildings. He hires one to dig the hole, another to install the foundation, and then the next and the next. Great training for rebuilding our USA.
He is also a RE Salesman. In talking to clergymen, they say the worst lying people are the life insurance sales people and the RE sales people.
I did a little RE sales to try to get back the commissions I paid on a house purchase. You work had on one sale and get nothing and then make one phone call and get a check. Not my act. I will say the little lady who is a member of everything in town and brings in the ‘for sale customers’ and gets 1/4 of the bosses commission is one lucky sole. Never has to tell the bold face lies or even the omissions of vital info which I consider the same as bold face lies. RE sales have a limited amount of items to sell and slander the oppositions items. Anything go’s when keeping your name in the sales mix!
Many politicians are only good at getting elected and know nothing else. We are getting very technical and few have the engineering minds to keep up with the advances that are needed.
I will be very happy when the USA has more strong party’s as older countries have, not just two.
Pres. Trumps good points far outweigh the poor ones!
Arnie Allison
…and it all started because indoctrination obfuscated the underlying reasons for past prosperity.
Add in pinch of insidious religious entrenchment and you’ve got yourself a magnificently compounded problem; an exquisite clusterfuck.
My generation is probably the last one to remember the “compromise” politics you describe, as well as the general expectation that elected representatives were supposed to work for the good of their constituents and society in general. (Not to mention being qualified for the job.) Money and identity politics changed all that, and this institutional memory is rapidly dying out. Even the young progressives are all “FIGHT! FIGHT!”
I came to the conclusion a long time ago the the country is too big and varied for federal governance, yet the feds never want to give up power. Add on layers of complexity, and it’s no wonder we’re ungovernable.
Well said.
Since 1945 our central unifying theme as a nation, was defeating communism. Once the Cold War ended we had nothing keep this big, sprawling country full of hopes and contradictions all moving in the same direction and the whole shit show started to fall apart. Given 240 years of national momentum, it’s taken a few decades to do so, but we’re almost there.
Since the end of WWII, our central unifying theme as a nation was defeating communism. Once the Cold War ended we had nothing much to keep this big, sprawling country full of hopes and contradictions all moving in the same direction and the whole shit show started to fall apart. Given 240 years of national momentum, it’s taken a few decades to do so, but we’re almost there.
As always, Mr. Lewis, Your superb knowledge of subjects continues to amaze me. Thanks so much.
What is there to say other than that our society became utterly consumed by its narcissistic tendencies?
You can ignore reality.
But you cannot ignore the consequences of ignoring reality.