At the Guardian Al From makes a pitch for the Democratic Party to reconsider the Third Way strategy rather than taking the populist turn suggested by the rise of Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren:
Restoring upward mobility and reducing inequality should be central to the Democratic agenda. But a populist approach is not the way to achieve that. Senator Paul Tsongas once said to me: “The problem with the Democratic party is that we spend so much time worrying about passing out the golden eggs that we forget to worry about the health of the goose.â€
Simply put, redistribution doesn’t work if there is nothing to redistribute. This economic growth can only be generated by a robust private sector, generating high-skill, high-wage jobs and programs that equip every American with the opportunities and skills that he or she needs to get ahead.
One problem is that when every scrap of incremental growth is absorbed by greedy professionals it’s no better for average people than when that growth is absorbed by the top .1% and that’s what the Third Way has come to stand for.
I see Mr. From’s plea as a mad scramble for relevance. Now that Hillary Clinton has been defeated with the Clintonistas not far behind, what role is there for them in a post-Clinton Democratic Party?
Then do we all get ponies?
I think Dave’s question was how now does the Democratic party gain relevance. After eight years of lofty rhetoric offering hope, hope and change, a new post racial society, a new era where elegance replaces violence, even with a bit of Camelot thrown in, people were understandably disappointed. It didn’t happen, couldn’t happen.
Obama’s act was sure to fall flat on its face. Trump capitalized on this and is soon to be President. Pray for him.
As for the Democratic party, what they need is a new generation of voters and a new charismatic torch-bearer to carry the same old worn out torch.
America doesn’t fail people, they fail themselves and don’t want to hear it.
As an aside, amusing to me, Trump turned the Alinskyites tactics back on them and won. They should’ve seen it coming.