New York shows how Democrat-run cities & states contribute to the rise of Trump

Summary;  Slowly Americans begin to see the rise of Right’s new populists — such as Trump, Rubio, and Cruz — is more than a flash-in-the-pan revolt before the conservatives accept their designated leaders (as the Democrats have accepted the elderly Hillary). A few on the Left have begun to realize that the Left has some responsibility for this. They deserve attention amidst the pointless chatter about the 2016 races. Such as those asking about the Dems’ often bad (sometimes horrifically so) management of the cities and States they control.  {1st of 2 posts today.}

Excerpt from “What’s the Matter With New York?“

By Zephyr Teachout (Assoc Prof of Law, Fordham)

“The state with one of the richest progressive traditions has the highest inequality and the most segregated schools, not to mention a tax code that allows hedge funders to get away with murder.”

In his extraordinary book, What’s the Matter with Kansas?: How Conservatives Won the Heart of America, Tom Frank asked why blue-collar workers in his home state repeatedly voted against their own economic interest, casting ballots in favor of Republican policies that favored the rich and powerful.

You could as easily ask, “What’s the Matter with New York?” But here it’s a different mystery, although with just as devastating consequences. In the state with one of the richest progressive traditions, we have the highest inequality and the most segregated schools, and the tax code allows hedge funders to get away with murder, extracting cash from the poor and middle class New Yorkers because they can.

Because of the extraordinary amount of money involved, the political pathologies of the country are all exaggerated in New York State. In an accelerating, out of control, downward spiral, the income inequality here begets political inequality (which also leads to lower voter turnout), which begets further income inequality which begets more political inequality and on and on.

And yet it is an overwhelming Democratic state — twice as many Democrats as Republicans.

Voters support public infrastructure. They support paying for public schools. They support progressive taxation. Historically, New York has been an innovator and leader in anti-corruption efforts and populist, progressive reform. From the outside — if you’re a Democrat in North Carolina or Ohio — it may sound like a great place to care about decent politics.

But in practice, it’s a mess. We have one of the most profoundly corrupt states in the country, no matter how you measure or think about it. And that corruption goes deep …

What’s the matter with New York? For starters, it is not that voters don’t care about issues, they simply don’t vote. …

—— Read the full essay! ——

About the author

Zephyr Teachout is an Associate Professor of Law at Fordham University. She ran for the Democratic Party nomination of Governor of New York in 2014, losing to incumbent Governor Cuomo. In July 2015 she was named as CEO and Board chair for the US-based anti-corruption nonprofit Mayday PAC after its string of electoral failures (due to its leaders’ complete misreading of the American public). See her Wikipedia entry for more information.

See her book Corruption in America: From Benjamin Franklin’s Snuff Box to Citizens United. See its Introduction here.

Other posts about the new populism

1. From August: The Donald Trump revolution, dismissed as all revolts are in the beginning.
2. Background: Scary lessons for America from pre-revolutionary France.
3. Donald Trump leads us back to the future, to the dark days of US history.
4. A New America arises, perhaps with Trump as its first leader.
5. Two scary graphs about the rise of Donald. Fear fascism. Act now.
6. Look to the Left to see the force powering Trump and Carson.
7. The numbers about immigration that fuel Trump’s campaign.
8. New York shows how Democrat-run cities & states contribute to the rise of Trump.
9. Good news: we begin to see that we are sliding towards fascism.
10. Next phase of the Trump revolution: rise of the new populism.
11. Important: Trump’s hope: a recession might put him in the White House.
12. The four keys to a possible Trump victory.

For More Information

For another perspective on the causes of the new populism see “The Revolt of the Anxious Class” by Robert Reich — “Most Americans are good people, not bigots or racists. They work hard and they have a strong sense of fairness. But their world has been slowly coming apart. And they’re scared and fed up.”

If you liked this post, like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter. See all posts about the right wing of America’s political spectrum, about ways to reform our politics, and especially this about the bipartisan consensus that rules America: The good news: America’s politics are neither polarized nor dysfunctional. That’s also the bad news.