It’s no secret that many Americans are susceptible to the many outrageous lies being spread by the Republicans. They have invested years and billions of dollars in establishing them in the minds of voters. Some of those deceptions have been bipartisan in nature. Such as a blind fealty to the capitalism system and a belief that Wall Street interests can solve all our problems. Or the failure to link the military budget to poverty and war. Or unemployment as a direct result of capitalist priorities. Or the reality that racism is systemic in virtually all of our institutions.
Bipartisanship died in any practical sense with Trump’s election
To win the information wars it must be recognized that as painful as this is, it is a fact that the Republicans have now convinced millions of Americans that Democrats are their enemy, and that government is evil unless it is in Republican hands. Rather than embracing capitalism at every chance, the Democratic Party needs to re-examine its coziness to corporate interests and advocate major reforms. And distinguish between Social Democracy and Socialism.
While I myself am avowedly a socialist, I’m not expecting the Democratic Party to embrace the latter. We cannot and should not force such a system upon those who neither desire it nor presently want it. But we can choose to be a progressive party. And admit that poorly regulated capitalism itself is responsible for many of our problems. And that nothing fundamental will ever change without serious structural reform.
The ineffectiveness of Democratic propaganda in the information wars arose in part from historic bipartisanship. It was not that long ago that elements in both parties supported the Vietnam and Iraq wars, J. Edgar Hoover’s FBI campaign against MLK and the Black Panthers, and the military invasions of Cuba (failed), the Dominican Republic, Chile (by proxy) and Granada. The same goes for Bill Clinton’s opportunist and mostly negative and pandering campaign when he promised to “end welfare as we know it.” Taxes for the upper classes and corporations have also fallen steadily since WWII under both parties.
Now that the Republicans, with megabucks backing for right wing capitalist sources, have chosen to back fascism and dictatorship, it's time for some fundamental and progressive changes in the Democratic Party. Or risk losing the country to fascism. I don’t think you can successfully take on the Republican propaganda machine, aided by the corporate run media, without fundamental change. And without investing in developing a rival mass apparatus to counter the Republicans.
Truth be told, both parties for years have suffered from very low approval ratings and a deadlocked Congressional situation, often due to a refusal to eliminate the filibuster Senate rule. Millions on both the left and right are alienated from the political system, which they see as incapable of problem solving. This has greatly helped set the stage for a Trump like dictator. The thinking behind much of Trump’s support can be traced to three factors. 1 — The success of Trump’s racial scapegoating of people of color and immigrants for the nation’s problems. 2 — Their alienation from our democratic Constitutional system which they see often fails to accomplish meaningful legislation. And 3 — The belief than only an authoritarian dictator can bring about change and progress. I think it’s a mistake not to consider 2 and 3 as also partly responsible for American fascism.
Change is on the National Agenda, for Better or Worse.
My intent is not to push gloom and doom. The mass demonstrations of 2020 involving Black Lives Matter and anti-Trumpers helped elect Biden, who in turn put forward a decent Congressional legislative program. Much of it, however, will not succeed given the balance of power in Congress and the lack of ability to repeal the filibuster. It was however good news to hear that a large and diverse coalition is being formed to support Build Back Better. Much more coalition work needs to be done, along with a willingness to use Biden’s greatest weapon: the millions who took to the streets in 2020. They need to be put into motion again to defend our Constitutional government, warts and all. Fascism will only triumph is we fail to rally the country to oppose it. I believe we have the numbers, but passivity and practicing the same old politics and praising poorly regulated capitalism will be our undoing. Change is on the national agenda, like it or not. Either it will be a change to full blown fascism, or a change to progressivism. The middle ground has disappeared.