The New Populist King
Nov 29th, 2007 at 8:11 am by Susie
Joshua Holland has a good piece today on Ron Paul. You should read the entire article, because he thoughtfully and carefully weighs the pros and cons, but this sums up Paul’s appeal in a nutshell:
But more than that, the typical analysis misses the fundamental dynamic driving Paul’s popularity. His campaign occupies that political space where right- and left-populism intersect, and that space exists only because there are significant areas of national policy where neither of the two parties, nor any of the “mainstream” candidates, have shown any willingness to represent their constituents.
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He fills a need niche in the political landscape. So did Microsoft way back then. We could do worse (and have), I’m afraid.
Ron Paul and Dennis Kucinich–the most extreme candidates in their respective parties, and the ones I could vote for without feeling dirty.
Sorry, but Dennis K lost my vote with this latest tack.
Ron Paul may be anitwar, but he’s also anti-labor, caters to White supremacists and nativist xenophobes who attack Black and Brown people as “illegals”, and he’s an economic reactionary who would destroy every good social program that has benefited working and poor people
Thanks, but I’ll just hold out for Cynthia McKinney and the Greens this year. I’d rather my progressive spoiler actualy BE progressive and NOT cave in to the Far Right.
Anthony
Anthony–
In the interest of full disclosure, Ron Paul is vehemently anti-corporate power. By simplifying him as “anti-labor” you do truth a disservice.
I’m also getting tired of the myth that he “caters” to white supremacists. He has openly and consistently spoken out against racism and their ugly adherents as the worst form of collectivism. He’s about as racist as I am (my wife is African-American).
As far as being a “nativist xenophobe” for wanting to enforce the immigration laws as they exist, have you considered that the low-income “Black and Brown people” are receiving compromised assistance due to the drain on illegal immigrants? Have you spoken with them on their opinion on illegal immigration? I live in a working class neighborhood, and the “black and brown” people are overwhelmingly NOT in favor of amnesty. I would also ask you to inquire who benefits the most by having cheap, unregulated labor: Big Business and Corporate Power. It’s hard to reconcile that, is it not? Things have gotten complicated since 1968, as much as you or I wish they have not. Time to break out of the left wing/right wing scripted dichotomy, and vote for the candidate who isn’t owned by any existing power group.
But if even Dennis Kucinich isn’t left enough for you (it may interest people to know that he and Ron Paul are good friends, and Mr. Paul has hinted that Mr. Kucinich would be considered as a running mate), then maybe there is no changing your mind. But for every other open-minded, critical-thinking concerned American out there, I would ask you to ignore the shrill scare-mongering which slanders Ron Paul and his supporters, and research his policies on your own.