Pitchfork Populism: Ten Political Forces That Shaped an Election and Continue to Change America

'A timely and truly fascinating deep dive into the unusual and often strange developments in the current American political system. The book explores whether traditional bipartisanship is even possible in the era of Trump, amid the political earthquake he and others have facilitated. As a long-term politician and former congressman from a state with a deep history of populism, I found myself captivated. This is an important read, given our nation’s often terrifying political climate.”

—Dan Glickman, senior fellow at the Bipartisan Policy Center in Washington, DC, executive director of the Aspen Institute Congressional Program, former Kansas congressman, and former US Secretary of Agriculture

“Bradford R. Kane has produced a cogent, reasoned, and contextualized description of how we got to this sorry place and how we might move past it. There’s hope!”
 
—Jonathan Alter, former Newsweek columnist, MSNBC political analyst, and New York Times–bestselling author of The Center Holds: Obama and His Enemies

“Depending on what side of the current political divide you find yourself, 2016 will mark either the year that the United States began its decline and fall or the moment when America was made ‘great again.’ Many books will yet be written in efforts to understand just what happened in 2016 and what it means. Bradford Kane has written a primer that will be necessary reading for anyone, today or in the future, wanting to understand this tumultuous time. But Kane’s book is more than this. Beautifully written in clear prose, it not only tells the story of how we got to this point in our history and what this juncture might bode for our future but, most urgently, how we might yet ensure the survival of the American Constitution, that great experiment in governing.”
 
—David L. Faigman, chancellor and dean, John F. Digardi Distinguished Professor of Law, University of California Hastings College of the Law

Autorentext

By Bradford R. Kane

Klappentext

A veteran political analyst examines the forces that led to the rise of the current form of populism and considers their continuing influence on the future of American politics.

What political, social, and cultural forces led to the election of President Donald Trump? Political analyst Bradford R. Kane explores ten dynamics of American politics and society that played a role in the 2016 presidential election and continue to exert an influence on current politics. The author examines both the present impact of the Trump presidency and the future trajectories of the trends that brought Trump to power.

Some of these dynamics have deep historical roots, such as the cultural divide between those who define our national identity in terms of rugged individualism versus those who emphasize community collectivism. The author notes that these opposing viewpoints helped craft our national identity as far back as the 1700s. He also considers the effect of changing demographics, such as the trend that points to the emergence of a new majority composed of combined minority groups, which will have a profound effect on community relations and politics.

Kane foresees a return to established policy processes and governing principles after the Trump presidency, as opposed to rule based on the president's personal interests. He anticipates greater empowerment of the electorate as more demographic groups are increasingly enfranchised. Kane also forecasts the potential impact of recent developments on the 2020 election and beyond. Other topics discussed are the role of the media, accountability, globalization, the future of bipartisanship, and more.

This astute analysis by a veteran government insider will help Americans understand recent events and provides a roadmap for navigating the future political landscape.

Leseprobe
Introduction: The PolitiQuake That Is Reshaping American Politics

The political earthquake of 2016 resulted from a convergence of political forces and trends that evolved over many years. They were based in demographics, propelled by previously dormant or disengaged constituencies, and aroused by archaic clarion calls that had been relegated to our country’s antiquated political past. The combined effect was a campaign that reawakened social, cultural, economic, and legal divisions that inflamed passions on both sides, and will continue to reverberate during Trump’s tenure.

The evolution of the ten trends and dynamics that will be discussed created the political environment on which Donald Trump capitalized. They are as deep-seated as our national identity, and as contemporary as our rapidly transforming media channels and challenges. They stem from the diverse racial and ethnic composition of the American people, and lead to increased engagement across the spectrum of constituencies in the political process. They reflect the workings of government and political campaigns, from the role of policy and principles, to the prospects for bipartisanship, and the impact of transparency and accountability. They include major shifts in public opinion on trade and globalization, and the roles of state and federal government. And they culminate in the voter predilections that led to Trump’s 2016 victory, which have been gravitating away from him steadily since then. 

Some of these political dynamics may have been overlooked or minimized in the past, which is at least one of the reasons why conventional wisdom did not envision a Trump victory. But their impact on the election’s outcome mandates that they can no longer be dismissed, negated, neglected, or ignored either during an election or in the process of governing. They are now vividly on display, as prominent indicators of the flow of American public life. People who voted for Trump did so for many reasons, ranging from their concern about the issues that Trump referenced, to their disenchantment with both political parties; and from their genuine affection toward Trump, to their genuine disaffection for Hillary Clinton. Each of these and other reasons are legitimate, and all Americans would benefit by understanding them.

At the same time, the forces that culminated in Trump’s victory are unlikely to permanently transform the electorate. The 2016 election was more of a “perfect storm”, in which an assortment of key variables converged at a unique moment, rather than a wholesale structural realignment of the electorate that has long-running or immutable consequences. The same dynamics that enabled Trump to win, and which drive his tone of governance, can also be harnessed to achieve different outcomes in the future, as long as they are consciously recognized and strategically managed. The pendulum of American politics has a history of swinging in one direction, being halted by the gravity of consequences and new political forces, and then swinging back along a different, sometimes unpredictable, course.It has become a national pastime to try to understand the 2016 election and its implications for policy and governance in the years ahead. Alongside lessons learned from the election, it will be useful to recognize the dynamics which evolved in recent years and contributed to the outcome, as well as new forces that will emerge and influence American life for the foreseeable future. 

Each of the forces that played out during the 2016 election had been gradually building for years. Some of the ten dynamics (e.g., regarding our national identity, racial and ethnic tensions, bipartisanship, and federalism) have deep roots and are the latest incarnation of debates and cultural challenges that date as far back as our country’s origins in the 1700s. Others (e.g., democratization of the political proces…