Three Cheers for Biden’s Progressive Populism
The current occupant of the White House and presumptive Democratic nominee acquitted himself well during his State of the Union address and laid out a progressive-populist domestic program that I can get behind.
Yes, it was a campaign speech. And it had its share of throw-away lines. It also was more substantive than a typical campaign speech. Listen (or read) it closely, and you’ll hear a long list of accomplishments (and they are impressive) as well as plans to expand upon those accomplishments.
Even if we weren’t faced with an existential crisis — — the possible end of our democracy as we know it, if Biden’s predecessor gets another crack at the job — — these accomplishments would demand our respect. Given how unacceptable the presumptive Republican nominee is, these accomplishments, and plans to build upon them, should offer us some comfort. We don’t have to settle for the lesser of two evils.
The First Term Accomplishments
Notable first-term accomplishments include the following: Pandemic relief that eased us out of a looming recession — including a child tax credit that lifted millions of families out of poverty; infrastructure projects that are investing in communities and workers; climate-friendly initiatives that represent the biggest push to address the climate crisis that we’ve ever seen (It’s not nearly enough. But it is something we can build upon); Expanded support for care work (another thing we must build upon); taking on Big Pharma and negotiating prescription drug prices; initiatives on education, including expanded access to pre-school and student loan relief; investments targeted at good jobs for workers without college degrees; executive orders to blunt the effects of Roe’s demise; and more.
A major effort most of us can really get behind involves rolling back some of the tax breaks that Biden’s predecessor gave to the super-rich and big corporations and using these to pay for needed investments in American communities and workers. This is where I found myself cheering. Biden’s tough talk about how unfair the tax codes are and what he’d like to do in his second term to make the rich pay their share gladdened my heart. At that moment, he reminded me of FDR.
Biden rightly touted economic growth that has exceeded expectations, with recognition that a lot of the initiatives take time to reach people. Can the President take full credit for this economic growth, and the soft landing? No, but his Administration certainly deserves credit for smart public investments and sound stewardship. As Biden put it: this is the “greatest comeback story never told.”
These did not feel like just another laundry-list of accomplishments. They seemed more like the stepping-stones for achieving bigger and better reforms. And they were framed as part of a larger vision, or ‘North Star’ for an America that invests in every community, every worker, all students, Dreamers, with expanded rights: voting, reproductive justice, transgender wellbeing. He spoke of a nation that embraces diversity and inclusion, in part because they are integral to his vision for more widely shared prosperity. The President acknowledges that we’ve yet to live up to the promise of an inclusive democracy.
Arguments For a Second Term
Here’s what could happen with a Democratic trifecta, and outside pressure from organized Labor and community groups:
Major tax reforms, expanded access to healthcare (Obamacare+), restoration of reproductive freedoms, stronger Social Security and Medicare programs, much-needed gun control measures, a national green investment plan, a path to citizenship for Dreamers (this should have been done during Obama’s tenure), a friendlier climate for labor organizing, mortgage relief and support for renters, and more. Equally important, as these things start to be felt by more Americans, we can push MAGA back into the margins.
Most effective, I think, was his emphasis on supporting the middle class and organized labor. Biden said the middle class built America and unions built the middle class. As a left-leaning progressive, I prefer ‘working class’ to ‘middle class.’ But as a pragmatic progressive, I acknowledge that most people aspire to be safely middle class. I think substituting ‘middle class’ for ‘working class’ is necessary for a national election. And the working class character of Biden’s policies is telegraphed by his strong support for organized labor.
What about the poor? The last time the poor were mentioned, in a positive way, during a SOTU address was during LBJ’s Administration. Biden did acknowledge the poor in reference to his argument that investing in the middle class is the way to boost people out of poverty. From the middle-down and back up. With the top paying their share. Not bad, if not as left as I’d prefer. This was followed by a vow to end trickle-down economics. I like the sound of that.
Things I liked less well
It comes down to foreign policy and the border. Democratic Presidents always have problematic foreign policy positions, and in less unusual times, it’s not the most salient set of issues in a national election. But this year, we have Ukraine and Israel-Palestine to deal with. To oversimplify my own stance: I’m with Biden on Ukraine, and I remain troubled by his responses to the crisis in Gaza. On the latter, his initial unqualified support for Israel boxed him into a corner. It highlighted the problems with a decades-old policy of handing Israel a blank check and massive armaments. Biden has been unwilling to hold Israel accountable for it’s war crimes against civilians in Gaza, and this has been the most gut-wrenching and painful aspect of Biden’s Administration. It threatens to unravel all the good that he has done.
Still, I see movement in his position, and a willingness to push Israel harder. In a much-needed acknowledgement of the humanitarian crisis, Biden announced his willingness to defy Israel by having the US military open a humanitarian corridor by sea. It remains to be seen whether this will get sufficient aide to Gazans, but symbolically, it sends a message to Netanyahu that the US is shifting away from unqualified support.
For those who bridle at Biden’s continued support for Israel’s right to exist and to defend itself, I ask that you acknowledge the reality that to say otherwise would cost him the election. And he wouldn’t mean it. Both he and Bernie support Israel’s right to exist (and, for the record, so do I). They both see a two-state solution as the only pathway to lasting peace and security for Israel as well as self-determination and dignity for Palestinians. We can argue about this. Propose alternatives. But we want to argue with Biden and Bernie, not Trump.
Rhetoric about the US-Mexican border is grossly overheated. In the face of heckling, Biden tried to turn the issue back on the Republicans, and onto Trump, for scuttling a bipartisan border bill. I’m not sure this will work for the Democrats.
We’re a long way from where I’d like us to be on border politics. But it should be clear that, if we want to make changes, again, we want to negotiate with Biden, not his opponent.
While addressing his age, Biden referred to his North Star. It is a North Star I that I recognize: progressive-populist, inclusive, pro-union, serious about climate change, for incremental improvements in health care, housing, education, public safety. I like most of it. I’ve advocated for these policies for over 40 years, and I’m heartened to see them embraced by a president who is way more progressive than any of us expected him to be. I hope people on the Left who care about elections feel reassured by this speech, for the most part (excepting Gaza and the border).
With age comes invaluable experience and clarity about what really matters. At least, that seems to be true with Biden. His opponent, not so much. This is not a ‘lesser of two evils’ contest. It is a contest of very starkly contrasting visions: a progressive-populist one that invests in workers and communities, that embraces diversity and an inclusive democracy versus one that is rooted in the regressive politics of “hate, anger, and retribution.”
