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Is the Sanders Agenda Out of Date? Sanders, the Windows 95 of Progressive Politics?
(about 11 hours later)
As the Democratic primaries came to an end Tuesday night, Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton met. Mr. Sanders presumably made a strong case that the ideas and ideological direction of his campaign should be incorporated into her campaign and, if she wins, her presidency.As the Democratic primaries came to an end Tuesday night, Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton met. Mr. Sanders presumably made a strong case that the ideas and ideological direction of his campaign should be incorporated into her campaign and, if she wins, her presidency.
Earlier in the day, in anticipation of the meeting, he said, “I think the time is now — in fact, the time is long overdue — for a fundamental transformation of the Democratic Party.”Earlier in the day, in anticipation of the meeting, he said, “I think the time is now — in fact, the time is long overdue — for a fundamental transformation of the Democratic Party.”
Mr. Sanders’s achievement has been to show the leadership of his recently adopted party that Democrats and many independents under 35 — that is, those who weren’t adults during Bill Clinton’s administration — are eager for a full-throated progressive agenda and are unafraid of backlash. While Democrats in the 1990s — notably Bill and Hillary Clinton — worried about the party’s mistakes of the 1970s, many in this decade worry more about triangulation and the cautious politics of the 1990s.Mr. Sanders’s achievement has been to show the leadership of his recently adopted party that Democrats and many independents under 35 — that is, those who weren’t adults during Bill Clinton’s administration — are eager for a full-throated progressive agenda and are unafraid of backlash. While Democrats in the 1990s — notably Bill and Hillary Clinton — worried about the party’s mistakes of the 1970s, many in this decade worry more about triangulation and the cautious politics of the 1990s.
What will a post-Sanders progressive agenda look like? The first stop will be the official party platform. But for all the work and squabbling that go into them, platforms have long been throwaway documents.What will a post-Sanders progressive agenda look like? The first stop will be the official party platform. But for all the work and squabbling that go into them, platforms have long been throwaway documents.
The real progressive agenda will be written over the next few years, either to push the Clinton administration or to shape a challenge to a Republican president and Congress. But it’s unlikely that this new progressive agenda will be Mr. Sanders’s agenda, specifically, or that Mr. Sanders himself will be the leading advocate and arbiter of progressive policies in the way that Senator Edward M. Kennedy once was. Mr. Sanders is still running the Windows 95 version of progressive politics.The real progressive agenda will be written over the next few years, either to push the Clinton administration or to shape a challenge to a Republican president and Congress. But it’s unlikely that this new progressive agenda will be Mr. Sanders’s agenda, specifically, or that Mr. Sanders himself will be the leading advocate and arbiter of progressive policies in the way that Senator Edward M. Kennedy once was. Mr. Sanders is still running the Windows 95 version of progressive politics.
For one thing, he has never had the kind of influence with his colleagues that he found with the grass roots this year, in part because he never defined himself as a Democrat. No one expects that he’ll run for president again at 78 or 82, so he won’t have the clout of a senator who is seen as a potential president. And any institutional power he may gain as chairman or a ranking member of the Senate Budget Committee sounds a lot bigger than it really is. The committee’s main job is to produce a nonbinding budget resolution, and in many recent years, it hasn’t even done that.For one thing, he has never had the kind of influence with his colleagues that he found with the grass roots this year, in part because he never defined himself as a Democrat. No one expects that he’ll run for president again at 78 or 82, so he won’t have the clout of a senator who is seen as a potential president. And any institutional power he may gain as chairman or a ranking member of the Senate Budget Committee sounds a lot bigger than it really is. The committee’s main job is to produce a nonbinding budget resolution, and in many recent years, it hasn’t even done that.
But the biggest reason that Mr. Sanders won’t shape the next progressive agenda stems from a little-noticed aspect of his campaign: His policy proposals were consistently out of step with the ideas that have been emerging from progressive think tanks like Demos or the Center for American Progress or championed by his own congressional colleagues.But the biggest reason that Mr. Sanders won’t shape the next progressive agenda stems from a little-noticed aspect of his campaign: His policy proposals were consistently out of step with the ideas that have been emerging from progressive think tanks like Demos or the Center for American Progress or championed by his own congressional colleagues.
For example, many liberal Democrats would agree with Mr. Sanders, in theory, that single-payer health insurance could be fairer, more efficient and cheaper than our fragmented system. But the president and Congress made the decision in 2010 to build on the private insurance system, in the form of the Affordable Care Act, in part because single-payer wasn’t politically viable. A Democratic administration’s next moves will be to expand and strengthen the Affordable Care Act, not start over.For example, many liberal Democrats would agree with Mr. Sanders, in theory, that single-payer health insurance could be fairer, more efficient and cheaper than our fragmented system. But the president and Congress made the decision in 2010 to build on the private insurance system, in the form of the Affordable Care Act, in part because single-payer wasn’t politically viable. A Democratic administration’s next moves will be to expand and strengthen the Affordable Care Act, not start over.
Like many of Mr. Sanders’s policy proposals, single-payer is an all-or-nothing proposition that creates few openings for legislators who want to do something incremental that could lead to a bigger goal. Congressmen like Senator Kennedy or Representative Henry Waxman of California often put forward ambitious ideas, too, but with manageable steps to build a structure that could be expanded later or that could attract enough support to pass.Like many of Mr. Sanders’s policy proposals, single-payer is an all-or-nothing proposition that creates few openings for legislators who want to do something incremental that could lead to a bigger goal. Congressmen like Senator Kennedy or Representative Henry Waxman of California often put forward ambitious ideas, too, but with manageable steps to build a structure that could be expanded later or that could attract enough support to pass.
Similarly, while progressive organizations such as the Roosevelt Institute have developed fairly complex visions for strengthening regulation of Wall Street and banks and reducing the overall “financialization” of the economy, Mr. Sanders continued to fixate on restoring the Glass-Steagall Act, which separated investment and commercial banking but had become outdated long before it was repealed in 1999. His plan to “break up the big banks” sometimes seemed to consist simply of ordering the Federal Reserve to break up the big banks. The real progressive agenda has moved well beyond that to focus on raising and strengthening capital requirements, or the amounts that banks are required to keep as cash or safe investments.Similarly, while progressive organizations such as the Roosevelt Institute have developed fairly complex visions for strengthening regulation of Wall Street and banks and reducing the overall “financialization” of the economy, Mr. Sanders continued to fixate on restoring the Glass-Steagall Act, which separated investment and commercial banking but had become outdated long before it was repealed in 1999. His plan to “break up the big banks” sometimes seemed to consist simply of ordering the Federal Reserve to break up the big banks. The real progressive agenda has moved well beyond that to focus on raising and strengthening capital requirements, or the amounts that banks are required to keep as cash or safe investments.
Mr. Sanders made the $15 minimum wage a cornerstone of his campaign, probably accelerating the momentum that led to its passage in two states and the District of Columbia. But his campaign barely focused on other issues related to work, such as the challenges posed by new employment models in the on-demand, or “gig,” economy, a topic of a speech by Senator Elizabeth Warren in May. Ms. Warren called for a new social contract under which “all workers — no matter when they work, where they work, who they work for, whether they pick tomatoes or build rocket ships — should have some basic protections and be able to build some economic security for themselves and their families.”Mr. Sanders made the $15 minimum wage a cornerstone of his campaign, probably accelerating the momentum that led to its passage in two states and the District of Columbia. But his campaign barely focused on other issues related to work, such as the challenges posed by new employment models in the on-demand, or “gig,” economy, a topic of a speech by Senator Elizabeth Warren in May. Ms. Warren called for a new social contract under which “all workers — no matter when they work, where they work, who they work for, whether they pick tomatoes or build rocket ships — should have some basic protections and be able to build some economic security for themselves and their families.”
This difference is part of a larger gap between Mr. Sanders and other progressives in their approaches to economic inequality. Where Mr. Sanders talks about “redistribution” of wealth from “the billionaires” to the middle- and low-income classes through high tax rates, others, such as the economists at the Economic Policy Institute, have focused more on what is sometimes called “predistribution,” wages and the conditions of work. They would reduce the gains at the top — such as by putting some meaningful constraints on executive pay — but also make sure that workers got a greater share of the profits, not only in the form of money, but also time, flexibility and predictable scheduling. If the initial distribution of benefits and money is badly skewed, it will be hard to use tax and transfer policies alone to redistribute it.This difference is part of a larger gap between Mr. Sanders and other progressives in their approaches to economic inequality. Where Mr. Sanders talks about “redistribution” of wealth from “the billionaires” to the middle- and low-income classes through high tax rates, others, such as the economists at the Economic Policy Institute, have focused more on what is sometimes called “predistribution,” wages and the conditions of work. They would reduce the gains at the top — such as by putting some meaningful constraints on executive pay — but also make sure that workers got a greater share of the profits, not only in the form of money, but also time, flexibility and predictable scheduling. If the initial distribution of benefits and money is badly skewed, it will be hard to use tax and transfer policies alone to redistribute it.
Mr. Sanders’s achievement in 2016 deserves respect: He has been the first insurgent Democratic candidate to emerge from the true left of the party since the Rev. Jesse Jackson’s two campaigns in the 1980s, and by far the most successful. That success points the way toward a new and more vigorous progressive agenda.Mr. Sanders’s achievement in 2016 deserves respect: He has been the first insurgent Democratic candidate to emerge from the true left of the party since the Rev. Jesse Jackson’s two campaigns in the 1980s, and by far the most successful. That success points the way toward a new and more vigorous progressive agenda.
But he’s shown in his campaign that he’s unlikely to be the agent who fills in the details of that agenda. No doubt Senator Warren, with her ever-widening vision of economic fairness, will play a Kennedy-like role, whether she remains in the Senate or becomes Mrs. Clinton’s running mate.But he’s shown in his campaign that he’s unlikely to be the agent who fills in the details of that agenda. No doubt Senator Warren, with her ever-widening vision of economic fairness, will play a Kennedy-like role, whether she remains in the Senate or becomes Mrs. Clinton’s running mate.
Other Democratic senators, some almost as young as the Sanders enthusiasts, will play their part, as will outside organizations. If elected, Hillary Clinton will either join this new progressive wave or will be nudged and challenged by it. As Mr. Sanders finally steps back, the next era can begin.Other Democratic senators, some almost as young as the Sanders enthusiasts, will play their part, as will outside organizations. If elected, Hillary Clinton will either join this new progressive wave or will be nudged and challenged by it. As Mr. Sanders finally steps back, the next era can begin.