He wasn’t even really a social democrat, to be honest. He bowed to the pressure of the socialist party at the time to prevent an actual fucking revolution (even if it would have been unsuccessful). Fdr understood that actual socialism would come knocking at the door if he didn’t capitulate. Clearly the best president we’ve had (in economic terms) in the mostly modern era, but he wasn’t as progress as people believe.
Fdr understood that actual socialism would come knocking at the door if he didn’t capitulate.
Sounds like a textbook social democrat to me. Recognizing that social programs were necessary to prevent unrest is a likely reason that people from a wealthy political dynasty would support them. It’s why both Roosevelts were so successful. They had their fingers on America’s pulse and appealed to the white working class. They appealed on one hand, to their economic frustrations, breaking up monopolies and funding programs that helped people in desperate need. On the other hand, they appealed to nationalism and bigotry with Teddy’s imperialism and FDR’s alienation of ethnic groups like Japanese and Mexican American citizens.
The Democrats right now can’t really use the same strategy, as they have a diverse coalition that wouldn’t be down with that internal bigotry, while the white working class have embraced fascism because bigotry has been such a big part of their culture. The Democratic base is made of people who reject bigotry. That’s the key value they all share. They are certainly more left wing economically than Republicans, but there are plenty of neoliberal Democrats that contribute big campaign dollars and reliable votes who the Dems don’t want to alienate.
These Democrats are selfish pricks that want to keep their privilege, but not descend into fascism. Maybe it’s because they’re a minority that’ll lose their privilege under fascism. Maybe they recognize that fascism is volatile and bad for long term business. Whatever the case, they aren’t willing to give up their privilege to make a better world.
He wasn’t even really a social democrat, to be honest. He bowed to the pressure of the socialist party at the time to prevent an actual fucking revolution (even if it would have been unsuccessful). Fdr understood that actual socialism would come knocking at the door if he didn’t capitulate. Clearly the best president we’ve had (in economic terms) in the mostly modern era, but he wasn’t as progress as people believe.
Sounds like a textbook social democrat to me. Recognizing that social programs were necessary to prevent unrest is a likely reason that people from a wealthy political dynasty would support them. It’s why both Roosevelts were so successful. They had their fingers on America’s pulse and appealed to the white working class. They appealed on one hand, to their economic frustrations, breaking up monopolies and funding programs that helped people in desperate need. On the other hand, they appealed to nationalism and bigotry with Teddy’s imperialism and FDR’s alienation of ethnic groups like Japanese and Mexican American citizens.
The Democrats right now can’t really use the same strategy, as they have a diverse coalition that wouldn’t be down with that internal bigotry, while the white working class have embraced fascism because bigotry has been such a big part of their culture. The Democratic base is made of people who reject bigotry. That’s the key value they all share. They are certainly more left wing economically than Republicans, but there are plenty of neoliberal Democrats that contribute big campaign dollars and reliable votes who the Dems don’t want to alienate.
These Democrats are selfish pricks that want to keep their privilege, but not descend into fascism. Maybe it’s because they’re a minority that’ll lose their privilege under fascism. Maybe they recognize that fascism is volatile and bad for long term business. Whatever the case, they aren’t willing to give up their privilege to make a better world.