Is the Warren wing tugging Hillary Clinton toward a populist campaign?
First, a disclaimer, I'm a
"pols are pols and do what they do" guy, so whatever pols say is not meaningful to what they believe. But what they believe does not matter to me as much as what they do.
Yesterday, in a post entitled "For those hoping for 'good Hillary,' her first campaign hires are good ones," Markos saw the hiring of Robby Mook as a good sign, writing:
[T]he hire that excites me is Robby Mook, last seen guiding Terry McAuliffe to victory in his gubernatorial race in the tough off-year elections of 2013. [... A]nd excitedly—he did so by running an explicitly liberal campaign. [...] It was a triumph for the strategy we've long advocated here: there are more of us than there are of them, so if we turn out, we win. Mook made sure to give our people a reason to vote, they did, and we won. [...] We know the Clintons are tight with McAuliffe, so let's hope they're all sharing the right lessons: There are more of us than there are of them, and if Clinton gives base liberals a reason to get excited and work hard for her and the rest of the Democratic ticket, there's absolutely nothing Jeb or any of the other asshats in the GOP can do to stand in the way of her swearing-in ceremony.
That's a lot of tea leaf reading, but if you are inclined to do so, here is some more signs of that, this
"Progressives are ready for Hillary" piece by Tim Ryan:
As an economic populist, protecting and growing our economy while putting Ohioans back to work is a consistent priority of mine. Being progressive is about assuring the safety of our citizens and our economy with a strong manufacturing base, both old-line manufacturing and the newer fields of advanced and additive manufacturing. [...] I know that Hillary Rodham Clinton shares these same progressive and American values. Throughout her career, she has consistently worked to advance middle-class families, ensuring that Ohioans and all Americans can make more money and have the means to support their families. [...] I am ready for Hillary. Should she run for president, she would be the best person to lead our country forward. I believe her progressive and American values can lift up all Americans and I know the people of Ohio stand ready to assist her should she decide to run.
I don't present this as evidence of Clinton's beliefs (see above.), but rather as evidence that Clinton seems poised to run a populist campaign.Whatever Clinton's motivation for striking a populist position, it is my view, as I articulated in this post, that:
Winning elections is one thing, winning a governing coalition for progressive policies is something else altogether. To gain that in the short term, Democrats need more white votes. And populism [...] could be the way to do that.
The Warren Wing of the Democratic Party does not have a particular appeal to the existing emerging Democratic majority (nor is this a drawback). But perhaps its appeal can draw in more white working-class votes. And of course it speaks to very important progressive policy preferences regarding the economy.
Where I think I part ways with Markos is in his seeming disdain for a progressive challenge to Clinton's nomination. I don't have any illusions that such a challenge would topple Clinton, but I think it an important aspect to an overall progressive campaign to pull Clinton, and the entire Democratic Party, leftward.
It's a tug that is essential to any chance for more progressive governance.