When American elitists degrade foreign politicians like the Iranian and Venezuelan presidents by calling them populists it is a sure sign of their fear and loathing of populism. Oh yes, Fidel Castro came into power because he was a populist. His main opposition originally was the upper class elitists who found a friendlier environment here in elitist America. After all, we have a meritocracy based on elitism. And all the illegal immigrants racing here are victims of a very non-populist Mexico with incredibly high economic inequality, which is the best measure of the absence of populist government. Our increasing economic inequality reflects the stranglehold of the U.S. by elitists, not populists. Obtaining economic equality must be a non-negotiable goal of true American populists. Indeed, addressing economic inequality must be a prime issue, along with restoring American democracy, of any populist movement.
American politicians will sometimes try to sell themselves as populists, particularly because of the increasing resentment and anger among so many Americans towards political status quo conditions, and their embarrassment about their own elitist backgrounds (John Kerry failed miserably at countering this). Thus this perspective in Wikipedia is important: "Not all politicians who adopt a populist campaign are true populists. Some politicians adopting the rhetoric and language of populism are criticized for using populist rhetoric merely as an organizing tactic without any actual intent of standing up for common people. And not all politicians who are labeled 'populists' are populists, or consider themselves to be populist. The term is often used as a straw man fallacy, misrepresenting an opponent's position."
Calling a true populist what they are should be welcomed, something to be proud of. With better understanding of what populism is and why America desperately needs it, genuine populists will be able to bring power to the people rather than to themselves, as conventional elitist politicians routinely do. When will we become a great nation with a government worthy of its citizens? When our populist leaders sell democracy globally not with weapons but with populist good deeds here and abroad, and create a rising economic tide not through rigged trade agreements, but by curbing corporate power and excesses here and abroad.
[Joel S. Hirschhorn's new book is Delusional Democracy - Fixing the Republic Without Overthrowing the Government; he can be reached through www.delusionaldemocracy.com.]
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