In a wide-ranging discussion, Matt Taibbi and Paul Jay discuss why the Democratic Party is losing large sections of the working class, and how politics has become a religion.

Transcript

Paul Jay

Hi, I'm Paul Jay. Welcome to theAnalysis.news podcast.

As I wrote recently, Trump may be a buffoon, but the forces behind him are serious. Trump may be gone, at least for now, but many developments are driving a section of the American elites towards a more overtly coercive and racist state.

This section of the elite has been ascendant because "liberal American capitalism" is out of solutions. Had it not been for the pandemic, Trump would likely be headed back to the White House. In spite of his criminal mishandling of the pandemic, he still received 70 million votes. Obama's economic policies favored Wall Street and produced greater income inequality. Desperation and frustration created conditions for strengthening fascist and racist ideas in segments of the working class and rural poor. It tilled the soil for Trump.

People, especially in rural America, have lost faith in traditional post-war American institutions, and evangelical and conservative religions are gaining strength. At least 60 percent of the Trump vote came from very religious people. These people have lost their ideological moorings, as have people in most of the country, and demagogues from the right, from Trump to Tucker Carlson, are staking out the anti-elitist position. I think if progressives don't learn how to talk to people of religious faith, they can't win this battle.

The oligarchy is aghast at the success of the Sanders campaign and the wave of progressives elected to office. They fear increasing public support for socialized solutions like Medicare for All, publicly owned banks, community control of police, and a growing consciousness that some form of socialism is a viable alternative. If Biden continues Clinton/Obama-era pro-banker economic policies, he will set the table for a more dangerous version of Trump in 2024 or maybe Trump himself all over again.

The climate crisis makes all this even more urgent. We don't have time for compromise and reach-across-the-aisle solutions. I said, vote for Biden without illusions, because it would be a better field of battle for progressive forces. Well, the next phase of the battle has begun.

Now joining us is Matt Taibbi. Matt's an award-winning investigative reporter, the son of a television reporter and a lawyer. Taibbi grew up admiring Russian writers, which led him to spend most of his early adult life in the former Soviet Union. Taibbi returned to the U.S. in 2002 and soon began work as a contributing editor for Rolling Stone. At Rolling Stone. Taibbi won the National Magazine Award for Columns and Commentary, and he's best known for his coverage of four presidential election campaigns, the 2008 financial crisis, and the criminal justice system. He's written eight books, including four New York Times bestsellers: The Great Derangement, Griftopia, The Divide, and Insane Clown President. His book, I Can't Breathe, about the Police Killing of Eric Garner, was named one of the year's ten best books by The Washington Post.

Thanks for joining us.

Matt Taibbi

Thanks for having me.

Paul Jay

So, I want to dig into the article you wrote recently about, you know, just which party is going to at least call itself the working-class party.