By focusing so much on manufacturing, old-style union power and worker organizations, and geopolitical competition with China, the Biden administration paid too little attention to the changing structure of the economy and the interests of the new working class. It had the right intentions, but the wrong strategy.
thinks the Democrats were right to embrace economic populism, but neglected to update it for this century.
Even if predictions based on campaign statements and cabinet appointments leave us uncertain about how Donald Trump will approach big foreign-policy issues, we can still situate his worldview in a longer-running US tradition. After all, he is hardly the first politician to proclaim “America First.”
considers what can be gleaned from the president-elect’s past statements, recent appointments, and US history.