Know Your Enemy

Democratic Dilemmas after the New Deal Consensus (w/ Timothy Shenk) [TEASER]

Oct 11, 2024

02:41

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Historian Timothy Shenk, author of 'Left Adrift', dives into the shifting tides of liberal politics from the New Deal era to the present. He analyzes the role of consultants Stan Greenberg and Doug Schoen in navigating class dealignment and the Democratic response to a rightward shift. The conversation also touches on Bill Clinton's complex legacy in the rise of neoliberalism and draws parallels with political dynamics in Israel. Shenk offers valuable insights on lessons for American progressives ahead of the 2024 elections.

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Quick takeaways

The podcast discusses how the Democratic Party's responses to class dealignment and the rise of neoliberalism illustrate the complexities faced by liberal politics over decades.

It highlights the evolution of class politics in Israel, emphasizing that working-class affiliations can be appropriated by right-wing factions, challenging leftist assumptions of solidarity.

Deep dives

Transformation of Israeli Political Landscape

Over the last 50 years, Israeli politics has undergone a significant transformation, where the far right has emerged as the reasonable faction, pushing traditional political alignments into disarray. The old right has shifted to the center, while the former center has evolved into the new left, leaving the traditional left in a state of total dissolution. This change is particularly striking given the Labour Party's dominance during the first three decades of Israel's existence, which was challenged for the first time in 1977 when the right won electoral power. The coalition that brought the right to power was heavily influenced by the Mizrahi community, highlighting how working-class dynamics have shifted within the political framework of Israel over time.

The Evolution of Class Politics and the Rise of the Right in Israeli Politics

2min

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Historian Timothy Shenk joins us for a conversation about his new book, Left Adrift: What Happened to Liberal Politics, a timely look at political strategy on the liberal-left as the New Deal Consensus cracked up in the late 1960s and 1970s through Bill Clinton's presidency and beyond. He tells the story of how Democrats responded to class dealignment through the careers of two consultants, Stan Greenberg and Doug Schoen—a story that, following these two men, also takes us to the UK, Israel, and South Africa. We discuss what happened to the New Deal coalition, arguments about how to appeal to working class voters drifting right, the limits—and necessity—of polling and even focus groups, why Bill Clinton's role in the rise of neoliberalism is more complicated than you might believe, lessons for the American left from their being crushed in Israel, and what all this might mean for 2024.

Sources:

Timothy Shenk, Left Adrift: What Happened to Liberal Politics(2024)

Douglas E. Schoen, Enoch Powell and the Powellites(1977)

Stanley B. Greenberg, Race and State in Capitalist Development(1980)

"Explaining McCarthy," TIME, April 18, 1969

Listen again:

"Realignments (w/ Timothy Shenk)," Know Your Enemy, Feb 27, 2023