The Temptation to Self-flagellate

Brian YS Wong November 13, 2024 22:40

As a liberal, I felt embarrassed by the events that unfolded subsequent to the re-election of Donald J Trump. The roots of such embarrassment had little to do with the apparently predictable, and fundamentally asinine resurgence of one of the most morally repugnant, reckless, and ill-intentioned Presidents in American history – instead, it had to do with the wave of self-flagellation that we saw liberal pundits and commentators pile onto public discourse, subsequent to incumbent Vice President Kamala Harris’ defeat.

Yes, Harris lost by fairly close margins in most swing states, but she lost all 7 of them. Yes, the defeat was humiliating, and the ceding of the popular vote to Trump was indicative of some deeply rooted problems within the Democratic establishment. No, I do not think we should celebrate or gloat about the triumph of a candidate who has openly boasted that he would be open to taking positions far more extreme than Harris on foreign and domestic economic policies. Yes, I believe introspection is long overdue.

Yet what sickens me to the core is not so much the imperative or act of introspection, but that many of the most guilt-ridden and performatively repentant (or remorseful, or both) armchair critics were also the most vociferous in their admonishing Trump and emphasising the unbridled, unprecedented terror that he would bring to the United States. In various ways, therefore, they were contravening the very “reconciliation” and “re-engagement” tenets that they swiftly pivoted to advocating, upon the announcement of the results.

One cannot eat the cake and have it. Either it is the case that Trump supporters are the most perilous, most uncouth, most fundamentally unkind menace to democracy – and one insists on lambasting them in every shape or form; or there can be more to be done to address the economically anxious, socio-culturally alienated, and politically disenfranchised “underbelly” of modern America, long neglected and omitted from the silver screen and overlooked by Hollywood and the proverbial mainstream media.

This matters – for on the screens of popular movies and in the oft-trotted tropes and protagonists of fiction, most of the “underbelly” rarely seem themselves represented. Similarly, their views are ones that the sixteenth NYT columnist or the 50th CNN commentator alike would chastise to be “atavistic” – racist, sexist, and misguided.

Perhaps there is indeed a grain of truth in assertions about bigotry. There could well be a sizeable segment of the American population who harbours – subconsciously or explicitly – rather fervent resentment towards the rise of ethnic and religious minorities, or the advent of LGBTQIA+ rights. Yet the real problem, and the real Achilles’ Heel of the Democratic Party – as epitomised by those who are flocking to self-flagellate, as if this could give them some solace or peace-of-mind over their impunity – lies with the very collective of pundits and “opinion-makers” who have contributed towards the impression that the Democrats are not a working class party; that it is merely a party of petite and bona fide bourgeoisie, propelled largely by “feel-good liberalism” and vacuous rhetoric.

Senator Bernie Sanders did not mince his words when he declared that the Democratic Party “has abandoned working-class people”. Such abandonment has manifested in two ways, despite incumbent President Joe Biden’s best efforts to hold together the blue dog coalition with his policies on job creation and economic growth. The first concerns a fundamental failure to address lower-middle class woes concerning inflation – both perceived and actual. The combination of supply chain realignments, mass government stimulus to prop up post-COVID hand-outs, and broader post-COVID-19 job market shifts and realignments have collectively contributed towards a secular and persistent increase to wages, especially in the consumption basket around which the lives of many working-class families in the rust belt revolve. A failure on the part of Harris to effectively differentiate her economic policies from Biden’s – in charge out of a sense of political loyalty, in part motivated by a desire to ride off the legacy and accomplishments of Biden vis-à-vis job creation – has in turn dragged her down in the eyes of many doubting voters who are eager for change.

Turkeys do in fact vote for Christmas. With his escalatory tariffs, erratic protectionism, and fundamentally ‘castle-in-the-sky’ fiscal approach, paired with an obsession with tax cuts, Trump looks set to usher in an era of even higher inflation levels. Prices would only increase further as firms look to shore up their resilience and insurance against broader shocks and volatility. Those who had hoped that Trump would deliver upon a “huge deal” of price reduction could well come to be disappointed. C’est la vie.

The second fundamental issue concerns the self-righteousness and exclusionary rhetoric with which the Democrats had prosecuted their social justice agenda. Progressive issues deserve better advocates – individuals who can ground and explain why justice matters to those who are neither steeped in the very particular vernacular of upper-middle-class intelligentsia, nor “woke” to the degree that they would require no further persuasion. There is a distinct mismatch between the persuasive tactic and the target demographic at hand – an issue that would come back to haunt recalcitrant Democrats who have not connected their lofty ideals with the everyday lives of ordinary American citizens.

None of this is to say that social liberalism is itself a failure, or that we must jettison ideals of justice and rights in order to placate the lowest common denominator. But it is to say that more efficacious and ends-driven campaigning are very much necessary, in the era of echo chambers and self-aggrandisement. Furthermore, self-flagellation reeking of sanctimony and hindsight bias cannot and must not be construed as a sufficient basis for forgiveness. We’re past the point of minor course corrections and slight adjustments. The Democratic Party must take seriously and engage substantively the many problems inherent within it – including the commentariat who have churned out countless thought pieces of little to no thought, and who have alienated successfully the very constituents they are supposed to serve.

Brian YS Wong

Assistant Professor, HKU