The Election That Ended Liberalism.

Centrism failed to stop fascism (again). What comes next?

Well. That went as bad as it could have.

Donald Trump is returning to the White House with a popular mandate, Republicans have taken the Senate (and possibly the House), and the Supreme Court will be a MAGA majority until my future children graduate high school. While many theories are circling about why Trump won (disillusioned Democratic voters, rightward Latino men, Harris’ refusal to break from Biden on Gaza etc., etc.), they all ladder up into an undisputed takeaway:

The Democratic Party's centrist liberalism has failed. It can neither provide the change Americans desire nor fulfill its single redeeming quality, defeating Republican fascism. While the need for bold economic and social policies is evident in Tuesday’s results, those who all but carried Donald Trump’s bags into the White House already insist it’s not their fault.

Excuses Excuses

Unsurprisingly, before the race was even called, the Democratic establishment rushed to blame everyone but themselves. MSNBC commentator Joy Reid claimed Harris ran a “flawless” campaign, citing an endorsement from Queen Latifah as proof the ticket could not have done any better.

I probably don’t have to tell you this, but any explanation offered by those responsible for this landslide loss — the Harris-aligned MSNBC spokespeople, the Zionist surrogates sent to campaign in Muslim districts, and the DNC heads themselves — should be ignored. So far, they’ve only offered excuses to protect the glass egos and unwarranted six-figure salaries, not sober analysis of how to course-correct and win.

I can’t believe I must say this, but no, the Harris campaign was not “flawless.” Kamala Harris repeatedly refused to break from Biden despite his massive unpopularity. The day Harris appeared on The View and said she wouldn’t “change a thing” from Biden’s administration, the President had a -13 points approval rating.

Harris also pledged continuous support for Israel’s genocide, sapping her campaign of much-needed enthusiasm. While she enlisted Liz Cheney to promote a message against Trump’s fascism, her fondness of Israel’s slaughter turned away those most concerned by it.

Harris lost Pennsylvania by 2 points and Arizona by 3.7.

Furthermore, Harris’ closing message, the “Cheney Strategy” of courting Never-Trump Republicans, was designed for an imaginary constituency. Republicans like Trump, so they voted for him. Despite dedicating her closing message to bringing in these fabled disaffected conservatives, Harris won a smaller portion of Republican voters than Joe Biden did in 2020.

Some have already floated that the Democrats went “too far left.” Lindy Li, head of the DNC National Finance Committee, told Fox News that Tim Walz was too progressive and, therefore, a poor running mate. This can easily be disproven by any eight-year-old with an iPad. Of the four Presidential and Vice Presidential candidates, Walz is the only one Americans view favorably.¹ He closed at +2%, ahead of Harris (-5%), Vance (-7%), and Trump (-8%).

All favorable ratings courtesy of FiveThirtyEight.com

Finally, there’s the line that Americans are just too conservative, meaning the Democrats had zero chance of winning. This is a pitiful excuse to protect Harris, Biden, and their phalanx of Very Serious Political Consultants from warranted criticism. The map below from The New York Times, showing county trends compared to 2020, lends credence to this view but fails to tell the full story.

While I do not doubt misogyny and racism turned some-to-many voters away from Harris, the data doesn’t point to a national right-ward leap. If the remainder of California and Arizona’s votes break down as expected, Harris will have received approximately 12 million fewer votes than Biden did in 2020. If the country were captivated by Trumpism, these votes would have gone to Trump. They did not. If current trends hold, Trump will finish with half a million fewer votes than he did in 2020. Voters didn’t move right. They stayed home. Both Harris and Trump’s messages were uninspiring and unconvincing. But Harris’ was the less convincing of the two.

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The theory of an increasingly right American electorate is also disproven by progressive victories, even in places where Harris lost. Palestinian Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib was reelected in Michigan, outperforming Harris by 14 points in her district. Progressive icon Ilhan Omar easily won reelection, and Summer Lee won in Pennsylvania (which Harris lost).² The GOP stronghold of Nebraska passed paid sick leave with an overwhelming 74.3% of the vote. Abortion rights won in blood-red Montana and Missouri, the swing states of Nevada and Arizona, and received majority support (but did not pass the 60% threshold) in Florida. Missouri also voted to increase the minimum wage to $15 an hour and give workers mandatory sick days, two policies associated with the Democrat’s left wing.

This leads me to two conclusions:

1. Joe Biden was an unpopular President who focused on American hegemony (Israel, AUKUS, NATO) over necessary and popular economic reform. When Harris refused to break with him, voters turned away.

2. Americans want change. They are open to either progressive policies or Trumpism. But when the Democrats don’t offer them the former, they take the latter.

No matter what you think is The Reason for Harris’ loss, all roads ladder up to an inevitable conclusion: the Democratic Party and its middle of the road politics are unable to meet the needs of the moment.

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Beyond Liberalism

The 2024 election has vindicated the leftist claim that centrist liberalism is neither wanted by the American people nor able to defeat MAGA fascism. And, if the Democratic National Committee could be morphed into a single person and run as a Presidential candidate, it would be Kamala Harris. Her entire campaign was a product of Washington focus groups and the guiding hand of neoliberalism. She:

• Preached bipartisanship and promised Republicans a “seat at the table,”

• Touted her tough-on-crime prosecutor record,

• Pledged international “strength” (i.e. support for Israel),

• Defended reproductive rights and socially progressive policies, and most infuriating,

• Lectured struggling Americans that the economic and political systems were working, even when they weren’t.

Exit polls show over 68% of voters thought the economy was in bad shape. 70% of those who felt this way voted for Trump. 75% of voters said inflation had caused “severe” or “moderate” hardship for their family. They went to Trump 74% and 51%, respectively.³ While Harris deserves the immediate blame for her loss, the underlying culprit is the project of American liberalism. According to those who run the Democratic Party and outline its centrist policies, The United States has the perfect economic and political systems. Sure, not everything is great, but if we elect The Right People to run things, then capitalism and democracy* will maximize happiness and create the best outcomes for all Americans.

Exit polls showing Americans had a negative view of the economy, which led them to Trump.

In reality, neither capitalism nor America’s undemocratic “democracy” will deliver what the masses desire. Consciously or subconsciously, voters know this. Both a tacit glance at survey data and and the numerous studies on the subject show the will of the people never manifest in public policy. Telling Americans they need to “defend a democracy” they know they do not have will not motivate anyone.

“Multivariate analysis indicates that economic elites and organized groups representing business interests have substantial independent impacts on U.S. government policy, while average citizens and mass-based interest groups have little or no independent influence.” — Testing Theories of American Politics: Elites, Interest Groups, and Average Citizens⁴

On the other side of the coin, capitalism does not work for the majority. The below graph shows where wage growth was outpaced by inflation. The single green spot in Texas is the only place wages grew faster.

Harris and the Democrat-aligned media told the country this was make-believe. Trump told them it was real, though his “solution” of deportations and tariffs is bat-shit insane. But if your family is drowning and one person offers to throw you a rubber ducky while the other tells you you’re actually on dry land, you’ll grab the ducky 100 times out of 100.

And that is why the neoliberalism of the Democratic Party has failed. Not just in this election but in its entire project. It has run its course. Even if you are unconvinced by socialist and progressive economic policies, the truth remains that the Democratic status quo will only continue to be the Washington Generals to the MAGA Globetrotters. If Democrats bring the same tired nonsense in 2028 (which they’re already saying the will), they — and the American people — will lose, no matter how many celebrities endorse their Wall Street-backed candidate.

Fortunately, we have a better path. We are not the Democratic Party. We are the people, the ones who must live with the consequences of their failures. That is why we must organize. Let’s build our own political power, one birthed from workers’ and human rights. In a few months, the American government will be controlled by a fascist. Labor and tenant unions and political organizations will be needed to protect us from the immediate threat while serving as a launching pad for something bigger. (You can find links to get started organizing such programs, here.) If the Democrats want to try and win votes by appealing to our bloc, then go right ahead. But the path forward cannot rely on them. At best, they are inept. At worst, they are co-conspirators.

This election was the nail in the coffin of American liberalism. Those who benefit from it and never bear the brunt of its failures won’t admit it. But we don’t need them to. May they dirty their hands in its ashes as we build something brighter and better than liberalism could ever be.

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In Solidarity — Joe

1. https://projects.fivethirtyeight.com/polls/favorability/tim-walz/

2. https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2024/11/05/us/elections/results-michigan-president.html

3. https://www.cnn.com/election/2024/exit-polls/national-results/general/president/0

4. https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/perspectives-on-politics/article/testing-theories-of-american-politics-elites-interest-groups-and-average-citizens/62327F513959D0A304D4893B382B992B