Political structure & processes

On the night of President Trump’s second presidential victory, economist Isabella Weber tweeted: ‘Can we now finally have a serious conversation about an anti-fascist economics?’ In her view, Democrats had missed the seriousness of the affordability crisis in the wake of pandemic-era inflation. By refusing to step in to protect their constituencies against corporate profiteering and price shocks in essentials, they left room amidst the global crisis for the resurgence of the politics of resentment that Trump and the right revelled in. Her question, though, was a bold one with implications that reached far beyond one election. In a neoliberal world, we tell people at the same time: Democracy is the highest form of political organization. And: When it comes to the economy, to the material foundation of our life, the best the representatives of the people can do is to subordinate their constituencies to the corporate pursuit of profits.