Member-only story
I have been thinking a lot about how we got to this particular political crisis where the Republican party is as close to embracing fascism as it has anytime since the 1930’s. And of course with election denialism being the order of the day why Democrats don’t also deny election outcomes as much or in the same ways.
Now part of this is strategic, Dems arguing that they are the party of the workers (unions have long been a linchpin of Dem support and vice versa) do better when more people vote whereas Republicans do better when the vote is restricted. (This of course needs a quick historical reference that from 1870 to 1970 or so Dems in the southern states did massive voter suppression until LBJ pushed through civil rights and by 1980 those white supremacist vote suppressors were now staunch Republicans and have been for the last 44 years.)
But if we look at what the Democratic party (as opposed to Dem politicians) represents and it’s again the workers, the minorities, the environmentalists, the collective of the disempowered massing together to be heard. Whereas, the Republican party represents the interests of religion and big business (whatever their framing might be they are clearly the party of tax breaks for the rich and Christian Evangelical beliefs.)
