I thought Cox Richardson’s analysis was particularly helpful in thinking about the Democrats. Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren continue to see the Democratic Party as the voice for the have-nots in their struggle against the business elite. That’s not what we hear from Joe Biden, Pete Buttigieg, Amy Klobuchar, or Mike Bloomberg. We hear something that more resembles society as a web, a promise of all of us working together toward common ideals.
I could see how I would use Cox Richardson’s analysis to understand why Sherrod Brown didn’t get in the race and why Kamala Harris and Cory Booker couldn’t win enough votes to stay. All three attempt to combine the Jacksonian struggle while part of what has become the problem-solving party.
I have supported Elizabeth Warren. She may have regained her momentum with the last debate. I had been trying to figure out which presidential candidate to support if she does no regain her footing. She convinced me that, in her focus on taxing the wealthiest, she, nevertheless, had a vision of people working in common for common ideals, a vision that would not necessarily destroy existing institutions. Bernie Sanders’ vision is different. He welcomes the opportunity to destroy and replace existing institutions. If Elizabeth Warren does not regain her footing, I may go somewhere other than to Bernie. I want someone who sees Americans working together toward common goals, someone who preserves and works through existing institutions, who puts new wine into old bottles.