Does Obama recognize class
Do some Pacifica activists" recognize class.
Jim "To some everyone is either middle class or non-existent." D.
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Countering Race with Class
By David Sirota
Denver Post
June 19, 2008
http://www.denverpost.com/opinion/ci_9640922
In our us-versus-them culture, every political campaign
is a battle to define who exactly the "us" and "them"
are. Republicans typically say it is natives versus
immigrants, Christians versus non-Christians and
heartland folks versus Hollywood elites. At their most
effective, Democrats parry by defining the "us" as the
majority of working people, and the "them" as the tiny
group of plutocrats who control the country.
In recent years, Democrats have stopped making this
case for fear of offending their big donors. But this
is exactly the argument they must make if they hope to
defeat John McCain.
With Barack Obama on the ticket and primary exit polls
showing many considering race in their vote, the GOP's
traditional black-versus-white attacks are sure to be
just as overt as they were during the party's halcyon
days employing "welfare queen" and Willie Horton
imagery - only this time, they'll use Internet rumors
to imply that Obama is a Manchurian candidate. McCain's
first ad, in fact, trumpets the Arizona senator as an
"American president" - not-so-subtly crafted to imply
that the multiethnic Obama is un-American.
The way for Obama to counter this racial onslaught is
through class-based politics - and what a golden
opportunity McCain presents for that on the issue of
trade.
NAFTA symbolizes globalization policies that force
Americans into a wage-slashing, environment-destroying,
union-busting competition with foreign workers. NAFTA-
style trade policies are now so unpopular that a recent
Wall Street Journal poll found 60 percent of
Republicans oppose them. And yet, McCain continues to
stage public events supporting NAFTA.
McCain's position is backed by an establishment media
that justifies "free" trade orthodoxy with fact-free
platitudes. Promoting a new, fairer trade agenda is
Obama's clearest way to the presidency.
Substantively, he can argue that America should return
to fair trade and strategic protections - the kinds of
policies that originally built our economy into a
powerhouse.
Politically, he can hammer McCain for championing a
trade policy that has economically destroyed key swing
states from Maine to Ohio - and polling suggests
populist positions on trade may be precisely what
swings general election voters.
According to a Democracy Corps survey, Republicans who
considered voting Democratic in 2006 were most put off
by the GOP's support for job-killing trade agreements,
meaning Obama could swing these if he champions a fair
trade agenda.
That's a big if.
For every loud speech Obama has given about making sure
trade pacts "are good not just for Wall Street, but
also for Main Street," he has made a quiet move
reassuring Wall Street that Main Street will be
ignored.
Last week, for example, he named Jason Furman as his
top economic adviser. Furman has spent the last few
years defending Wal-Mart and working closely with Bob
Rubin, the Citigroup chairman who championed NAFTA as
Bill Clinton's Treasury secretary.
In the battle to define us-versus-them, Obama hasn't
yet made a convincing case that he stands with "us" on
economic issues. But if he does and he counters the
inevitable race-baiting with a class-unifying message,
he will win the White House and - more importantly -
start the long process of rebuilding America.