The Wrongologist

Commenting on Monday’s post, blog commenter Terry McKenna closed with:

…we abandoned the worker for the limousine liberal.

You can read Terry’s blog here. Let’s pick up on his thought. “Limousine liberal” is a reference to the wealthy (including celebrities) who try to persuade others to their political and societal points of view. Critics assert that their wealth and status means they are out of touch with the American middle and lower middle classes they purport to support. Interestingly, its first use was in 1969, when a Democrat referred to Republican Mayor John V. Lindsay in his reelection campaign.

While Terry’s point is true, the “liberals” we need to be afraid of are the neoliberals.

“Neoliberalism” is a set of economic ideas that have become widespread since Ronald Regan. The term used rarely used in the US, but you can clearly see the effects of neoliberalism here as the rich grow richer and the poor grow poorer. Neoliberalism is not “liberalism” or “liberals”.

“Liberalism” can refer to political, economic, or religious ideas. In the US, political liberalism has largely been a strategy to diminish the impact of potential social conflict that could arise from racial inequality, economic insecurity and lack of political power. It is described to the poor and to working people as a set of progressive values, compared to conservative values.

“Neo” means we are talking about a new form of economic liberalism. The liberal school of economics was based on Adam Smith’s The Wealth of Nations, written in 1776. Smith advocated the abolition of government intervention in economic matters. No restrictions on manufacturing, no barriers to commerce, no tariffs. He said free trade was the best way for a nation’s economy to develop. Such ideas were “liberal” in the sense of no controls. This liberalism encouraged “free” enterprise,” “free” competition — which meant, free for the capitalists to make profits however they wished, using whatever means necessary.

In the 1930’s John Maynard Keynes’s theory challenged economic liberalism as the best policy for growing nations. He said that full employment was necessary for growth, and it could be achieved if governments and central banks intervened when necessary to do what they could to increase employment.

Keynes’s theories had considerable influence on FDR’s New Deal −The belief that government should advance the common good became widely accepted. But, over the last 30 years, the global corporate elite has revived economic liberalism as neoliberalism. That’s why it is “neo” or new. With the rapid globalization of our economy, we see neoliberalism flourishing on a global scale.

The main ideas of neoliberalism include:

1. The Supremacy of the Market: Liberating private enterprise from any bonds imposed by the government. Greater openness to international trade and investment, as in NAFTA, or the coming Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP). Lower wages by de-unionizing workers. In all, total freedom of movement for capital, goods and services. It’s St. Ronnie’s “supply-side” and “trickle-down” economics − but somehow the wealth never trickles down.
2. Cutting Non-Military Public Expenditures: Reducing the safety net for the poor, reducing expenditures on public education, social services and welfare. Disinvesting in infrastructure (roads, airports, ports, the Internet) in the name of reducing government’s role.
3. Deregulation: Reducing government’s role in regulation of anything that could diminish profits, including protecting the environment and job safety.
4. Privatization: Selling state-owned enterprises, the commons, and provision of some services to private investors. This could include prisons, railroads, toll highways, electricity, schools, and even fresh water. Although usually promoted in the name of greater efficiency, privatization has mainly had the effect of making the public pay more for its services, while concentrating more wealth in fewer hands.
5. Eliminating the Concept of “The Public Good”: The “public good” is usually an application of a collective ethical notion of “the greater good” in political decision-making. Eliminating it pressures the poorest people in a society to find their own solutions to their lack of health care, education and social security by themselves — then blaming them, if they fail, as “lazy.”

In the US, neoliberalism is working to:

• Weaken social service programs by reducing benefits
• Attack the rights of labor (including immigrant workers)
• Cut back taxes to “starve the beast” of government
• Weaken the political power of the poor and lower middle class

The Republican “Contract” with America in 1994 was pure neoliberalism. Its supporters were attempting to move their agenda by saying it would “get government off our backs.” It worked. From Reagan in the 1980’s through Obama today, the neoliberal agenda has been strengthened. Banks, Big Oil, and the top .01% call the shots.

Neoliberalism and its buddy riding shotgun, neo-conservatism, are designed to assist large, mostly American corporations to harvest the wealth of our nation and that of others, and hide it in tax havens. For the vast majority, neoliberalism has brought lesser financial security, more debt, more underemployment and a smaller voice in government.

So, its neoliberals, not liberals, in those limousines.