A real populist would give everyone healthcare, end the wars, bring back the jobs, fix the infrastructure, make drugs legal, etc
Is Trump a freaking populist?

A real populist would give everyone healthcare, end the wars, bring back the jobs, fix the infrastructure, make drugs legal, etc
- Yes he is. One policy being hardly definitive of the whole man. Indeed, in any case, Mr. Biden's tax increase is as likely to be beneficial to the "swamp" - as those with money and influence are pejoratively referred - as Mr. Trump's tax cut.
First, to start, Mr. Trump's policies are no more pure in a complicated political system than would be their opposite. Tax cuts are a hardly perennial in the GOP - as are tax increases in the Democratic party - and are the "price of admission" so to speak. It also being added, in total fairness, that Mr. Trump's tax cuts were "across the board" - that is went to all tax brackets.
The presumptions of its' elitism from its' opponents being that a 7% tax cut for a person making $1000 will be smaller in the amount it returns than 7% of $10,000. True enough, but it not being totally clear where the line of populism is then drawn. Everyone got the same percentage, the net amount varying only based on what the person was making at the time the cut was implemented.
This then gets into the kinds of hair splitting that preoccupies the dogmatic. It begging the more important question of whether or not the policy worked. It also being a question of defining what "worked" means. After all, in fairness, pre-pandemic, Mr. Trump can make a fair claim that the economy did very well after his tax cuts were implemented.
Neither side complained about the low unemployment rates - and the real issue - the national debt - is ignored by bipartisan consensus. The generations yet to be born paying the price of both party's generosity - be it lower taxes or increased government programs. In this, neither party is terribly populist - except in the sense that it is popular to spend what one does not have.
In any case, here is the funny part. Mr. Biden has proposed a tax increase for those making more than $400,000 a year. To the cheers - it may have been noticed - of Silicon Valley, the financial services and insurance sectors and the well to do. Indeed, it seems to have escaped everyone's notice that the higher a person's income, the more likely it is that they voted for Mr. Biden and thus his tax increase.
No one seems to have asked why that would be. Indeed, it would seem that the turkey voted for Thanksgiving based on this analysis.
The point being that the rich have the accountants, lawyers and lobbyists to navigate and - as necessary - influence the regulatory state. To wit, on paper, they may pay the increased tax. In fact, they probably will not - or at least will pay less of it that a "back of the envelope" calculation might suggest in the abstract. Also making up the difference in increased government spending on the services to which government will turn to implement the increased spending programs that the Democrats will now propose.
Thus, for example, increased public works programs will be paid for by government tax dollars. Those tax dollars will go to contracts with construction firms that will sign contracts to implement the government paid for construction programs. Similarly, accountants and financial services firms will charge their clients more to study and help their client shelter as much of their income as possible. Thus in two ways will the Biden tax increase and attendant government programs cycle the money back to the wealthy and their businesses.
CONT.0|00|0Is this still revelant?Who will pay more? The small and medium sized businesses who do not have the legal, accounting and lobbying assets to navigate the regulatory state. The small business that makes a $400,000 profit does not take most of that for living high off the hog - but rather plows it back into its business. Thus will it now have less to invest back into itself.
Thus why the GOP has become the party of small and medium sized business and the Democrats the party of big business. Populism, it being added, having no consistent policies but is rather a mishmash of programs from all sides. Thus did Mr. Trump, for example, just impose strict regulations on big pharma limiting what it can charge to consumers to what they charge in highly regulated Europe.
You want populism? Now THAT'S populism.P. S. One thing that populists - and some liberals - never seem to quite catch up with. The more complex things that you want government to do, the more dependent on experts, politicians, unelected bureaucrats, big business - in a word "elites" - the society becomes.
P. P. S. One other point. You write: "A real populist would give everyone healthcare, end the wars, bring back the jobs, fix the infrastructure, make drugs legal, etc."
Actually no. Populism is NOT a schematic philosophy and as such has no coherent policy agenda. Rather it tends to a mishmash of policies drawn from both conservative and liberal - as Americans define those terms - schools.
Thus, populists distrust government. This sitting ill with the likes of Senator Sanders. Populists also distrust business - this sitting ill with some wings of the Republican side of the aisle.
In any case, as I noted above with Mr. Trump's executive order impacting "big pharma" there is no consistent policy agenda. Rather merely a series of responses loses tied together by whoever the "bad guys of the hour" happen to be.
Today it is big pharma and Mr. Trump has played to that.
In any case, you have defined populism according to your own preferences instead of with reference to its philosophical and historical pedigree. It being notable that William Jennings Bryan - perhaps America's most famous populist - attacked the big banks and supported a minimalist government at the same time.
Suffice to say that he does not fit comfortably into populism as you have defined it. A strange classification for the man who came to embody American populism.
- He plays one on TV.0|10|0Is this still revelant?
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- Love how instead of educating yourself, you seek the echo chambers and ignore those who know what they’re talking about0|00|0Is this still revelant?
Correct. But this isn’t about tv. His populism gained him the presidency and nearly got it for him again. Educate yourself dude, you’d be surprised what you can learn.
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And they are also wrong :/ populist is defined as such:
pop·u·list
/ˈpäpyələst/
Learn to pronounce
noun
a person, especially a politician, who strives to appeal to ordinary people who feel that their concerns are disregarded by established elite groups.
Which is exactly what he did. Talking about liberal and socialist elitists, that he was going to drain the swamp of politicians and that he was working for hard working Americans. That was his sales pitch and that pitch resonated with enough people to win him the presidency and was almost enough again.
Educate yourself boy, seriously. This is getting tiring. It’s basic politics.Only the clueless stupid Trump supporters would think he is a populist lol
He is one of the biggest corporatists the US ever had for a president!!!Except I’m a centrist libertarian and I voted for Biden, sooo yeah you’re wrong.
Correct. But politically, he is a populist. I legit just showed you this. If you want to remain ignorant, that’s on you.You know who are the real populists? AOC, Bernie, Andrew Yang, Cori Bush, etc not some big fat whiny crybaby who is Wall Street Bitch
Correct they are. So is trump. I’ve already demonstrated that fact, so far all you are doing is denying it and propping up other populists.
But the others are anti Wall Street, anti war, want to fix this country, etc while Trump only cares about himself and his rich buddies!!
Well Trump is a populist only to the wealthy because he is very popular with the top 1% but he hates the middle class and the working class!!
Why care what his followers think? They have an IQ of a fruit fly and all little ass kissers
They rather want to stay poor, stupid and racist then improve their lives by voting for a real populist like Bernie or AOCI agree completely. But their votes still count, and his populist rhetoric was aimed towards them, and it worked.
I do not care what Trump says, I only care how about what he does. This past four years proved that he is no populist being an ass kisser to the Wall Street, Saudi Arabia, Israel, the Warhawks, Big Pharma, etc. If he was a real populist; everyone would have healthcare now, UBI, no more wars, drug would be legal, the poverty level would be massively smaller, he would tax the rich more while lower the taxes for the middle and working class, etc
Hon I don’t know how often I can explain this. Policies, actions in office etc do not matter. How one appeals to the masses, does. And he used his populism to gain his cult following. That following is still largely there. He can be a massive populist and still suck the ceo of Pfizer’s dick every Sunday and write tax write offs for Wall Street assholes. He is still a populist.
He is a fake populist and if he was a real one, an establishment hack like Biden would never beaten him
You know that Trump's healthcare plan had less than 20% approval rate?Is Biden a populist then? Biden loves Wall Street, Wars, Big Pharma, etc as well
Hon I’m done reiterating the same damn facts to you, because it’s clear you’re unwilling to educate yourself or to be educated by someone who knows better than you.
But I will enjoy the fact that I got you to admit that trump is a populist.
So enjoy your ignorance.I said he is a fake populist big difference lol
Plus I thought you hate Trump very muchNo, you didn’t
“Well Trump is a populist only to the wealthy because he is very popular with the top 1% but he hates the middle class and the working class”
That is a concession that he is indeed a populist. You were and are just too ignorant to acknowledge the reality of the matter of how extensive his populism reaches.
I do. I also hate sheer ignorance. Trump is no longer a concern, he lost. Now it’s just your ignorance that I’m dealing with. Don’t proclaim to know politics when you can’t even google Wallace’s political party. :/ I had to tell you what it was. That’s basic research my dude.Sorry kid. I don’t care what you think or feel, you are still very incorrect and deliberately ignorant. Just as closed minded as a dumbass trump supporter.
If you hate Trump why the heck you are soo triggered over the fact that I do not think he is a populist?
- Anonymous1 moHe is the biggest disaster that happened to America.0|10|3Is this still revelant?
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09- I think that he is. I comes down to the definition of populist.
He is not an insider and he faced constant attacks from the right and the left from the beginning. Bernie is also a populist and obviously he is different than Trump. Reagan was a populist and was different than both of them.
Trump actually help people on all levels from the bottom to the top. Anyone that wanted a job could get one for the first time in a long time. People at the bottom found that they could demand more money to stay at a job (if they were well thought of) and the starting pay was higher for many jobs in order to attract workers to apply.0|10|0But Trump gave his rich friends a massive tax cut but not for the middle class
An how the heck Reagan is one when he started the top-bottom economy?I understand your points and I think that it comes down to the definition of populist. Trump is rich and powerful but he is not a political insider. Bernie should have been the candidate in 2016 but the real power behind the DNC made sure that didn't happen. If for no other reason, both Bernie and Trump could be called populists.
I make about 200K a year and I paid more taxes under Trump, but everyone else in my family paid much less. I know that I am not the super rich that you are describing but he actually helped many on the bottom and the middle through jobs and taxes- Show All Show Less
Also, Reagan was an outside and they tried to stop him but when they couldn't they tricked him. They buddied up with him and suggested he appoint specific intelligent and experienced people to his cabinet. Guess what. They were all insiders. George bush, his VP was the biggest insider of them all
I find it interesting how Reagan developed Alzheimer's and Biden has some form of dementia. Is this just a natural occurrence that happened do to old age or were these things helped along by those behind the scenes because it makes them highly suggestable and more easily manipulated.
- I mean, he does appeal to the vile, bigoted and ignorant, which seems to be a significant portion of the US populace.
That's populist, in a way.
But, yeah, to call Trump a populist politically is a joke, he is one of the biggest corporatists the US ever had for a president.0|10|1 - I'm not sure myself 🤔 it's actually the first time I've heard the word populist 😂0|00|0
- Trump has made his best decisions, when he acts on his own, without any influence from his "swamp creature advisors".
*StopTheSteal
*ItsNotOverYet
*LockUpTheBidens0|00|0 - Trump is a populist in the sense that he has done a good job of tapping into the fears of many white Americans when it comes to immigration , foreign affairs , people of color etc.1|00|0
- Well, you're not wrong..0|10|0
- He's a symptom of the swamp, not the cause of it0|10|0
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- Anonymous1 moUr understanding of his policy is wrong. He gave tax cuts to the middle class0|00|1
- Anonymous1 moHe's a redneck cult leader.0|00|1
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