Conservatives, from Berlin to London to Washington, are shaking their heads over the collapse of the liberal opposition. In truth, today’s Democrats, Labourites, and SDP members aren’t worthy of respect, because they have “progressed” into something repulsive to the average voter. Not only is Bernie Sanders no Jack Kennedy (and Jermey Corbyn was no Tony Blair), voters have a hard time embracing today’s “liberal” values.
There was a time when western liberalism stood for inclusion; such as when Parliament gave all women the right to vote in 1926. Liberals now think it’s a good idea to exclude conservative views from being heard on college campuses. This is true: college administrators supported student demonstrations against George Will and Alan Dershowitz (hardly far-right extremists), leaving Main Street wondering just what America’s universities are teaching.
JFK Democrats supported equal justice for all, which triumphed in 1965, when Congress passed the Voting Rights Act. Liberals now think it’s a good idea to deny equal justice to conservative Christians. That’s right, and the loudest Democrat voices today, Rashid Tlaib and Ilhan Omar, have injected anti-Semitism into the halls of Congress. Native-born Americans are understandably suspicious of foreign-born Muslims that spew hatred toward Israel.
Germany’s SDP (Social Democrat Party) is shrinking: voting ranks depleted by economic upheaval and demographic change. Working-class Germans are as threatened by Chinese imports and low-wage immigrants as their American counterparts. And, after the arrival of a million Arab refugees, many bolted to right-wing protest parties, forcing the center-right and center-left to form an awkward coalition; thereby, making the Green Party the prevailing liberal movement.
Britain’s Labour Party just lost districts they had held for a century, because working-class voters resented Labour candidates predicting death after Brexit. The average voter doesn’t think Brexit is a disaster and handed Boris Johnson’s conservative party complete control over the UK, which will include a future of bilateral trade deals. This election butt-kicking was the result of liberal elites ignoring the first Brexit vote. Sounds familiar, doesn’t it?
American Democrats are ignoring the British lessons, and are probably going to pay dearly in November. Just as British liberals missed the real meaning of Brexit, Democrats have ignored the real meaning of Trump’s victory in 2016. 63 million voters – and majorities in 33 states – voted for his populist economic agenda and America-first foreign policies. Moreover, his supporters are not perturbed by his tweets or Ukraine kerfuffle.
Voters have expectations of fairness and normalcy in Washington, which Democrats continue to ignore. President Trump was “fairly” elected, but Democrats have attempted one act to oust after another. Further, it is a reach to consider “normal” the policies Democrats have offered in their debates. Blue-collar voters don’t think it’s fair to forgive tuition loans, and tax-paying voters don’t think it’s normal to provide entitlements to non-citizens.
As a final parting shot, liberal politicians will struggle for votes until the average voter’s concerns become their concerns. In Germany, this means preserving the mainstream culture. In the UK, this means putting the British economy before the European Union’s. In the USA, this means protecting a booming economy. One just has to listen.