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A lot of people are big mad at @AOC right now because they feel betrayed by her failure to stand up to @SpeakerPelosi and the neolibs or play hardball to #ForceTheVote on #M4A.
The real problem is that "elect better people" doesn't work as a theory of change. A thread!
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The real problem is that "elect better people" doesn't work as a theory of change. A thread!
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The United States is one of a small number of democracies that uses what's called "first past the post" (FPTP) voting.* It's a bit of a tangent, but FPTP ALWAYS produces a 2 or 2.1 party system.
Stick a pin in this, it'll be important later. 2/
Stick a pin in this, it'll be important later. 2/
Because we have a 2-party system & our political parties are so polarized, very few districts are actually in play in any given election. Politicians who play nice with the party machine can reasonably expect to hold their seats for decades at a time.
3/ https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/elections/2016/11/04/fewer-and-fewer-us-house-seats-have-any-competition/93295358/
3/ https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/elections/2016/11/04/fewer-and-fewer-us-house-seats-have-any-competition/93295358/
Congress is set up to give power based on seniority, so the longest-serving members of Congress have all the power. Newly elected members get to vote, but without committee seats they are effectively shut out of the real levers of power unless they play nice with incumbents.
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Anyone elected on reform finds themselves unable to actually enact any reform unless/until they reach an accommodation with the establishment. If they refuse to do so, the establishment can back primary challenges against them - or even eliminate their district via rezoning.
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So you *have to* start making concessions. Bernie did it. AOC did it. They all do. They have to. It's part of the structure of the institution itself. And it's easy for them to justify to themselves because compromise *here* becomes the path to make a change *there.*
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This is what the term "political capital" means. It's essentially a social currency (a topic I go into a little bit on this thread: https://twitter.com/UrsusCalifas/status/1335661964777775104).
Social currency moderates every human interaction - no in-group tolerates people that flaunt its norms.
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Social currency moderates every human interaction - no in-group tolerates people that flaunt its norms.
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A politician's political capital is basically the balance between the goodwill of the voters towards them vs the goodwill of the establishment, and these are always in conflict because congress fundamentally does not serve voters.
https://www.upworthy.com/20-years-of-data-reveals-that-congress-doesnt-care-what-you-think
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https://www.upworthy.com/20-years-of-data-reveals-that-congress-doesnt-care-what-you-think
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And so a new representative who genuinely wants reform is forced to make concessions. Just a little bit at first and then bigger and bigger things. Vote for this bill that gives trillions to the military or your bill to fund rural hospitals will never see the light of day.
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No one wants to think of themselves as a bad person. Everyone is the protagonist of their own story. And so people will find ways to justify those compromises to themselves. And each compromise makes the next one easier.
It's basically a gang initiation.
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It's basically a gang initiation.
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This is basic psychology & is why joining a gangs (for example) often requires murder, rape, planting drugs on a suspect or something like that. Shared guilt bonds ppl & the justifications they invent form basis for justifying future crimes.
Congress is just a big gang.
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Congress is just a big gang.
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So electing someone to Congress = sending them to join that gang, undergo that initiation, and become part of that institution. They can compromise until they are compromised & get a little bit done, or they can refuse to compromise, get nothing done, and be replaced.
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Also! Politicians are members of the Coordinating class that manages society on behalf of the Ruling Class. Their class interests are distinct & tied to the rulers - no matter their class of origin. Very few ppl act against their own class interests.
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https://www.thisbear.com/a-post-soviet-theory-of-class/
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https://www.thisbear.com/a-post-soviet-theory-of-class/
And that is why anarchists (and others) have long argued that working class people putting our limited energy & resources into elections is a waste and we should instead focus on building dual power.
https://blackrosefed.org/retreat-advance-dual-power/
https://anarchiststudies.org/reimagining-revolutionary-organizing-a-vision-for-dual-power/
https://liberationschool.org/dual-power-and-revolution/
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https://blackrosefed.org/retreat-advance-dual-power/
https://anarchiststudies.org/reimagining-revolutionary-organizing-a-vision-for-dual-power/
https://liberationschool.org/dual-power-and-revolution/
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Even within the bounds of electoral politics, however, there's room for improvement. Switching to Proportional Representation (PR) would be a major step forward because an insurgent 3rd (or 4th or 5th) party doesn't have to beg a party establishment.
https://www.vox.com/the-big-idea/2017/4/26/15425492/proportional-voting-polarization-urban-rural-third-parties
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https://www.vox.com/the-big-idea/2017/4/26/15425492/proportional-voting-polarization-urban-rural-third-parties
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@TheDemocrats are *the oldest political party in the world* precisely because of that FPTP / 2-party system. As long as we maintain FPTP they (and the Republicans) are essentially untouchable. But the moment we have PR, they lose their stranglehold.
https://www.fairvote.org/what_is_proportional_representation_and_why_do_we_need_this_reform
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https://www.fairvote.org/what_is_proportional_representation_and_why_do_we_need_this_reform
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So what's the solution? Fight for PR in your local and State elections. It works - just look at Scotland.
If you aren't willing to contemplate revolution or breaking up the US, ***PR is the only viable path forward.***
https://bellacaledonia.org.uk/2020/12/02/future-focused-2/
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If you aren't willing to contemplate revolution or breaking up the US, ***PR is the only viable path forward.***
https://bellacaledonia.org.uk/2020/12/02/future-focused-2/
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And, of course, these tactics are not mutually exclusive. Strong independent working class institutions that can force concessions from the outside or even replace State institutions (a Dual Power approach) are rendered more powerful by a PR electoral system.
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And having PR in place means that independent working class institutions have far more leverage since it is far easier to topple an established party and replace them if, for example, your 'one big union' declares a general strike.
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In the meantime, Electing Progressives into government does not change the government. Instead, the process of governing changes *them.* And that's by design.
We need to change the STRUCTURES, not just the PEOPLE if we ever want to make real change.
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We need to change the STRUCTURES, not just the PEOPLE if we ever want to make real change.
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So go ahead and yell at @AOC and call her a sellout for behaving like what she is - a member of Congress. But it won't get your very far. Same goes for all the other "progressives" in Congress. Are they part of the problem? Yep. Are they the root problem? Nope!
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The root is *the structure of the institution* itself. Change that & you change everything else.
So if you want change - real change - be a radical and go to the root of the problem. Build dual power and fight for PR in your local races. Change the institutions!
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So if you want change - real change - be a radical and go to the root of the problem. Build dual power and fight for PR in your local races. Change the institutions!
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