Democrats Should Not Revert To The Status Quo Ante
Nathan Gardels is the editor-in-chief of Noema Magazine. He is also the co-founder of and a senior adviser to the Berggruen Institute.
TL;DR
- The "blue wave" is a counter-revolt against Trumpism, not a embrace of the old Democratic agenda.
- Democrats must address the affordability crisis, corruption, and the politicization of law, not revert to cultural elitism or hyper-globalization.
- Americans seek restored trust in governing institutions and opportunities to tackle inequality.
- The future requires deeper institutional engagement and wider sharing of wealth generated by the AI economy.
- Universal basic capital, funded by an innovation levy, is proposed to share AI wealth.
- Democracy's decay stems from institutions captured by special interests and the failure to address globalization and technological change.
- Solutions lie in citizen engagement through new mediating institutions, exemplified by platforms like Engaged California.
- Governance must adapt to the AI economy by fostering shared ownership of wealth generated from public data.
- The rebuke of Trumpism creates an opportunity for a new systemic political vision.