The Division of Labor
I think an interesting frame to put around the left and right is to recognize their proper roles — the left reminds us what to care about, and the right actually builds systems that head towards those goals. The problem seems to be when we look to the right for the things to care about (let’s say, fundamentalist islam demanding that women be covered), and when we look to the left to actually build systems that work (let’s say, Obamacare).
The magic of Trump is that he’s taken the goals of the left (equal treatment under the law, economic strength for the American worker, and freedom of expression), and co-opted them fully. He’s now got the compass pointed in the right direction, and he’s leveraging all the strongest characteristics of the right to actually implement these systems. The authoritarian left is fuming at their implementation plans being dashed to the rocks, but all of their favorite minority interest groups are actually benefitting more under Trump than ever before (record unemployment across women, blacks, and latinos for example).
If the left wants to be effective in their role, I think they need to apply the frame that highlights it — the left needs to be there to remind us of the things we need to pay attention to, especially for the ignored, downtrodden, and forgotten. But they need to reach out with both arms towards the right to help find systems and policies and implementations that will get them to their ultimate goals.
When a lefty candidate starts their campaign by specifying their goals (safer neighborhoods, better jobs, better schools, social safety nets), and then proclaims that they will work towards those goals with policy prescriptions for those problems prescribed by the right (enhanced 2nd amendment protections, right to work legislation, school choice, and faith based charities), they’ll start winning bigly.
