How Republicans Sold Out the Middle Class for the Corporate Class

[Sunstone]

At the Cold War’s end, the GOP reached a fork in the road. The determination of Middle Americans to preserve the country they grew up in, suddenly collided with the profit motive of Corporate America. The Fortune 500 wanted to close factories in the USA and ship production abroad—where unions did not exist, regulations were light, taxes were low, and wages were a fraction of what they were here in America. Corporate America was going global and wanted to be rid of its American work force, the best paid on earth, and replace it with cheap foreign labor. While manufacturing sought to move production abroad, hotels, motels, bars, restaurants, farms, and construction companies that could not move abroad also wanted to replace their expensive American workers.

Thanks to the Republican Party, Corporate America got it all.

U.S. factories in the scores of thousands were shut down, shedding their American workers. Foreign-made goods poured in, filling U.S. stores and killing the manufacturers who had stayed behind, loyal to their U.S. workers. The Reagan prosperity was exported to Asia and China by the Bush Republicans. And the Reagan Democrats reciprocated by deserting the Bush Republican Party and going home. But this was not the end of what this writer described in his 1998 book, The Great Betrayal. As those hotels, motels, restaurants, bars, fast-food shops, car washes, groceries, and other service industries also relished the rewards of cheap foreign labor, they got government assistance in replacing their American workers.

Source: The American Conservative.

Do you think Buchanan is substantially right? Why or why not? If so, what, if anything, can be done to remedy the situation?

 

[MysticSang'ha]

Source: The American Conservative.

Do you think Buchanan is substantially right? Why or why not? If so, what, if anything, can be done to remedy the situation?

I think Buchanan has it half right. My thoughts are the Democratic Party is just as complicit in selling out to corporate interests. NAFTA, Glass-Steagall, etc. under the Clinton administration....

I've read that companies are slowly beginning to bring back jobs, energy, manufacturing, agriculture, because of rising wages overseas in countries which historically have abused human rights in the past by utilizing slave labor. Therefore, the bottom line is still the motivating factor in these companies' interests, so I'm cautiously optimistic about re-shoring our job market. Particularly if companies believe they can pay Americans less than what overseas workers are getting paid.

It still baffles me - personally - that businesses that large will ignore the benefits of investing in their workforce. Or maybe I'm just in denial wishing that the plutocracy is that sociopathic.

 

[Sunstone]

Yeah, I agree the Democrats were heavily involved in the sell out of the Middle Class too. It's one reason I'm not a Democrat.

 

[MysticSang'ha]

Yeah, I agree the Democrats were heavily involved in the sell out of the Middle Class too. It's one reason I'm not a Democrat.

Remember when I said I still have a difficult time forgiving the Clinton name?

I think Buchanan hit on some very very good points. For a Republican Party to insist it stands for small town America, and its focus on job creation and a balanced budget, it certainly began acting in opposition to its ideals long ago. I commend Pat Buchanan for speaking up like this and calling out the party he once ran for.