We need a new political vocabulary that includes "populist," "sellout," & "fascist": If the American press were to use simple, clear labels like this, it would save us all a lot of political confusion.
The Chyron on MSNBC yesterday said, "Populist Fedderman Wins PA Primary." A few weeks ago during the French elections the American press was
referring to Marine Le Pen as a "French populist." Trump is often called a "populist" in our media, as is Bernie Sanders.
All of which raises the question: "Why are we using this one single word to describe radically different types and stripes of politicians?"Is "populist" simply shorthand or pop-news-speak for
media-friendly, outrageous, or
high profile politicians?
Or is a populist, as Cas Mudde, author of
Populism: A Very Short Introduction argues, a person representing a political position or movement that reflects the needs and desires of the
majority of the population, and is
opposed to the interests of corrupt elites?
Read more at
HartmannReport.com.
-Thom
