Reich:"The Tea Party is against foreign trade ... outbreak of isolationism, nativism, and xenophobia

[pampango]

http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/0,1518,726575,00.html

Reich: I think what we're seeing now in America is an outbreak of isolationism, nativism, and xenophobia. The Tea Party is against foreign trade. We are also seeing an outbreak of antiimmigrant sentiment across the country. The anger directed at China now is out of proportion to China's real effect on the American economy. China is not to blame for 15 million jobs being lost over the last two and a half years. My point is that we are already seeing the hallmarks of the politics of anger and resentment, which led in the 1930s to isolationism. That's very much what worries me.

Reich: First, we have got an unprecedented degree of concentrated income and wealth at the very top of our society. The top one-tenth of one percent of Americans now makes more than the bottom 120 million. Secondly, courtesy of a grotesque opinion by the Supreme Court of the United States, we now have virtually unlimited money flowing from the rich and from corporations through secret devices that make it impossible to know who is contributing what to various campaigns and to advertising for and against various candidates. Such anonymous groups have spent more than $400 million on the latest election, according to estimates. And finally, we have a broad electorate still unemployed or in danger of being unemployed, still in danger of losing their homes or already having lost their homes, still experiencing a major drop in their savings or their net worth. This frustrated and anxious population is easy prey to demagogues who will blame others for their problems rather than explain what needs to be done.

Reich: The socalled Tea Party movement that's gradually taking over the Republican Party began when President George W. Bush and, after him, President Obama provided Wall Street with $700 billion. It looked and felt like an insider job, a rigged deal to many Americans. In the US, when there is a sense that government and business are in cahoots, the tendency is to blame government rather than business. Had Obama put very strict conditions on that bailout, requiring for example, that Wall Street firms lend to small businesses, that homeowners be allowed to reorganize their mortgage debts under personal bankruptcy, that they limited their own pay, I don't think we would have had the kind of reaction we did. Obama also failed to connect the dots, showing America that the financial reform bill, the health care bill, and the jobs bill, the stimulus package, were all part of a broader effort to restore the middle class and fairness in the American economy.

[mrcheerful]

1. The tea party is against foreign trade but buy everything from Wally World, you just

can't make things up like this nor fix stupidity.

[OHdem10]

2. At least we may not get all that Free Trade with not Conditions

whatsoever through. This has ruined our economy just as
much as Banksters Debacle.

[Armstead]

3. "Free Trade" is the only thing I agree with the right wingwers on...But..

The Tea Bagger types don't realize that their same philosophy of "total free markets" is a big part of that problem.

[subterranean]

4. I haven't heard of many teabaggers protesting against foreign trade.

They mainly seem to rail against socialism, health care reform, illegal immigrants, taxes and "big government." Or whatever else they've been told they should hate. Foreign trade doesn't seem to be a major issue for them yet, as far as I can tell.

[OHdem10]

5. Just wait until the Trade Issue comes up. The GOP have steered

clear of Trade. Many of these voters are the old Perot
Voters and they did passionate opposition during Nafta
Debate. Earmarks out ranked them. In the evening they
were winning the lobbying along with Buchanan Brigades.
The President started passing out goodies and they lost.
Were bitter.