I’ve been thinkin’ some about the 2020 Democratic Primary. I’ve read Mayor Pete’s book, Sander’s book, Warren’s book, and Yang’s book. I’ve looked at some of the candidate’s ideas and I’ve listened to folk talk up their favorite candidates.
I’m personally drawn to Mayor Pete, he’s about my age and, as I keep telling people, he makes my Wyoming feel safe. What I mean by that is that he’s been in the military so he understands discipline and I could see him cultivating Aristotelian virtues and handling himself well in a pre-industrial world. This is a gut thing that I am aware is not particularly rational or good, but it is a thing. I also am drawn to Booker, he makes me hopeful, I like how he talks about faith, I like his Baby Bonds idea, and I see some of my own character traits in him. Booker/Buttigieg would probably be the team for me, but I’m one voter. For that matter, Inslee's laser focus on Climate Change is something I wish we still had in the race.
With that said, I think there is a good case to be made for a Warren/Yang ticket. Their candidacies have clearly stated goals, they would make an interesting electoral alliance, and a Warren/Yang administration would re-center America’s politics in some really good ways.
Clear Solutions for Actual Problems.
Warren is running a campaign against corruption and for expanded healthcare. Yang intends for America to be ready for the inevitable consequences of automation. These are fairly concrete goals and, I think, goals most Americans can get behind.
Everyone should be accountable, even if they have billions of dollars. No one should be able to buy a Senator or an election. Lobbyists should not wear two hats and should not swim in and out of corporate and governmental streams, without some recognition that pollution may occur. In fact, just look at the current administration (and the two billionaires currently attempting to buy a spot on the Democratic ticket) if you need to know what unchecked oligarchy looks like.
If you’ve ever been without good insurance or any insurance, if you’ve had insurance companies discriminate against you based on a pre-existing condition, if you’ve spent a little time with elderly people and seen how miserable the last few years of life can get on account of our current healthcare system, then you know we need a change. As long as profits are a primary concern in healthcare, the system will rarely care for our health.
Then there is the coming robot invasion. If 20% of jobs are going to disappear in the next couple of years, and another 40% will be transformed beyond recognition by 2030 (which, as strange as it sounds, is only a decade away)… we need to figure out what to do about that. Yes, there will be new jobs that show up on account of these old jobs going away—robot maintenance, human coordinators… who knows, but I also know everyone’s life will be changed. I think of my dad’s hometown, International Falls, where my cousin Harley is mayor. There was a paper mill, which provided good paying jobs for thousands of people. Now it is automated and it provides good paying jobs for a hundred people or so. Everyone else had to hustle, hang on, or leave.
We need to recognize that this challenge is real, and be ready to meet it with concrete proposals, but ones that are freeing to those whose lives are most directly shaped by these changes… yes, freeing. Imagine telling all the truck drivers in the US to become nurses, giving them training to do so even (this was the Clinton solution to NAFTA job displacement). That’s good, but some of their sensibilities are going to be ruffled. Alternatively, if you give them (and everyone else, so it isn’t an act of benevolence, but our inheritance as Americans) $1,000 a month, some financial stability, they can tool around and explore, and find a vocation they find acceptable. You know, they might even all become nurses, but they’ll have chosen it, they will have made that decision. It might be a little messier and take a little longer than a White House economist incentivizing training for particular tasks that are needed—but human inefficiency is a small price to pay for human dignity.
So, in sum, Warren and Yang are both focused on a few concrete problems facing our country. They are problems the average American sees as a problem. We can imagine what the next four to eight years would look like, where we are headed as a nation, by voting Warren/Yang.
An Interesting Alliance
I’ve found something interesting; people who like Yang tend to be turned off by Warren and her entitled schoolmarm act, and people who like Warren tend to find Yang to be a pompous know-it-all Silicon Valley no neck. Now, that might not sound like a ringing endorsement—but then again think of Obama/Biden or even the current Trump/Pence coalitions. Obama, the too young, jumping the line, senator and Biden, the old, gaff prone, has been—together, became Barockstar and Uncle Joe with the Trans-Am invited to the cook-out. Similarly, Trump and Pence should be oil and water to one another, a slimy philandering “Greed is Good” reality TV star from New York City and an anti-gay Governor who always looks like the Senator in the X-men comics who is trying to outlaw Mutants. Together Trump is getting Pence to loosen up and Pence can tell Evangelicals that Trump is a “Baby Christian” and try to convince Trump that pets are good (this combination doesn’t appeal to me… but if I squint real hard I can see how such a combination could be appealing—sort of a perverse Green Acres/Odd Couple kind of thing). Perhaps Warren becomes the best version of Kate McKinnon’s Warren/Hillary character on SNL and Yang becomes an entrepreneur-making-android who advocates for special needs children.
And that’s the candidates—imagine the voters! If the Yang Gang gets together with the Warren Klatch they can energize the Democratic Party and welcome in some new folk. Simply put, Yang’s supporters are mainly young and male, whereas Warren’s “Nevertheless she persisted” is now a rallying cry for female voters of all ages. If Democrats mobilize women and hold their own among men by winning more young men than last time around, they’ll win!
Warren worked with the Obama Whitehouse Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, a nod to the Obama Coalition. Warren has some populist, anti-corporate, positions that should energize the working class. In fact, some Silicon Valley folk are uncomfortable with her Teddy Roosevelt leanings.
That’s where Yang comes in, he can corral the Start-up class, he has the relationships, and I think, he can restate some of Warren’s positions in a way “normal people” can hear them more clearly. Finally, some members of the Yang Gang are super savvy on social media, something the Democrats had an edge over the Republicans with until 2016. A young VP who understands the interwebs could be a real plus!
A Sideways Coalition for America
The tension and synergy between Warren and Yang, and their supporters, could be good for America. A Warren/Yang administration would re-define America in some interesting ways.
Firstly, there is the thrust of their policies! Fight corruption, fix health care, and get ahead of innovation before it cripples the majority of our citizens. This team would concretely care about people! Imagine Americans caring for one another again!
Secondly, there is the tension between entrepreneurship and trust busting that Warren/Yang could make into a partnership. Both of those vocations are needed in America now. The creation of new businesses and application for new patents are down in this country. At the same time, giant companies and the rich are gaining more and more influence over our society—the golden rule is becoming “he with the gold makes the rules.” Policies that nurture new small businesses and restrain monopolies can go hand in hand and will be good for America.
Similarly, the ways these two think about problems are opposite, but good for each other, they balance one another out. Warren envisions government’s role as restraining bad behavior and rooting out corruption, making all actors in our society more responsible to one another. Yang recognizes the responsibility of government is to defend the freedom of the populace. When facing the problem of mass automation it is important that the solution encourages human flourishing, instead of treating humans like the very robots that are the cause of the difficulty. Imagine an America that embraces responsibility AND liberty!
Thirdly, there is the joy of electing America’s first female president and first Asia American Vice President—this would be no small thing, especially coming on the heels of an openly misogynistic and racist president. It would be the first time a white male wasn’t on the ticket; I imagine there would be some backlash, but representation matters, and there are plenty of women and Asian Americans who deserve to feel represented in the highest offices in our land. America is mine too! Ain’t that cool!
Diversity, responsibility and liberty, innovation, and kindness. What’s not to love?
A Warren/Yang administration clearly articulates concrete solutions to real life problems, builds a unique election coalition, and would govern and lead America in a good direction.
