Right-wing populism is an intra-elite struggle, not a revolt of ordinary citizens
Evidence
“Populism”, Francis Fukuyma argued back in June, “is the label that political elites attach to policies supported by ordinary citizens that they don’t like.” Yet these policies aren’t typically generated by “ordinary citizens” themselves; more often, they are attempts by elites to ventriloquise desires and anxieties “ordinary citizens” are held to have. Right-wing populism of the kind Trump and Brexit represent is a gambit in a struggle amongst different versions of the elite. Crucial to this process is the way in which the opposing elite is characterised. At least since Nixon, the right has identified the “bad” elite as a “liberal” clique, with its cosmopolitan ease, its remoteness from ordinary life, and its contempt for the supposed vulgarity, insularity and chauvinism of the subordinated classes. — Mark Fisher (edited by Darren Ambrose), K-Punk, 2040
Categorization
- XREF: Connects to Fisher’s wider capitalist-realism project and adds to the reading list on populism’s elite origins. — connects to: Right-wing populism is a struggle between rival elite factions — Mark Fisher (edited by Darren Ambrose), K-Punk: The Collected and Unpublished…, 2040; Right-wing populism today is swarm politics, not mass fascism. — Arthur Borriello and Anton Jäger, The Populist Moment: The Left After the…, 32; Right-wing populism’s anti-finance rhetoric masks its deep integration with financial elites (+2 more)
Broader Connections
- Right-wing populism is a struggle between rival elite factions
#expands(1.00) — Mark Fisher (edited by Darren Ambrose), K-Punk, 2040 - Right-wing populism’s anti-finance rhetoric masks its deep integration with financial elites
#exemplifies(0.85) - Elite convergence on austerity, not austerity itself, triggered the populist breach
#corroborates(0.78) — Arthur Borriello and Anton Jäger, The Populist Moment, 118 - Contemporary right-wing populist followings lack the mass organization fascism required
#qualifies(0.74) — Arthur Borriello and Anton Jäger, The Populist Moment, 32 - Right-wing populism today is swarm politics, not mass fascism.
#qualifies(0.72) — Arthur Borriello and Anton Jäger, The Populist Moment, 32