Sirotablog
David Sirota is a political journalist and nationally syndicated newspaper columnist at Creators Syndicate. David writes about political corruption, globalization and working-class economic issues often ignored by both of America's political parties.
-
July 16, 2008 11:27 AM
Lou Dobbs & the Double-Edged Sword of Populism
Last week, I appeared on CNN's Lou Dobbs tonight to discuss the economic meltdown and the political fallout that will come from it. You can watch the clip here:
This clip shows the good side of Dobbs - the side where he's the only person on cable television consistently talking about major economic issues and questioning the corruption of both political parties. For doing that, he should be applauded.
Of course, there's a bad side of Dobbs: the side that comes out when he talks about - and takes extremist positions on - cultural issues like immigration. This is not admirable, to say the least.
I've been on Dobbs' radio show to argue with him about his stance on immigration (which I, of course, disagree with). In my book, I got a behind-the-scenes look at his show, analyzing how the CNN anchor has deliberately tried to create Uprising TV, and how in doing so, he really personifies the double-edged quality of political populism.
Some have said that progressives shouldn't go on shows like Dobbs or networks like Fox News, and if they do, they should loyally defend the Democratic Party at all costs. I vehemently disagree. We have to fight for our issues in any venue offered to us, knowing that if we fight effectively we will win the war of ideas. We also have to adopt a movement psychology, reject Partisan War Syndrome, and fight for issues in these arenas regardless of party. I, for one, am willing to appear in almost any venue to push the progressive uprising.
That reminds me: I'll be on Fox News today right around 5pm EST to talk politics on their newsroom segment. Tune in.
-
TAKE ACTION
-
About David Sirota
David Sirota is a political journalist and nationally syndicated newspaper columnist at Creators Syndicate. He is the New York Times bestselling author of Hostile Takeover. He lives in Denver, Colorado. His daily blog can be found at CREDO Action. He contributes regularly to the Denver Post's Web site, is a senior editor at In These Times magazine and is working on his second book. He has been profiled in Newsweek and the Rocky Mountain News and is widely known for his reporting on political corruption, globalization and working-class economic issues often ignored by both of America's political parties. Sirota serves as co-chair of the Progressive States Network, a 501(c)3 organization that supports state legislators and that is a partner of CREDO.
You can subscribe to Sirota's e-mail newsletter by going to davidsirota.com and signing up in the lefthand corner. To find out more about Sirota, download his official biography or see his recent media appearances. You can e-mail him at sirota@credoaction.com.
The views expressed on this blog are his own, and do not necessarily represent the views of Working Assets (publisher of CREDO Action) or the institutions Sirota works for.
-
Recent Sirotablog entries
- Teaching McCain Econ 101
- Fox News at 5:15 EST
- Will the Elite Pay Their Fair Share?
- What's Right and Wrong With This Picture
- Bill Kristol Needs to Get Out More
- Six Words for Better Wages...And Why We Need to Promote Ideological Warriors
- What A Huge Scandal!
- Radio West
- Report: America's "Free" Trade Policies Harming Rural Latin America
- Free Speech TV
-
More David Sirota
-
This Modern World
-
July 29, 2008 -
July 23, 2008 -
July 15, 2008 -
July 8, 2008 -
July 1, 2008
-
-
Donations Recipients
-
RSS feeds
Discussion
(...wondering if you've lost your readership at this venue due to your extended... errr... hiatus...)
I'm seriously missing the point on Dobbs and immigration. I don't regularly watch his show, but I've never seen him say anything that I took as either bigoted or unreasonable on that topic.
All I hear is Democratic shills in the media making it "cool" to bash on him about his immigration views. John Stewart, Olbermann, all the "progressive" pundits, trying to slip quips into the discussion making it appear that Dobbs' stand should be reviled as a matter of conventional wisdom. At least Colbert treated him fairly, and was ridiculously funny in both versions of his interview with Dobbs.
I just don't think you're going to be able to whip up a lot of support for the idea that folks should be allowed to freely wander across the border, undocumented, and then gut labor markets by working under the table for ludicrously low wages. Further, I can't fathom how anyone can justify allowing employers to scam the system by exploiting the poverty of the Mexicans who come here in desperation.
How can any self-respecting union supporter condone such policies?
First off, Dobbs advocates FOR the current system of legal immigration. He advocates FOR legal immigrants. He has said multiple times that we need MORE legal immigration into our country. Further, his wife is a legal immigrant from Mexico. To say Dobbs is against immigrants is pure nonsense.
What Dobbs is against, and what you apparently disagree with him on, is illegal immigration. Not making that distinction between legal and illegal immigration in your argument is dishonest. It looks like you're attempting to set up and knock down a straw man.
I consider myself both Democratic, Liberal, and Populist. But, I also agree with Dobbs on immigration, both legal and illegal. Further, I know I am not the only Democratic Liberal Populist with this same opinion. In fact, I know more people who agree with Dobbs than disagree, which undermines the argument that his opinion is "extremist".
From my perspective, Dobbs takes the populist stance on immigration. Like Dobbs, most people I know are for immigration, but they want immigrants to follow the law and come here legally. And, those same people do not want to reward immigrants who have broken our laws with citizenship. Those ideas are certainly not extreme.
3rd Option and Chris V I couldn't agree with you more.
It is Mr. Sirota as well as some others on the left and right that have the extreme immigration views. I personally know of no one who favors this ludicrous idea that, as 3rd Option mentions, people "should be allowed to freely wander across the border, undocumented, and then gut labor markets by working under the table for ludicrously low wages."
Lou Dobbs views on immigration are probably more moderate than many if not most Americans. He definitely holds the populist position on this issue. The leftists and corporate types who believe in that type of mass illegal and unregulated immigration are the extremists and anti-populists on this issue.
David,
Dismissing the slavery-lite of noncitizen workers as a "cultural issue" is straight from the corporate approved DLC playbook.
Anyone wanna guess what would happen to wages (and salaries) if "guest" worker programs were suspended - and if illegal employers faced the same jail time as counterfitters?
Join the Discussion