FROM MAGA TO MEGA: AFTER TRUMP'S VICTORY

No, everything is NOT going to be OK

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Where does Trump’s victory leave (whatever remains of) the Left? In 1922, when the Bolsheviks had to retreat into the “New Economic Policy” of allowing a much wider scope for the market economy and private property, Lenin wrote a short text, On Ascending a High Mountain. He uses the simile of a climber who has to retreat back to the zero-point, to the ground from his first attempt to reach a new mountain peak, in order to describe how one retreats without opportunistically betraying one’s fidelity to the Cause: Communists “who do not give way to despondency, and who preserve their strength and flexibility ‘to begin from the beginning’ over and over again in approaching an extremely difficult task, are not doomed.” This is Lenin at his Beckettian best, echoing the line from Worstward Ho: “Try again. Fail again. Fail better.” Such a Leninist approach is needed more than ever today when Communism is needed more than ever as the only way to confront the challenges we face (ecology, war, AI…), but when (whatever remains of) the Left is less and less able to mobilize people around a viable alternative. With Trump’s victory, the Left reached its zero point.

Before we plunge ourselves into platitudes about “Trump’s triumph,” we should note some important details — first among them being the fact that Trump did not get more votes than in the 2020 election where he lost against Biden. It was Kamala who lost around 10 million votes compared to Biden! So it’s not that “Trump won big” — it’s Kamala who lost, and all Leftist critics of Trump should begin with radical self-criticism. Among the points to be noted is the unpleasant fact that immigrants, especially from Latin countries, are almost inherently conservative: they came to the US not to change it but to succeed in the system. Or, as Todd McGowan put it: “They want to create a better life for themselves and their family, not to better their social order.”

This is why I don’t think Kamala lost because she is a non-white woman — remember that two weeks ago Kemi Badenoch, a black woman, was triumphantly elected as the new leader of the British Conservatives. I see the main reason for her defeat in the fact that Trump stood for politics; he (and his followers) acted as engaged politicians, while Kamala stood for non-politics. Many of Kamala’s positions were quite acceptable: healthcare, abortion… However, Trump and his partisans repeatedly made clear “extreme” statements while Kamala excelled in avoiding difficult choices, offering empty platitudes. (In this respect, Kamala is close to Keir Starmer in the UK.) Just recall how she avoided taking a clear stance on the Gaza war, losing votes not only from radical Zionists but also from many young black and Muslim voters.

What Democrats failed to learn from Trumpians is that in a passionate political battle, “extremism” works. In her concession speech, Kamala said: “To the young people who are watching, it is OK to feel sad and disappointed, but please know it’s going to be OK.” No, everything is NOT going to be OK; we should not trust future history will somehow restore balance. With Trump’s victory, the trend that brought close to power the new populist Right in many European countries reached its climax.