Bannon is Smart

I honestly haven't read much about Bannon - surprising given how much he's in the news. But this makes me think he's really, really smart.

He dismissed the far right as irrelevant and sidestepped his own role in cultivating it: “Ethno-nationalism—it's losers. It's a fringe element. I think the media plays it up too much, and we gotta help crush it, you know, uh, help crush it more.” 

“These guys are a collection of clowns,” he added. 

From his lips to Trump’s ear. 

“The Democrats,” he said, “the longer they talk about identity politics, I got ’em. I want them to talk about racism every day. If the left is focused on race and identity, and we go with economic nationalism, we can crush the Democrats.”

I think he just articulated something in one brief paragraph that I've been trying to express for years, except I've been coming at it from liberal perspective. And that is: race and identity politics is a dead end political issue for liberals. I've focused on trying to articulate why identity politics is poison, stupid, etc, but that's wrong. The relevant point is that it's bad politics. It's a losing strategy. It is why Democrats outnumber Republicans and yet, the Republicans control the House, Senate, and White House.

Here's why - even if you take the premise that affirmative action type of programs are needed and possible to execute well, and you take the premise we need to stop micro-aggressing and man/white splaining in every avenue of life, and take the premise women get paid 70% of men for doing the same work, and every major industry and job needs more diversity in race and gender, and there are all sorts of systemic injustices that need to be corrected - even if you accept all these premises (which I don't necessarily, btw). But even if you did, I still think it's a dead end political idea. Because most Americans do not see themselves of being guilty of these crimes. A vast majority of Americans - on the left and right both - basically believe in equality opportunity. They don't practice systemic racism, or try their very best not to. You may disagree. But the relevant point is that most Americans don't view themselves that way. And if, you're on the Left and you try to insist to the majority of Americans that - No - you actually are racist and sexist and horrible - guess what? They're going to stop listening. You've lost. And you get Trump. Period. End of story.