Populism In Traditional Politics

Inconveniencing Traditional Politics Fundamentally, in the United States there are two parties and ideologies attached to them. The Democrats represent the left: stalwart vanguards of progressivism that put the working-class ahead of the corporate overlords, and defend the minorities from the majority. The Republicans represent the right: traditionalists who cling to the ideals of small government, individualism, and personal liberty. In theory then, it should be easy to place the supporters of these groups at either end of the political spectrum, but as Frank points out in What’s the Matter with Kansas?, “Nearly everyone has a conversion story they can tell: how their dad had been a union steelworker and stalwart Democrat, but how all their

For instance, in Kansas Politics and Government: The Clash of Political Cultures, it’s explained that “Evil institutions, external forces, ‘the system,’ the establishment, or some alliance of government and business are likely to be blamed when things go wrong” (Flentje, Aistrup, 4). With Kansas’ early beginnings, the state was flooded with new people and industry from the East, and eventually gave way to a self-interested individualism that led to populist sentiments (Flentje, Aistrup, 5). Keeping this in mind, it’s easy to see the correlation between populism and anti-establishment messages. Kansas was where “A populist political party, […] emerged in the 1890s to voice farmer’s disgruntlement and to challenge Republican hegemony in Kansas,” which allowed for the possibility of filling the state with populist politicians (Flentje, Aistrup, 8). In the original What’s the Matter with Kansas? by William Allen White, he expresses discontent for the political elite being elected: “We have raked the old ash heap of a failure in the state and found an old human hoop skirt who has failed as a businessman, who has failed as a preacher, and we are going to run him for Congressman-at-Large. He will help the looks of the Kansas delegation at Washington.” (White). By Kansas’ nature, the people are steered away from the political elite, and often demand justice for their perceived injustices. The same farmers who “demanded justice, an end to economic and political inequities,” in the 1890s put forth Williams Jennings Bryan in order to avoid the Gold Standard, which would have hurt farming prices (Flentje, Aistrup, 8). Though Bryan was unable to win the presidency, the influence of Populism stemming from Kansas continues to make a significant effect on the state and its people. Perhaps this is why the people of Kansas prefer politicians that seem