Today's column from David Broder in The Washington Post demonstrates why Broder is "The Dean." Which is to say it demonstrates why he is the ultimate Washington insider. Which is to say it shows that he's completely freaking out of touch.
Broder's theme is "discontent" among the electorate. He examines the California recall and "the Howard Dean phenomenon" as evidence of anti-establishment sentiment among the hoi polloi and ponders how these relate to previous periods of electoral "discontent" and their effects on the next election.
He does seem to notice that:
Economic discontent played major roles in all of these upheavals. The anger and frustration were defused during the last half of the 1990s as people enjoyed the booming economy. But now, it appears, some of that discontent has come back.
This is the definition of beltway myopia. Broder notes the existence of "economic discontent," and finds it interesting primarily because of the way such sentiments play out for the establishment and the punditry.
He shows little interest in the source or the meaning of that discontent. Saddling our children and grandchildren with billions in additional debts? Three million jobs disappearing and little sign of hiring starting again soon? Massive budget crises in nearly every state, leading to the closing of schools and prisons and the elimination of safety nets for the most vulnerable?
Hmm … what are the electoral ramifications of that? What's that? What about the human suffering involved? Oh, well, that's bad too, I suppose. But what's really interesting is …
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