Bernie Sanders said it first, and made it the centerpiece of his stump speech. Donald Trump soon followed, although his behavior in office makes it clear that he defined it in very different terms. Now Elizabeth Warren has picked it up; America is “rigged.” What do they mean by that, and are they right?
As to #1, it means that a wealthy, well-educated elite has abused its economic and political power relative to average American workers in the interests of perpetuating its privileges. Increased inequality and a lack of social mobility are the inevitable results.
As to #2, I have three comments:
A. IT IS A PHENOMENON SEEN ALL OVER THE INDUSTRIALIZED WORLD. Increased inequality and stagnant wages are primarily the result of the loss of high-paying, low-skilled industrial jobs, which in turn has been caused by automation and globalization. That suggests that the problem really has economic roots, and is not caused by any “rigging” of a wide range of political and legal systems.
B. TO THE EXTENT THAT “RIGGING” HAS OCCURRED, IT HAS BEEN DONE BY REPUBLICANS. Regressive tax changes and legislation limiting union power have undoubtedly played a role in the inequality and stagnant wage problem.
C. THE VICTIMS OF “RIGGING” USUALLY VOTE FOR THE PERPETRATORS OF THE CRIME. White workers in red states vote for Republicans because the GOP is aligned with them on cultural issues and make false promises that their jobs will return. In their eyes, that beats a government handout any day. The victims are consequently complicit in the crime. Are they deluded when they vote against their economic interests, or do they understand how the bargain works, and acquiesce in it anyway? Different people will give you different answers.
And so, it isn’t really about evil Wall Street bankers hiring armies of expensive lobbyists, or even Ivy League grads marrying each other and fighting to keep the unwashed out of their neighborhood. It’s about economic conditions that are beyond the control of any particular group, exacerbated by legislation that favors the interests of wealthy investors over the working poor.