As anyone who knows me will tell you, I’m a conservative in the true sense of the word. I drive a car that is almost twelve years old. I prefer old, comfortable clothes to new ones. I’m skeptical of change, and when it does come, I want it to be slow and incremental. I’m not in favor of anything that sounds like a “revolution.”
I’m not alone in this. People like me are going to be really important swing voters in 2020. If Biden, or another realo, is the Democrats’ nominee, the choice for us will be easy; Trump’s corruption, authoritarian leanings, and capriciousness threaten our political system far more than any realo Democrat would. If Warren is the nominee, on the other hand, the issue becomes more difficult; we will have to balance the damage Trump does to the political system against the likely negative impacts of a Warren presidency on the markets, and our pocketbooks.
I’ve made it clear in the past that I will vote for Warren if need be, because she will be constrained by the system, and Trump has shown that he won’t be. I also attach more importance to the integrity of our political and legal systems than to my own financial well-being. Warren could make this much easier by showing some sensitivity to the interests of people like me who don’t want to blow up a system that, for all its faults, has produced an unemployment rate of less than 4 percent and record corporate profits. Thus far, however, she hasn’t made any efforts to accommodate us at all.