Can America's progressives undo the damage of neoliberalism?

Many Americans today experience a pervasive sense of anger and frustration that has contributed to the rise of far-right politics. Populist leaders have successfully harnessed the discontent of blue-collar and lower-middle-class Americans whose prospects for upward mobility have steadily diminished. As a result, genuine economic insecurity has increasingly been redirected into identity-based politics and rising xenophobia across the US.

Instead of addressing the structural causes of economic hardship, opportunistic American politicians have been channeling public resentment toward other working people, both within the country and across the world. It was ironic to see billionaires surrounding President Trump being cast as the ones who can "drain the swamp", even as they have been presiding over the dismantling of what remains of the American social protection system, already weakened since the neoliberal turn of the Reagan years.

Democrats, eager to hold on to traditional voters, shifted rightward in the 1990s and 2000s. But rather than meeting them in the centre, Republicans moved even further right, creating a political landscape in which corporate interests thrived. The corporate accommodation of the Clinton years, and the cautious centrism of Barack Obama, were unable to deliver structural change or restore public confidence in the idea of a fair economic playing field. Bernie Sanders was perhaps the only candidate who could have defeated Trump in 2016 by appealing to the same disaffected voters with a more hopeful and inclusive vision, but the Democratic Party establishment never allowed that possibility to be tested.

Meanwhile, economic inequality has deepened. Oxfam's recent report on the United States shows how the concentration of wealth and political influence has eroded democratic accountability and widened the gulf between the richest households and everyone else. America now hosts more billionaires than any other nation, and despite having the world's largest economy, more than 40 per cent of its citizens are poor or have low income. Homelessness has reached record levels. Millions of families are struggling with rising housing costs and medical debt, as wages have been stagnating for decades.

Rights focused groups such as Oxfam offer concrete policy proposals to reverse these trends. They suggest expanding tax credits for lower income households funded by higher taxes on extreme wealth, increasing taxation of large corporations and imposing penalties on harmful corporate practices, including environmental damage. But the chances of such reforms being taken up by the current administration remain slim.

For a country that prides itself on being the world's leading democracy, the United States has long allowed its political system to be shaped by corporate lobbies. The erosion of worker power, combined with campaign finance rules that amplify the voice of wealthy donors, has left elected officials increasingly responsive to elite economic interests. Until political leaders reclaim democratic institutions from the influence of wealth, the anger driving the far right will continue to grow. And, without meaningful reform, the promise of American democracy will remain out of reach for the millions who have been left behind.

A new wave of progressive leaders has emerged in the United States as voters grow increasingly disillusioned with the excesses of unbridled capitalism. Figures such as Alexandria Ocasio Cortez, Ilhan Omar and Zohran Mamdani embody a movement that is reshaping national debates and demanding bold reforms on inequality, climate and democracy. Whether this new generation of progressives can turn public frustration into a movement for genuine structural reforms remains the central question for America's future.