Why is it that all the populist positions tend to be ones that weaken the economy? Let's look at the populist positions over the past couple years.
- Let the banks fail. This would have really weakened the economy.
- Stop spending/the deficit is out of control. Another tea party favorite. Less money injected into the economy = even worse recession.
- Oppose quantitative easing, the 'rich person's bailout'. Once again, coming out against a policy designed to jump start the economy and jobs.
- Regulation. The more regulation there is, the more hamstrung business is.
Regardless of where you stand on these, none of these positions have a stimulative effect. They all tend to weaken the economy further. On the one hand, people are unhappy that not enough jobs, and high paying jobs are being created. On the other hand, all the great populist protests of the past 2 years have been protesting anything the government tries to do to help jump start the economy. Name one great populist position that is actually pro-growth. You can't.