Ruy Teixeira
Monthly Commentary and Analysis
September 2021
Understanding the Distinctiveness of Hispanic Experience

The use of the term "people of color" frequently obscures more than it clarifies since it is typically used to imply a unity of experience, particularly disadvantaging experience, among all nonwhites. The inclusion of Asians already makes little sense when you compare the socioeconomic outcomes of Asians to whites, where the former are generally superior. But it is also the case that conflating the experiences of "black and brown", a common locution among progressives, is also misleading.
Are the Climate Hawks About to Say "Uncle" on Nuclear? Maybe.

In perhaps a sign of the times, there is a very open-minded op-ed in the Times today on nuclear. Spencer Bokat-Lindell, who is a staff editor, points out the following:

"Humanity’s failure to avert the crisis of a warming climate is sometimes framed as a grand technological problem: For centuries, countries relied on fossil fuels to industrialize their economies and generate wealth, and it was only in recent years that alternative ways of powering a society, like solar and wind energy, became viable.

But when it comes to electricity, at least, that story isn’t true.
The Queens Conundrum: More Diverse, Less Democratic

In light of the latest Census data release, which highlighted the sharply increased race-ethnic diversity of the country, it's important to have a clear-eyed view of what these changes do and do not mean for American politics. They indisputably mean that parties and politicians will have to pay more attention to burgeoning nonwhite constituencies. But it is not at all obvious that these changes necessarily portend an easier time for Democrats, once we take into account recent political trends.
Whither White Working Class Voters?

Ron Brownstein has an interesting piece out on the Democrats and white working class voters. I don't think I agree with the headline and theme, "This may be the Democrats’ last chance to recover working-class Whites" but it's still worth a read. He reviews relevant data from the 2020 election that show Biden's modestly improved performance relative to Hillary Clinton among this demographic as well as more recent data on Biden approval ratings that indicate little uptick in his white noncollege support since the election. Oddly he ignores the Catalist data which I still think is the best data source out there on 2020 election demographics and trends.
The Fox News Fallacy (Director's Cut)

I posted about this recently and then wrote a more extended version of the argument on The Liberal Patriot. So far, about 24,000 views on the Substack, so it's been a popular one. Check it out--all the cool kids are reading it! And subscribe--it's free!

"The Fox News Fallacy is having a dire effect on many Democrats. This is the idea that if Fox News (substitute here the conservative bête noire of your choice if you prefer) criticizes the Democrats for X then there must be absolutely nothing to X and the job of Democrats is to assert that loudly and often. The problem is that an issue is not necessarily completely invalid just because Fox News mentions it.
Class Matters: David Shor Explains What's Wrong With the Democratic Party and Why It Must Be Fixed

I ran across this recent interview with David Shor in an obscure place, the liberalish independent Orthodox Jewish site Yated Ne'eman. It's quite an interesting interview if poorly transcribed-- there are quite a few obvious misquotes of Shor on data-related stuff. But the message is still clear and bracing. As time goes on, I think Shor is feeling increasingly comfortable saying exactly what he thinks and not softening it.

A few highlights:

I'd say perhaps the dominant theme of the interview is that the changing class composition of the Democratic party matters--a lot.