In another time in America, when there was an actual ‘Left’, that ‘Left’ would have called David Brooks a Capitalist Stooge! But even the staunchest New Dealer would wince at this maladroit attempt to rewrite history:
“Today, liberalism seems to have changed. Today, many progressives seem to believe that government is the horse, the source of growth, job creation and prosperity. Capitalism is just a feeding trough that government can use to fuel its expansion.”
As if the New Deal was not about the power of government to help save Capitalism from it’s own self-destructive greed, and utter lack of civic responsibility. But unfortunately the New Democrats have discarded that old New Deal Liberalism for the the trappings of the winners, Neo-Liberalism. Just call this breathtaking re-write, by Mr. Brooks, what it is, Austerity propaganda! The current societal laboratory for the failure of that Austerity is Great Britain.
Almost Marx