fair enough, it's early days. Nonetheless the claim that he is pushing the neolib agenda is being made on this thread. I'm questioning whether globalism is a necessary component of neoliberalism. The disruption of internationalised free trade is surely beginning with the the threats to impose import duties on cars made in Mexico? The threats are real enough, and mark a decisive break with past policies.
That's a fair question.
FWIW here's my take on the evolution of neoliberalism and Trump's role.
Whilst I'd agree that globalisation was a key element of neoliberalism I think there are newer, more important elements to
advanced neoliberalism.
Firstly, I'd say that the processes that Streeck sums up as those of the
consolidator state are key to understanding modern political economy. Put simply, financialised capital refuses to pay tax to nation states, preferring to profit from usury; making good the fiscal deficit by extending loans to debt states. As creditor, capital can simultaneously use the state as some sort of 'sub-contracted' wealth extractor, exert leverage over policy programmes (via bond market/capital strike threats) and use the growing public debt as a pretext for austerian shrinkage of the state. This last process facilitating the transfer of public/state owned assets into the private ownership of financialised capital. Trump's populist promises of massive state investment in infrastructure would seem to be entirely consistent with these processes with the additional benefit of increased corporate welfare/subsidy.
Secondly, I'd highlight the importance of the oligarchic class produced by neoliberalism. The obscenely rich economic elite who, pre-Trump have been happy to delegate their wealth defence to a professional political elite, appear to have lost faith in globalised institutions, especially any with supra-national aspiration to tax harmonisation or coordination. Both Brexit & Trump could easily be interpreted as an attempt to secure 2 national 'citadels' of wealth defence from which tax dodging can continue to be co-ordinated. Trump's EOs regarding renewed deregulation of financial services and promises of slashed corp taxes would indicate his determination to secure the USA as a bastion of oligarchic wealth defence.
Thirdly, I'd suggest that
advanced neoliberalism could be characterised as post-juridical. The post-war consensus of interventionist governments, managed economies and welfare states relied on professional elites with defined jurisdictions within which they were expected to make judgements of political-economy. Planners, civil servants, economists, lawyers, journalists, educators etc. were all essential experts to the management of an efficient and productive economy. For neoliberalism's true believers of the power of markets to decide upon allocation, any 'expert' group entitled to make judgements wrt resource allocation are now seen as a threat to un-restrained accumulation and wealth defence; hence the antipathy towards and de-legitimisation of these groups. Trump's campaign and administration, (& the 'high priests' of Brexit) thus far, would suggest that this trend against elites will continue.
Added to which, I'd imagine that much of Trump's more protectionist hysteria will prove to be as real as the £350m/week for the NHS.
