Part of the reason that I read political nonfiction is that I want a book that forces me to re-examine my own beliefs. I want to be challenged. I want to read arguments that I can engage with. I don’t want books that simply confirm beliefs I already have. Finding one that doesn’t bore me or is too much in the policy wonk weeds is difficult but not impossible. As a center-left democrat, I want to read books by conservatives (philosophical conservatives, not the crazies that currently claim the title) and by thinks to the left of me. I am one of the voters that progressives and the far left need to target. I am open to their ideas, but I’m skeptical of their ability to win elections. I’m skeptical of their ability to govern. I’m skeptical of their ability to form the coalitions needed to pass legislation in our government. When I found Justice is Coming by
Cenk Uygur, it was almost like he wrote the book for me. Because he addresses a number of my concerns. He does so with facts inspiring me to think, to learn, and to examine my own thoughts and beliefs. This is the type of political work that I crave. While I didn’t agree with everything, I found Uygur convincing more often than not, and I’m grateful for a book that upends my biases against progressives. This is a book that’s worth reading regardless of where you are on the political spectrum.
Disclaimer: The publisher provided a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Any and all opinions that follow are mine alone.
© PrimmLife.com 2023
TL;DR
Justice is Coming by Cenk Uygur is a rare book by a politician. It’s substantively filled with facts and analysis. It’s a book that inspires conversation with its subject matter whether the reader agrees or disagrees. It will anger you. It will call you names. It will make you re-examine your own positions. Highly recommended.
From the Publisher
A manifesto that outlines the progressive vision, recent history and worldview—by the founder of The Young Turks and co-founder of Justice Democrats.
The media can’t stop talking about the gridlock in Washington, as if a handful of stubborn Republicans are the only thing standing between us and a fully-functional democracy. The reality is that our government was taken over by big business and their allies in both political parties. The getaway driver in this heist was corporate media. The good news is that the American people are very progressive. And soon progressives will take over Washington as well! And when they do, the great majority of Americans will love it.
In Justice Is Coming, The Young Turks founder Cenk Uygur presents two ideas that counter everything we hear from pundits and politicians on a daily basis: one, progressives are correct on all issues, and two, America is actually a very progressive country. Millions of us know that we are a part of something larger, a movement that is already transforming Washington.
This compulsively readable manifesto seeks to apply the momentum we have already built to a concrete progressive agenda that activists, voters, and citizens can all rally around. It looks beyond Trump to the larger historical forces that have given us this unique political moment, and explains why we should fight, how we should fight, and how we will win.
Sharp-witted, persuasive, and inspiring, calling out toxic Republicans, politely-ineffectual Democrats, and mealy-mouthed media mavens in equal measure, Justice is Coming will give heart to Democrats and progressives who seek to change our politics and society for the better.
Review: Justice is Coming by Cenk Uygur
Justice is Coming lays out the case for progressives to hope for the future. Uygur, best know for The Young Turks media network, lays out a convincing case that the U.S. is a progressive nation. Using both history and poll numbers, Uygur points out that Americans have and do support progressive policies despite the fact that conservatives – left and right – dominate our politics. He dedicates the first chapter to this effort, and it’s a powerful argument. Historically, the U.S. is progressive. The founders were progressive at their time. (They would be horrified at how the modern right venerates them.) But in our time, the term progressive has lost all meaning. For people on the right, it means monsters that want to take away your freedoms by mandating that the government take over your life. To centrists, it means far lefties. To the media, it means unwinnable politics. To corporations, it means the enemy. Because it’s a meaningless term, Uygur wisely defines what he means. He lists three principles that, for him, define progressive goals:
- Expansion of the circle of liberty
- Equality of opportunity
- Justice for all
Next, he shows why Republicans are terrible; then he has a chapter showing how corporations took over our politics and our lives; he has a chapter that he calls the “The Matrix” where he tiredly rehashes the progressive bitching about Bernie losing. Next, there’s a chapter on actions that he and others are taking to make progressives a legitimate political force in an attempt to return power to the voter and the average citizen. Finally, he gives readers a chapter on the benefits of progressive policies. Interestingly enough, these policies benefit all Americans, regardless of political affiliation.
Justice is Coming is a political argument for supporting progressive politicians and to have hope for the future. It is a biased and unflinching look at our political reality. Uygur doesn’t pull punches, and he doesn’t spare feelings. He’s tough, self-promoting, and convincing.
Well Argued
Uygur lays out facts convincingly because he backs it with history, with quotes, and with poll numbers. I particularly enjoyed his analysis of how the Democratic Party became beholden to corporations. Since this is the first time I’ve read this account, I can’t vouch for its authenticity. I need to do more research to confirm it, and I’m glad Uygur put it out here to read. Not only is it informative, but it’s an interesting narrative he puts together for it.
One thing I find interesting is that Uygur is like me. He’s a former rightie now finding himself on the left. I imagine in a sane world; both he and I would be on the political right again. But since the U.S. is so far to the political right, we both are considered far left radicals. Uygur is a capitalist and says so many times throughout the book. I believe him, and frankly I agree with him. Capitalism is a good thing. Unrestrained capitalism isn’t, and acknowledging that makes a person a far left radical in today’s U.S.
Uygur falls back on the typical out-of-mainstream argument that the media is against him and his party. Unlike conservatives, he has evidence to back up this claim. His analysis of how corporate media portrays AOC and Bernie are interesting and correct. But, also, it’s corporate media; we expect corporations to be anti-progressive. It’s still important that he call out corporate media; someone has to. In addition, he correctly notes that the internet allows non-mainstream voices to reach larger audiences. In particular, readers get the sense of how he cares for the Young Turks audience. However, he fails to mention that this also builds silos of information. We all know that conservatives and their far right friends all exist within a media bubble both corporate and non-mainstream. They’re less likely to hear progressive voices. The same happens to progressive media. Do they have on conservatives who have remained sane?
Pay Close Attention
Uygur is a politician. He may be a media persona, but he’s become a politician. And the style of writing and arguments in this book come from a politician, not a media commentator. What does that mean? It means that he shades and possibly misrepresents his opponents arguments to his benefit. This is standard practice for a politician. So, I recommend paying close attention to the arguments he makes and how he makes them. For example, he misrepresents conservative arguments against the inheritance tax. His argument is that the rich deserve that money because of the American myth that money equals merit. That’s not correct. It’s one of those things that is common knowledge among liberals that is dead wrong. The conservative argument against the inheritance tax is that the money passed on has been taxed already. They have a point; although, they are also not quite correct. For portions of inheritance, the inheritance tax does double dip. In other ways, there are wide loopholes that allow the rich to skip regular taxes via estate planning. By passing on things as inheritances, it’s possible to avoid taxes. And let’s be clear, the rich have very good teams of lawyers who exploit these loopholes to avoid taxes. Uygur doesn’t address these legitimate concerns. Instead, he oversimplifies the argument because it serves his position. To be fair, maybe he doesn’t know that version of the conservative argument. I doubt it, though. He’s way more knowledgeable about politics than I am.
To be clear, this doesn’t mean he’s wrong. It just means we, as readers, have to pay special attention to how the arguments are made and the solutions that are presented. In his chapter on how to fight and defeat our current system, Uygur lays out concrete steps that are simple and doable. They make sense to me, but how do we get these arguments and step across to people that disagree with us? One way that Uygur is putting his money where his mouth is comes in a couple of different forms. The Justice Democrats are the first attempt to fight back at a rigged system. Cenk was a founder of this group, and it’s backing politicians that don’t take corporate money. He also discusses Rebellion PAC as a force in political advertising. (It supported Nina Turner, who lost.) Finally, Uygur has founded a non-partisan political action committee, Wolf-PAC, to advocate for a bi-partisan amendment for campaign finance reform. While this chapter is overly self-congratulatory, it does show by example how voters can participate between elections. This is an excellent example, and it’s up to each reader to see if the arguments that Uygur’s PACs make fit their beliefs.
What's Missing Is Important
If the central premise of Uygur’s book is that Americans want progressive policies, why aren’t progressive candidates dominating politics at all levels of government? He blames the media; he blames corporate money and corporate pressures behind the scenes. But if those were truly effective, then progressive policies wouldn’t be popular. There is a fundamental disconnect going on that Cenk and other pundits don’t address.
First, Uygur is correct that progressive policies are popular and desired. Even here in the very, very red and rushing towards fascism state of Missouri, progressive policies, like the abolition of so-called right to work, are popular and are routinely defeated at the ballot box, even when Republicans play tricks to try to sneak it through. Yet Missouri keeps electing far-right candidates who glory in out doing each other on how cruel they can be. Why is that? There are two reasons. Policies have become disconnected from politicians and political parties. The average voter doesn’t believe an elected politician will make the changes they want to see. Even if a politician were to promise to make the changes, voters don’t believe the politician will follow through. Look at Biden’s numbers, he’s followed through on a number of his promises; yet, voters don’t believe it. (The opposite was true for Trump. He did nothing, and his voters think he accomplished everything.) The best way to enact progressive policies is to do so through ballot initiatives. Republicans know this, which is why they’re making ballot initiatives harder to get on the ballot and to pass once they’re there. This happened here in Missouri. The Republicans even lied about what an initiative said and were rebuked by a judge for their blatant lies. (They’re at it once again with an abortion ballot summary. Republicans have to lie to win.)
Next, voters do not vote FOR policies; they vote AGAINST the politicians and political parties that frighten them. Here, Uygur would call me overly cynical, and maybe he’s correct. But I see it time and time again. It’s why the Republicans are so effective. They know how to terrify and enrage their audiences. Uygur, despite his language, takes the high ground in this book and wants to inspire voters. This is possible with policies but not politicians. Bernie was the most inspiring politician in the 2020 race. He drove people to the polls to vote for him; there is no doubt about this. At the same time, he scared more people into voting against him. The candidate that met at the intersection of fear of Bernie and fear of Trump was Biden, a bland candidate who promised a return to boring times. The goal of today’s politician is to make voters more afraid of the other person than they are of them. This sucks, but it’s accurate. I’d love to hear Uygur’s take and solution to this.
Finally, Republicans succeed because they corral their voters when it matters. Democrats, progressives, and lefties, all prefer to fight with each other more than they do with Republicans. Lefty voters require purity tests that ensure defeat. Despite the demographic changes coming, demographics mean little if voter turnout is low. The 2016 election is the ultimate demonstration of how left in-fighting harms progressive causes. Progressives and left voters were so assured of the corporate Democrat win that they state home or engaged in a protest vote. The result was terrible for the country as a whole and set back progressive policies by decades. Because of low voter turnout in 2016, the Supreme Court will be in the hands of corrupt, theocracy-loving activists who will squash any and all progress this country makes. The Justice Democrats are doing an excellent job of learning how politics work in this day and age. AOC matured in her role and has become an effective legislator, which for some progressives means she’s sold out. Until Uygur and other progressives find ways to make sure their voters show up, I’m not sure the Democratic party as a whole can count on progressives. If progressives want to primary Democrats, I say go for it. But if they don’t win the primary, they still need to show up and vote in the general election. Politics is the art of compromise, and until Democrats reach a majority in local, state, and federal governments, progressives will still be seen as far left fringe candidates. Worse, as Republicans continue to attack voting rights and limit who can vote, demographics may not have a chance to turn the tide. Republicans are working hard to dismantle our democracy, and Democrats AND progressives need to work together to protect our democracy as the Republican party continues to shrink and lose power. If we lose our republic, policies don’t mean much.
Conclusion
Cenk Uygur’s Justice is Coming was an inspiring read. I didn’t agree with everything, but it made me think deeper about my own beliefs and actions. It contains cogent, fact-based arguments that support historical conclusions, and it will be dismissed by the center and right as far left propaganda. It’s a shame that conservatives no longer exist who could read this and debate it without the ad hominem attacks because there is a lot of good ideas to engage with. Uygur’s book is a rare find from a politician. It’s compelling, substantive, and gives a call to action. Highly recommended to all, even open-minded conservatives.
Justice is Coming by Cenk Uygur is available from St. Martin’s Press now.
© PrimmLife.com 2023