Rethinking Federal vs State & Local Governing Thru A Democratic Lens

A Declaration of Urban Independence Politico Magazine

Futurist and urban planner Richard Florida moved his family to Toronto a decade ago. Stunned by Hillary's loss, the theorist pulled back his new book from his publisher to do some serious soul searching.

His meaty article in Politico taps into my own mindset, one that is a total reversal of previous thinking among progressives on the role of the federal govt vs state and city govt. The idea is conservative -- one that puts key decisions about our urban and rural areas more in the hands of state and local govt.

Presently in America, rural Americans in red states are running the country. While it's great that the Supreme Court has agreed to hear the Democrats' lawsuit about gerrymandering state districts, the decision could go against Dems. The electoral college is stacked against progressives, urban areas and Democrats generally.

The solution? It could only work if we pack up our money, the disproportionate about of tax dollars blue states send to the federal govt.

Florida argues that states and local govt are much better able to develop effective policies for residents. On the face of it, the total abdication among Dems of civic participation in local and state governing would be a disaster on the front end of a major shift in power and funding to state and local govts.

Yet, if one realization has set in among thinking progressives, it's the understanding that it's our own fault that we've abandoned civic responsibility at a local level. And the centralized federal govt that we over-fund is working against us, especially in a Trump-era.

While white men Dems try to convince us that we should make room for anti-choice, anti-immigrant, pro-gun, anti-everything we stand for disenfranchised white male Republicans, Florida argues that we need a total reassessment of the roles of local, state and federal govt in our lives.

There's serious food for thought in this article and an open door for dialogue that is far more thoughtful than demanding that the solution to Dems problems is firing Nancy Pelosi, now that Hillary Clinton has gone down. A more organic, holistic approach is required.

Note, that this is not a Bernie Sanders vision, as Bernie embraces an even more massive federal govt. It does emphasize Bernie's argument that progressives must get involved at a local and state level. ~ Anne