| Photo by Dmytro Demidko on Unsplash
Part III of the “Pocketbook Politics” Series
The “Pocketbook Politics” series got a boost indirectly from Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear.
Governor Beshear, a Democrat, laid out a framework Tuesday for his party to win back the American people’s trust. He said, “Democrats need to focus on core issues that matter to people every day—like jobs, housing, and healthcare.”
“While I’m deeply disappointed with the national result, I refuse to play the blame game,” Governor Beshear wrote in an op-ed published in The New York Times last Tuesday, November 12.
“The Democratic Party must show the American people that it cares about creating a better life for every American and re-earn the public’s trust about its focus and direction,” Governor Beshear wrote in his op-ed piece.
This series may provide some ideas on implementing what Governor Beshear talked about in his essay. This columnist wrote in the introduction of “Pocketbook Politics” last Sunday that “Reformers can start in the United States by talking about the faults of Crony Capitalism. On February 1, 2023, this column said, “There is a need for American voters to begin discussing Cooperative Capitalism. The present economic system has not been able to solve economic problems like recession, poverty, homelessness, healthcare, and education (both inadequate and beyond the reach of many marginal segments of society). And other social cancers.”
Part II last Wednesday provided more details about it. “The Pocketbook Political Co-op (PPC) may also engage in lawful apolitical businesses like a cooperative store or grocery, restaurants, and bars to generate more income. Every place of apolitical business can operate a podcast, website, or online TV station, depending on its location.
“The PPC organizations can also have their own credit union, Their national federation can also buy out the controlling owners of hundreds of distressed rustic banks and rural hospitals — in due time. Then the co-ops can reinvent healthcare and usher in a cooperative-owned health-maintenance organization (HMO).”
“There is a need for American voters to begin discussing Cooperative Capitalism. The present economic system has not been able to solve economic problems like recession, poverty, homelessness, healthcare, and education (both inadequate and beyond the reach of many marginal segments of society). And other social cancers.”
Part II pinpointed how the Democratic Party could have quickly injected equity in all the 50 state federations of a (suggested) PPC consortium. How? The Harris-Walz slate could have invested $500 million in the PPC — out of the nearly $1.7 billion it raised from small and big donors for the 2024 presidential election.
Some other details are explained in Part II, like entering into joint ventures with Native-American Indian (NAI) tribes and competing with the “Sin City of Las Vegas (NV)” by establishing “Scene Cities” that will be the scenes (pun intended) of school reunions, weddings, conferences, concerts, sporting activities and also some gaming (in the casino-cooperatives owned by the NAI tribes, investors, their promoters, employees, clients and gambling patrons).
Speaking of the NAI, here is this columnist piece published on December 22, 2021. It discussed the opportunities for NAI tribes to participate in developing the Mississippi River, its tributary rivers, and deltas. It was entitled “Mixing History With Economic Development in the Old-Man River Renaissance Idea.”
Perhaps Democrats in and outside the Commonwealth of Kentucky can spearhead the formation of PPCs as a legacy of Governor Beshear. Yes, before he is termed out, as he cannot run for a third term. He can also ask his staff dealing with socioeconomic development to look into this column’s articles on developing the Mississippi River. Kentucky is one of the 32 states that have tributary rivers feeding waters to it or that belong to the so-called “Old Man River (OMR) Deltas.” This columnist has been writing about the OMR since 2021.
After all, this columnist has a standing invitation to Governor Beshear to write the Foreword for his coming book about developing the OMR and the 32 states that provide water to it. If he wants, he can be a co-author of the coming book about “Pocketbook Politics ” or simply write its Foreword.
Quo vadis, Governor Beshear, and Democrats and their allies in Kentucky?
