The 'Popular Front' Reappears Once Again: In France
"Either this nation shall kill racism, or racism shall kill this nation." (S. Jonas, August, 2018)
This past June there were continent-wide elections in Europe for the Council of the European Union. The result was a resurgence of the Right and the Far-Right in a number of the nations which comprise it (including France). The reaction of the French President, Emmanuel Macron, in which that resurgence did occur, was to call for a snap parliamentary election. French elections occur in two rounds, a week apart, with the result of the second one being binding. In the first, the French Right, the National Rally (which has historical connections going back to the French Right that collaborated with the occupying Nazis in the Second World War), made a surprisingly strong showing. Hiding behind their strongly "anti-immigrant" (of the "wrong" kind, of course) policy, were threats to install other elements of what is commonly called "fascism."
The response to the first-round results, of several different parties, ranging from the Communists to the traditional "Center-Left" parties, was to form the Nouveau Front Populaire, the is the New Popular Front. In the second ballot, the New Popular Front came in first, and the National Rally lost considerable ground. However, the NFP did not win a majority of seats in the Parliament and as of now, extensive, intensive, negotiations to form the new government are on-going. It is not the purpose of this column to delve into those negotiations. It is, rather, to revisit a column that I originally published in 2018, in advance of the 2020 U.S. elections, that is the history of the original Front Populaire in France, in the context of the possible triumph of Trump-Republo-Fascism that we are facing in November.
The original Front emerged in 1938 in an attempt to confront the fascism that had taken over Italy in 1922, then Germany in 1933, and at that time was threatening to take over Spain (which it did in 1939 with the victory of the Franco Fascists [with the aid of Germany and Italy while the "Western Democracies," including the United Sates, refused to provide arms to the democratically-elected government]). France was being threatened with a form of fascism at that time as well. The formation of the Front was a response to that threat. It did not go well, as is well-known.
In the U.S., Trump and his MAGA crowd, and more importantly the Big Money represented by the Heritage Foundation behind him, present an even more serious threat of instituting Fascism-in-the-U.S. than they did previously (and more serious than would the National Rally in France, absent control of the Presidency). In 900-plus pages Project 2025 spells out in great detail what the U.S. government would become under its sway, with a fascist form of government ranging from the President having direct control of Justice Department, to the destruction of the Federal Civil Service without the benefit of legislation, to the institution of mass deportation of "aliens," apparently without the benefit of legislation either. Plus, plus, plus.
As it happens, the anti-Fascist forces in this country face several problems. They range from not-everyone-in-it-recognizing-that-the-Trump-2025 forces are indeed fascists (indeed one "leftist' whose notes I see regularly said that he would prefer Trump to "Genocide Joe" [his term]), to a potentially physically-mentally-and-politically weak opponent in President Biden, to a tiny-but-very-vocal left (see, e.g., Jill Stein). Some of the latter focus more on the President and his policy-defects (he does have them) than the threat of outright fascism (see the definition that I use, below) posed by Trump-2025.
It is just another quirk of Trump and the Trumpers that as some of the more horrifying details of Project 2025 become public, despite the fact that in large part it was created by staff from the Trump Administration, that Trump is currently trying to run away from it. Nevertheless, given the public statements emanating from Dr. Stein, et al, the prospects for developing a popular front here seem slim indeed --- to repeat, at least at present. Maybe they will come to their senses in time. Hey, you never know. Nevertheless, in the context of the Fascist Threat in France, and in the United States, I thought that it would be useful to re-visit the history of the original Front Populaire, with the possible lessons to be learned from that history in this country, as envisioned in 2018.
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The original Popular Front was a French institution of government that existed, in a variety of forms, between 1934 and 1938. After being the engine of several French governments during that period, it eventually fell apart in the fall of 1938 over what policies France should adopt in dealing with the coming fascist victory over the Spanish Republic. At various times its major components included the French Communist Party (a parliamentary party, it should be noted), the French Socialist Party, and the center-left Radical Party, plus various other smaller groupings. Domestically it followed a generally conventional left-wing line, attempting to improve the lot of the French working class, under capitalism.
In foreign policy, it was generally opposed the fascist Germany and Italy, but not so opposed that it abandoned the general European "non-intervention" policy in the Spanish Civil War (1936-39). That policy was ignored by both Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy. Indeed, many observers over the years have thought that without Italian ground troops and Nazi air forces, and with even modest arms supplies made available to the elected Republican (in the literal sense) government from the "Western Democracies," that the Republic could have prevailed. Some outside assistance was supplied by the Soviet Union. And significant numbers of foreigners came to fight alongside the Republicans, in the International Brigade.
At any rate, the First Popular Front was originally organized in France to oppose fascism, both there and abroad. Which brings us of course to the present time in the U.S. (In this earlier column, that was 2018.) More and more, authorities/observers are defining the Trump government as fascist. I have spent considerable time on that subject. One element that I have introduced into my analyses has been the presentation of a series of definitions. They have all said the same thing, beginning with the historical fact that fascist governments have always been established in the attempt to preserve and serve capitalism and the capitalist ruling class of their home country. But I have been trying to get them to be shorter. A current one is:
"Fascism is a system of government in which there is no separation of powers and the Executive is in control of all branches of the State apparatus, including the judiciary. It is designed to maintain and expand the power of the State for the benefit of a capitalist ruling class. Fascism is characterized by the use of racism, misogyny, and xenophobia, in various proportions, as well as force and terror, to maintain its control. The State may have a single charismatic leader. There may be a single national ideology supported by law, but if not, certain ideologies are banned by law, and certain religious/non-religious views are criminalized. There are no independent media."
So, what does this all mean? The Popular Front, that exists in this country without the name, has to be followed to the voting booth and to the extent that it can be strengthened in these last two weeks before election day, that must be done. Functionally, it means voting Democratic on THIS election day. Does that mean being a Democrat? Not necessarily. I hold no illusions about the Democratic Party. But right here, and right now, it means voting that way. (And of course, there are many traditional Republicans like Steve Schmidt, Max Boot, and heaven-help-us George Will who are urging their adherents to vote Democratic.) Because without at least a Democratic House (and maybe even with it --- but that's another story), the Trumpites will be moving forcefully right down the road to frank fascism.
First of all, both major political parties represent, with different emphases, the capitalist ruling class of this country. Second of all, since the Democratic Party was taken over by the Bill Clinton/Al Gore led Democratic Leadership Council in the 1980s, it has left behind most of what leftover elements of the New Deal and the short-lived Great Society and until recently, (see certain elements of it like the "Sanders/Warren Wing") has not much opposed the dominant economic sector of the ruling class in terms of policy. Third of all, of course parties like the "Greens" have more progressive platforms, and with the re-emergence of the U.S. Democratic Socialist Party, we are beginning to see an electoral candidate here and there who actually advocates the eventual transition from capitalism to socialism.
BUT, fourth of all, we do not have a parliamentary system, in which governing coalitions can be made. Right now, we a hard-and-fast two-party system, with, for Congress (but of course, with the legacy-of-slavery Electoral College not for the Presidency) first-past-the-gate voting. Fourth, we don't have a universal voting franchise in the US. Voter suppression has become ever more important to the Repubs. If they retain full control of the Congress that will only become worse.
Does capitalism need to be replaced, eventually? Well, anyone who has reading my writings for even not-too-long knows my position on that one. Does the Democratic Party (which, let us have no illusions, will never be a socialist party) need to be taken back from the Clinton/Democratic Leadership Council (which no longer exists in name but surely exists in function), and replaced by a progressive party along the lines of Bernie Sanders' "New Deal on Steroids?" Yes. Is it necessary to build a multi-pronged socialist movement the United States? Yes. But let us be clear. None of this will happen if the Trumpites sweep the mid-term Federal elections next month. To repeat, as I will be demonstrating in my column next week, they will then set the nation firmly on the road to fascism.
SO. For this election at least, it is absolutely necessary to have an anti-Trump/Repub. Popular Front. Otherwise, there will be no place for anti-Trump Republicans, liberal and progressive Democrats, Greens, and socialists to have open discussions about, and then making plans for, moving our great nation away from the fascist abyss and forward into a brighter future. As happened in Nazi Germany, and for a time in Nazi-controlled France with their Collaborators in "Vichy France," all will be submerged under the Fascist Tide.
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In conclusion: Sound familiar? It should.