Mark Carney and the reinvention of "progressive nationalism"
The Centre-Left roars back in a big way
Nationalism has long been a calling-card of the centre-right and far right in western democracies. Calling those on the centre-left and the far left “unpatriotic” in the US or “ashamed of Canada” north of the border or implying a softness on race and ethnicity in European democracies is a standard campaign tactic from the right.
Enter Mark Carney and “progressive nationalism,” as I am now dubbing it.
As a Central Banker, Carney has a unique understanding of the economy and economic factors. Succeeding Justin Trudeau who made it easy for conservatives to attack him for being “anti-Canadian” was never going to be easy but Carney has it figured out. Embrace economics and unite Canadians feeling uneasy because of the megalomaniacal behavior of Donald Trump.
Having served as the Governor of the Bank of England in the time period when Tory rule of the UK permitted the buying up of the country by American venture capitalists, private equity and hedge funds, Carney had an eyewitness seat to the UK going from having an independent economy to traveling the road to potentially becoming a US vassal state for all intents-and-purposes.
That’s why he is uniquely equipped to see that Canada must take Donald Trump’s bombastic claims about a “51st State” seriously, and Canada must be prepared to take control of its own destiny. So what does this new progressive nationalism entail?
Government can be the mechanism to assert national interest and protect the nation from predatory forces whether internal or external.
Ideological boundaries are meaningless- Centre-Left leadership is about national values and not niche ideological issues championed by the left.
In a world where anti-democratic fascist forces are spreading and Trump-adjacent figures or Trump-imitators are popping up everywhere it is the centre-left that protects the people.
Additionally Carney has made noises about Canada strategically no longer sending raw materials and unfinished goods to the United States, instead focusing on Canada perhaps manufacturing its own finished goods with its own raw materials. This is fundamentally very different from Donald Trump’s approach which assumes Americans can create goods with raw materials sources from abroad and intimidate foreign nations in the process.
Ultimately having a national industrial policy sounds very 1950’s-like, but Donald Trump’s protectionist world view is forcing everyone to react and pivot, which Carney’s background allows him to do particularly well.
Carney understanding the damage that was done to the UK’s economic independence by the proliferation of American investment into formerly British companies informs his potential desire to either nationalize certain industries or encourage domestic-ownership/provincial investment.
If this sounds like Socialism, sure it is a form of nationalization and Socialism, but one specifically equipped to meet the moment we find ourselves in due to the Trump rampage against the global rules-based order and international system of trade.
How does this impact the coming Canadian election?
It gives traditional NDP and Liberal voters in addition to others concerned about the threat from the United States a candidate, philosophy and party to rally around.
What are the lessons of this for the centre-left in the United States and Western Europe? Nationalism can be reclaimed by the center and left, and government activism can be a way to promote national interests and win elections.
Great analysis, Kartik. I was unaware of the incursion of US investment into the UK, though in retrospect it is not surprising. Seems like something for us to address in Canada. I also think it is very important to have a path for the centre left ideologically. The US democrats inability to really pivot to economic issues aside from strictly a more leftist AOC/Bernie Sanders view is something I think they desperately need to address. In my view the democrats in the US need to be both populist (i.e pro higher minimum wages, higher corporate income tax, higher worker protections and pro-union) while still trying to forge some form of pro-business approach on the rest (perhaps pro some deregulation to allow projects to happen faster, more allowing on mergers, more sympathetic to working with business leaders, more engaged on crypto, sensitivity to 401K's.....). I think it would be fantastic if Carney could become a role model for the centre left world wide.