Why We Listen To Populists: Episode 3, Ross Perot

By Matthew Clark

Throughout the Western World, indeed most of the globe, populist politicians and social commentators are on the attack against a Neo-Liberal Globalist political order they perceive as corrupt and priveleged. These attacks are receiving acceptance from an ever receptive citizenry, who believe their interests are being subverted by the established political hierarchy.

In order to understand why the average man and woman is so disenchanted with their lawmakers, it helps to look back in history to some of those individuals who set the pattern for contemporary populisms growing appeal.

Ross Perot was born June 27, 1930 in Texarkana, Texas, United States. Perot's early years were spent in impoverishment. With no money at his disposal Perot tried to find ways to better himself which did not involve spending money. In this vein he applied to the government financed U.S. Naval Academy at Annapolis, Maryland. His application was successful, allowing the Texan to graduate from the academy, then to serve in the United States Navy from 1953-1957. Upon leaving the navy the ambitious Perot found an employment position with International Business Machines (IBM). Leaving IBM after half a decade in their employ, Ross Perot started his own high tech company. A first rate salesman, Perot was soon a rising star in the American business community. He also acquired a strong reputation for personnel loyalty. When two of his employees were taken prisoner in Tehran during the Iranian Revolution Perot organized a rescue team, which holed up in Tehran, himself included, until the moment was right to successfully execute a liberation of his workers.

Although he could be a hardheaded businessman the Texan attached strong value to the high quality (as he saw it) of the American labourer, especially in the manufacturer sector.

It seems almost inevitable that a military veteran, accomplished businessman, with a high appreciation for the American worker, develop a hard line political outlook. Such was the case with Ross Perot. Observing the United States political scene the Texas high tech businessman became disenchanted with U.S. politicians focus on gaining free trade agreements with Third World Nations. These agreements, he noted anxiously, undercut the wages of American manufacturing employees. Furthermore the U.S. Federal Government debt and deficit wass rapidly esculating, an action which Perot referred to as an "assault on the economic well being of future generations in the United States."

Similar to Republican Party maverick Pat Buchanan, Perot was harshly critical of George H.W. Bush (the senior Bush), the Republican Party President who had been victorious in the 1988 U.S. Presidential election. In 1992 George Bush decided to run for U.S. president once again. Nor was the feisty Perot impressed with the 1992 Democratic Party United States Presidential candidate Bill Clinton. Clinton appeared to have abandoned the American blue collar worker (which indeed he had) in order to secure the support of the upper echelon of the American business sector, particularly the emerging high tech industry.

Not a man to sit idly by when he saw a problem, Perot decided to run for the American Presidentcy as an independent candidate. He advocated for congressional term limits, balancing the federal budget, overhauling health care and the income tax system, and restricting lobbying of federal politicians. After some initial confusion early in the campaign, when he announced he was abandoning his candidacy, then quickly re-entered the race, Perot settled down and produced an effective campaign. He outshone Clinton and Bush during the televised Presidential debates. On election night the straightforward Texan received 19% of the vote, the best showing by a third party candidate in a U.S. Presidential election since Theodore Roosevelt's 1912 'Bull Moose' campaign.

Hoping to improve his showing even further on a second attempt Ross Perot ran for U.S. President in 1996, again as an independent candidate. He handicapped himself with a poor performance in a political debate with U.S. Vice President Al Gore. As well the two established political parties directed far more resources to frustrating Perot's efforts than they had in 1992. As a result in 1996 Ross Perot received 8% of total votes cast in the national election. His support among voters had fallen by more than half from the previous election.

Perot over the years had expressed repeated concern that low wage Mexican workers would cause U.S. manufacturers to move their American plants south into Mexico. While this did occur a far bigger loss for American manufacturing was the movement of U.S. plants to low wage China. Ultimately Ross Perot was correct in his assertion, he just misidentified which nation would do the most damage to United States producers.

Ross Perot's warnings about the economic perils of Free Trade and excessive debt have been born out over time. His example stands out as another reason why populists are receiving an ever increasing audience in contemporary times.