All Politics is Local?

Is it? Really?

Former Speaker of the House Tip O’Neill Jr. is often credited with the saying “All Politics is Local”, though apparently,he didn’t originate it.

Many of the real issues facing people in our districts are in fact local. And yet, even those local matters are significantly affected by far away events. Arizonans’ cost of living has gone up (not just gas) since the Strait of Hormuz has been blocked. And the Federally directed appearance of ICE agents in our neighborhoods affects our sense of security.

What is it that people hear and see?

But perhaps an even bigger effect come from the nature of our information channels. Social media and traditional news streams are dominated by national and international events. That is what most people see, when they can look away from their busy lives at all. Local news is sparse, and the biggest outlets tend to focus on matters that are far from the major issues affecting their lives^[1].

While a President threatening genocide abroad, trashing our scientific base at the national level, and attacking our democratic norms (to name just a few travesties) can’t be ignored, local politics is critical to our well-being. National and international matters are reflected so clearly there.

Our Republican-majority legislature certainly reflects the national picture. As noted in the Arizona Agenda this morning, “Even though 44% of the Legislature’s members are Democrats, last year only about 2% of bills that passed both chambers were sponsored by Democrats — a whopping total of 11 bills.” In other words, a significant fraction of the state’s voters is essentially unrepresented in the legislature’s output. This is similar to the inability of Congressional Democrats to further any of their agenda, despite the unpopularity of the current policies of the majority.

Consider volatile (and largely rising) gas prices. A normal response to that instability would be to encourage the transition from fossil fuels to renewable ones. And yet both the current Arizona Corporation Commission and the current state legislature show no interest in this.

And while education advocates have sought for years to raise our state’s position in any measure for academic results to at least the middle of the pack, the legislature is even balking at maintaining the status quo.

But change is possible

The turnover on the SRP Board, for instance, has shown that even a concerted effort by the influential Turning Point activists could be overcome. And we can hope that a grassroots voucher guardrails effort underway to put a citizen’s measure on the ballot can succeed. And most importantly, this year’s elections give the citizens an opportunity to change the legislature. The national mood can affect the local elections enough that red-leaning districts can turn blue this year. That’s not a given, but there is an extremely good chance for good candidates with effective campaigns (Deborah Howard and Kyle Clayton in LD27 come to mind).

Broadly publicized national and international events have huge effects on voters, so in that sense, politics is far from local. But in competitive elections, even smaller factors can be decisive. And those must be focused on grassroots action. Capable candidates working to move us forward, not backward, must connect with the voters, as much as possible. 

That part of politics remains local. And it is essential.

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^[1] I’m so grateful for channels like the Arizona Agenda, which can provide great coverage of local and state matters. But we need more.