What Is The 'Abundance' Agenda?

Live-streamed on March 24, 2025

Paul Glastris, joins to discuss his new piece ‘The Meager Agenda of Abundance Liberals’ for Washington Monthly. Also on the show, the Trump admin gives up on “due process.”

#SamSeder #EmmaVigeland #majorityreport #politics #news #podcast

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[nfrance]

My general take on the abundance stuff is basically "okay, yeah sure, not the worst thing I've heard, but you're just going to use this as a Neolibralism 2.0 rather then actually fix stuff and hope people once more don't pay attention"

EDIT: A lot of people don’t understand so I’ll clarify: A lot of what is said about the abundance stuff IS good. That’s not the problem. The problem it’s very obvious that it’s a component of an overall solution but knowing how dems work, they’ll try to brand it as the new platform rather than the single component of the overall reforms needed.

[jackpurvis]

Robert Reich said it best: it's not about more or less regulation, it's about the right regulation.

[dartxsi]

The other problem here is that this is the ACA all over again. Because of the crippling fear of offending corporate America, they've come up with this overly complicated, technocratic solution that is very difficult to sell to the public, which will get bogged down in the legislative process. It'll also take way too long for any noticeable bebefits to take effect, and by the time they have, the Republicans will have come into power and can now start disassembling it.

[darrellhenry]

It is EXTREMELY disingenuous to say we’ve already tried YIMBY reforms. Most places have only tried very minimal reform. The places that have gone the maximum route (Minneapolis/Austin) have seen not just a stabilizing of rent but a drop in rent. What evidence does he have for the backlash. A bunch of Boomers showing up to council meetings? The reforms are popular with working class people and minorities because it lowers rents and lets them live in better neighborhoods. Since when should we allow racists and classist attacks deter us. These are the same people who say you can’t give an inch on transgender rights but want to run and hide when it’s time to do things that help people materially.

[jacobgsutton]

Here's an idea: do both. Tax the rich and eliminate bad regulations that slow down building and use the raised fund to fund universal healthcare, public housing, and infrastructure projects.

[gracewhite]

I’m sorry but he starts by admitting that he’s not necessarily on the left, then goes on the regurgitate nimby talking points on housing. Zoning is one of many obstacles to building new housing, and the YIMBY movement also wants to do things like reform parking mandates, setbacks, floor area ratios, and single staircase reform that would really allow enough housing to be built.

Also “wealthy white neighborhoods are mad about integration” is not a valid criticism of the politics of zoning reform. Since when are we pro segregation?

[Respectable_Username]

19:01 "Don't raise zoning in residential areas, raise it [...] near transit"
Why are these two things considered mutually exclusive? Adding better public transport is the _other_ arm of the YIMBY goals! Start adding bus services to these suburbs, start planning out train lines and/or metro lines and/or tram lines, and make it easier for folks in the suburbs to get around without a car. And then upzone around those public transport hubs so more folks can benefit from them without having to rely on the car!

[numberonedad]

oh they're not into redistributing the abundance at the top? shocking

[Code_Dee]

"What if we try tinkering around the edges some more?"

- Every Democrat after every election.

[leftboxanderson]

It needs to be post scarcity. Let’s get back to discussing as a civilization to removing select resources from the private market system. Water, wheat, corn, sugar, child care, elder care for a start

[KalifUmestoKalifa]

I have heard Ezra and the other guy, and I have now heard Paul. I need to hear them address each others points.
Also, I don't really buy the "you are not addressing the most important stuff" point. If what they are proposing is important, even if it's not among the most important things than it is still a good thing to do. I"ve heard Ezra on the John Stewart show, and his description of the process to get the Build back better rural broadband built is truly insane. Also, the system of local rules and litigation over every single thing is for sure stoping building of housing or high speed rail etc. Anyway I need to see what Ezra has to say to this. And what Paul has to say to what Ezra says etc.

[rainycitygirl]

Neolibralism with a fresh coat of paint.

[windyrockbell]

I dunno, I feel like this was half an hour of arguing how to arrange the housing policy deck chairs, meanwhile another electoral vote is gonna leave California and be sent to Texas because cost if living isnl driving people away.

[SciFi]

They have a point though. America's big cities are inefficient, poorly managed, over-regulated messes. What exactly is the point of the Kafkaesque bureaucracy? Forcing a homeowner in San Francisco to file environmental impact reports with 4-5 different city commissions simply to remove a dead tree stump from their own property doesn't help anybody. It just makes that frustrated homeowner more likely to have a reactionary response the next time any kind of new regulation is proposed.

[MrJoeyMcGovern]

Malcolm Harris’ review in The Baffler was pretty good in its criticism of “Abundance”, you guys should have him on to discuss it.

[darksaint]

The amount of people that have taken it upon themselves to sell this book in the comment section is nauseating. Liberals will do anything to avoided taxing the rich. Even try to gaslight us with what is clearly just repackaged neoliberalism. We're done given this chances. You've been repeating this cycle for decades and we are only deteriorating. Why do these people that never produce any results never go away?

[TheKing-edot]

Soon as I heard the Koch Brothers and Libertarians being involved; I was like “next” and that’s all I needed to hear.

Emma’s point hits the nail on the head…it’s a distraction and isn’t a coincidence that it’s presented right when people are uniting against the Oligarchy. Its purpose is to further create division within the Democratic Party.

[lizzirountree]

The term alone sounds like some amAnimal Farm bullshit

If it ain't universal healthcare I'm not interested.

[TheReykjavik]

The "abundance agenda" reminds me of a guy who tried to get me into an MLM scheme. It also sounds like a focus group tested term.

If they are more willing to work with the left than with the fascists, we might be able to agree on some things. Zoning laws are terrible, and environmental regulations do sometimes stop projects that are better for the environment than the status quo. So sure, reforms there that allow solar and wind projects to go forward more quickly (without abandoning the necessary parts of regulation), and ending zoning that enforces low density housing is good. But all of that is secondary to the big issues, like ending the influence of the rich (and taxing them heavily), protections for workers including immigrants of all kinds, and major public investment into a sustainable economy.