The phrase “all politics is local politics” has been common in American political discourse for nearly a century. While the phrase still holds true today, the reality is changing. National politics now often drive local politics, and this dynamic is accelerating.
The phrase originated in the 1930s as Americans began to live in cities rather than rural areas, but was popularized by House Speaker Thomas “Tip” O’Neill (D-Mass.) in the 1980s, before the internet, smartphones or mainstream media existed.
In an age of mass media, the party that structures the national debate effectively often wins the election.
Today, over 80% of Americans live in urban areas where mass media is ubiquitous. Over the past 70 years, we’ve moved from radio to television (first network, then cable, then streaming), to the internet and smartphones. Events that take place in New York, Washington DC, or even Maine no longer remain in isolation; they now reach the living rooms and smartphones of Americans around the world instantly.
This dramatic technological change has profoundly altered our lives and fundamentally altered the political landscape as we once knew it.
The most significant change occurred with the arrival of national television in the 1970s. Prior to this period in American history, government spending had increased slowly, except for the 1930s, which was affected by World War II and the Great Depression. However, once network television went from a luxury to a household necessity in the 1970s, government spending skyrocketed, as shown in the graph below.
With each new advancement in the way “news” is transmitted, from the Internet to smartphones, the pace of government spending accelerates even further.
For example, when Hurricane Katrina hit during George W. Bush’s presidency, much of the media criticized Bush for his lack of action and empathy. In response to this reporting and in the midst of serious political uncertainty, billions of dollars were quickly allocated. A few years later, when a hurricane hit Texas during President Trump’s presidency, billions of dollars were allocated without a word. By that time, politics had become national, not local.
Today, the issues that drive American politics — the border, crime, homelessness, “wokeness,” climate change, foreign policy, inflation, the trials of politicians — are so firmly entrenched in the national debate that national parties and their politicians are forced to take positions on these issues, even if they would prefer to focus on local issues.
Another sign of the national nature of politics today can be seen in opinion polls.
In 2022, U.S. News and World Report said,Anxious AmericaThe following year, CBS News reported that climate anxiety was on the rise among young people. Citing a poll 89% of young Americans ages 16 to 25 expressed various levels of concern about climate change. Only 9% said they were not worried, and almost no respondents were undecided or uncertain.
The prevalence of these opinions indicates that these issues are not simply local topics. Rather, they are being promoted nationwide by the media, government and public schools.
Consider the transgender issue. This issue now permeates American politics and the media, but seven years ago it barely featured in the national discussion. Now states and schools across the country are grappling with the issue. Why has it spread so quickly and become a national issue? In a word: technologySpecifically, national debates are shaping local responses.
Finally, special elections for federal and state legislatures increasingly attract national attention and funding. Local elections have effectively become national events. The impact of the nationalization of technology and politics on society is profound.
Changes in social mores and traditions are equally profound and are greatly accelerated by technology and the nationalization of issues. Ideas that were stable for generations, such as marriage, now change in a matter of years. For example, Barack Obama and Joe Biden campaigned against same-sex marriage in 2007. Today, same-sex marriage is not only legally recognized, but is also becoming a cultural norm.
The result, American historian Will Durant has warned, is that tradition is to society what memory is to the individual: lose your memory and you lose your sanity. Consistent with Durant’s warning, the rapidity of change in American society is creating anxiety and worse.
In an age of mass media, parties that effectively frame the national debate are likely to win elections. As the nationalization of issues and the size of government continue to expand, it seems likely that politics will increasingly become more national than local.
