The Echoes of General Boulanger: When Leftists Flirt With Right-Wing Populism with Donald Parkinson

Varn Vlog

As normie conservatives casually throw around terms like "Bonapartist" to describe Trump's new administration, we've entered a peculiar moment where Marxist terminology has infiltrated mainstream political discourse—often without its theoretical underpinnings. This wide-ranging conversation explores the historical parallels between today's political landscape and 19th century France, when General Boulanger's right-wing populist movement tempted certain leftists into dangerous alliances. Donald Parkinson of Marxist Unity Group and Cosmonaut Magazine helps us clarify.
We dissect the contradictory coalition behind Trump's second administration: an unlikely alliance between traditional middle American constituencies and Silicon Valley tech oligarchs that has fundamentally altered the movement's character. This creates a uniquely modern version of Bonapartism, where executive power operates independently from other ruling class factions, but with enthusiastic backing from tech billionaires rather than reluctant acceptance from established elites.
The historical debate between Engels and Paul Lafargue proves remarkably relevant today. Engels vehemently opposed leftist alliances with Boulanger, insisting socialists must maintain political independence while defending democratic institutions against right-wing authoritarianism. Today's versions of this debate—from "MAGA communism" to various post-left tendencies—echo Lafargue's failed argument that riding right-wing populism would ultimately benefit socialism.
As liberal institutions prove remarkably fragile against authoritarianism and traditional left strategies seem inadequate, we face fundamental questions about political strategy. How can socialists build independent politics without becoming either appendages to liberalism or useful idiots for the right? What does defending democratic rights look like when the constitutional order itself is crumbling? And how do we understand class politics when traditional definitions no longer map neatly onto social reality?
This conversation offers essential historical context and strategic clarity for navigating our deteriorating political landscape—a moment when understanding the mistakes of the past might help us avoid repeating them.

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Host: C. Derick Varn
Intro and Outro Music by Bitter Lake.
Intro Video Design: Jason Myles
Art Design: Corn and C. Derick Varn
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Chapters

1. The Echoes of General Boulanger: When Leftists Flirt With Right-Wing Populism with Donald Parkinson (00:00:00)

2. Introduction to Bonapartism in Modern Politics (00:01:38)

3. Tech Oligarchs and the New Trump Coalition (00:11:03)

4. Historical Parallels: General Boulanger and the Left (00:30:26)

5. Marxist Debates on Fascism and Bonapartism (00:49:44)

6. The Challenges of Independent Socialist Politics (01:10:21)

7. Democratic Institutions and the Future of the Left (01:28:18)