Looking for a Populist

Jonathan Chait thinks Bill Daley ultimately failed as White House chief of staff — and was stripped of authority — because Americans “were not itching for Obama to make peace with corporate America. Americans are in an angry, populist mood — distrustful of government, but even more distrustful of business.”

First Read notes this is the message of the new NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll: “Heading into 2012, America is looking for a populist. According to the poll, a whopping 76% agree with the statement that the current economic structure of the country is out of balance and favors a small proportion of the rich over the rest of the country.”