Political movements often begin as revolts against entrenched power, only to be absorbed by the very institutions they sought to challenge. The pattern is familiar in American political history. Grassroots insurgencies ignite public enthusiasm, mobilize voters around neglected issues, and briefly threaten the ruling consensus. Yet over time they are either neutralized or transformed into instruments of the existing political order. Two movements defined the political awakening of many Americans in the early twenty-first century: the Tea Party and the MAGA movement. Both promised a revolt...

When the Rev. Jesse Jackson died this week in Chicago at age 84, the tributes were predictable. Jackson was a protégé of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., a two‑time presidential candidate, and the most prominent black civil‑rights leader for decades. The Associated Press obituary noted that he continued to speak out for the poor and underrepresented and maintained a schedule of protests and speeches until his body failed him. His family called him a “servant leader” whose crusades spanned voting rights, jobs, education, and health care. At first blush, the narrative is obvious: the Rainbow...