America’s automation is at core of Yang’s message
A robot stole Rosalie Bromley’s job.
She hopes Andrew Yang can help her.
The 52-year-old Sharpsburg resident had worked for 13 years in a major retailer’s cash office — responsible for processing and counting all the money — before her company brought in a machine to do the job.
She worked with the machine for a bit at first, but eventually, she was told her job had become obsolete and that she’d either have to find another job at the store, quit or be fired. She opted for a job stocking shelves, which exacerbated her existing health problems.
It was during a six-month medical leave that Ms. Bromley came across a YouTube interview with Mr. Yang, the Democratic presidential contender who has centered his campaign on the growing threat of automation to the U.S. economy.
“I was like, ‘my god, he’s talking about me,’” Ms. Bromley said. “I’m one of those retails who got replaced.”
Ms. Bromley is a member of the “Pittsburgh Yang Gang,” an affectionate name for supporters of the tech entrepreneur’s bid for the presidency. They coalesce on Facebook, praising their candidate for his grasp on economic issues and his support for a $1,000-permonth universal basic income for all adults, paid for through a tax on the companies benefiting most from automation.
But some worry about his chances in the crowded race, blaming their concerns on a mainstream media machine they say is ignoring his electability and protecting the status quo.
The 44-year-old techie’s candidacy has resonated with Pittsburghers of all party affiliations, with some of his supporters saying he’s tapping into the same economic anxieties that Donald Trump capitalized on in 2016 — but from a genuine place of concern.
Jonathan Hopkins, a lifelong Democrat who supported Bernie Sanders in 2016, said Mr. Trump connected with voters who felt left behind, including many in Western Pennsylvania who have experienced the effects of a decline in manufacturing.
Mr. Yang understands “the root cause of our economic problems” and labels Mr. Trump a symptom of a broken system, Mr. Hopkins said — an ideology that he said influenced him to take a vacation from work, drive to Iowa and go
canvassing door-to-door for the candidate.
“This campaign brings together people who are so far ideologically apart that would never talk otherwise,” Mr. Hopkins said, adding that the campaign has offered supporters of Mr. Trump “a path to redemption rather than looking for retribution.”
Several Democratic party chairs in rural Pennsylvania said Mr. Yang isn’t even on the minds of their members, with one calling him a “fringe candidate.” But many acknowledged that if he were the party’s nominee, Democrats would line up behind him simply because he’s not Mr. Trump.
Concerns about Mr. Yang’s electability also have surfaced in Western Pennsylvania.
Mimi Haley, head of the Pleasant Hills Democrats, said she doesn’t think Mr. Yang could beat Mr. Trump in a general election, and that although the candidate’s concerns are valid, a universal basic income is not the “best resolution.”
For 45-year-old Sewickley resident Mark Steffey, the $1,000 monthly dividend was one of the reasons he switched his voter registration from “independent” to “Democrat” this year. By the time a President Yang would be inaugurated, three of his daughters would be of the age to receive the stipend, bringing his family’s total to $5,000 extra per month.
Mr. Steffey, who said his family would use the income to build up their savings and lessen the burden of college tuition, is in the process of becoming a delegate for Mr. Yang.
A Yang campaign spokesman, asked about its Pennsylvania operation, said he would not preview its post-Super Tuesday strategy at this time, but said they’re “engaging with voters in Pennsylvania” through an organizing program that mobilizes volunteers in all states.
“This puts our campaign in a position of strength and advantage on Super Tuesday and beyond,” national press secretary S.Y. Lee wrote in an email.
Jordan Mandel, a 27-year-old research technician at Children’s Hospital, said one of the reasons he supports Mr. Yang is because he appeals to people’s problems directly — including those of conservatives — in a way that “doesn’t necessarily evoke things that maybe conservatives would call socialist.”
“Yang effectively recognizes the pain Americans are feeling,” Mr. Mandel added, claiming that the candidate gives their anger and pain a positive outlet.
Mr. Yang is polling at around 3.5 points nationally — neck-and-neck with Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar — but is nearing the 5% mark in New Hampshire. His campaign announced this week that he raised more than $16.5 million during the fourth fundraising quarter, $6.5 million more than it had accumulated during the previous period.
He hasn’t yet qualified for the next primary debate in January, and his supporters have echoed his request that the Democratic National Committee commission more qualifying polls.
One of those supporters, 38-year-old Moon school director Jen Partica, hopes Mr. Yang’s voice is included because it’s the only one talking about automation — which she and her husband, a tech worker, have watched firsthand.
“We’ve sat here quietly and, very concerned, said to ourselves, ‘pretty soon, tractor trailers will be autonomous and Uber will get rid of drivers’” said Ms. Partica, who also co-chairs the West Hills Women’s Democratic Organization. “What are we going to do in this country when there are suddenly no jobs for people anymore?”