In this chapter my colleagues and I consider the consequences of populism, but in the realm of public policy. We do so by engaging in an analysis of the Missions, which were the principal poverty alleviation programs of the Chávez government after 2003. The Missions represent a significant shift in Chávez's approach to socioeconomic development as well as an enormous outlay of government resources. This analysis of the Missions is a very different topic from the study of organization and the Bolivarian Circles, but one that again reveals the distinct imprint of populist ideas on the actual conduct of politics.

The analysis demonstrates the consequences of populism in two ways. First, we show how an economic definition of populism is subsumed under the ideational one. Economic definitions link populism with shortsighted macroeconomic policies. These approaches emphasize one of populism's key consequences; however, rather than showing how policies are framed and the worldview that informs them, they focus on the raw material qualities of economic policy and their long-term sustainability. The tendency to associate populism with bad economics is not entirely wrong (we see these kinds of policies in the case of Missions and in Chavismo more broadly), but definitions of populism emphasizing economic policy put the cart before the horse, failing to appreciate the underlying ideas that drive policy choices. Statist redistributive policies such as the Missions are understandable consequences of a populist worldview in a material context of poverty and inequality.