Who’s a populist? Democrats taking on Trump look to reclaim the mantle.

“Stop calling Donald Trump a populist,” liberal New York Times columnist Paul Krugman ordered the media last August.

It’s true, Mr. Krugman wrote, President Trump does occasionally “pose” as a champion of ordinary Americans against the elite. But, he asserted, the president’s record reveals otherwise. Mr. Trump, for his part, boasts that his policies have been great for American workers and commands big crowds doing so.

Definitions of populism can vary, and candidates themselves often shy away from embracing the term, perhaps to avoid limiting their appeal. Populism can exist on both the left and the right, and depending on the audience, the term can have either negative or positive connotations. 

Still, as the 2020 Democratic hopefuls begin staking out positions aimed at attracting voters, some see taking back ownership of