Why? Sweden has had decades of Soc Dem rule. The US has had decades of neoliberal rule. Why does one have any predictive value for the other?
[WS:] Because I do not think that elections are like a pendulum, going back and forth in a clockwork fashion. They represent real collective choices and collective preferences. These preferences are seldom bread-and-butter, utilitarian concerns, contrary to what most Marxists, socialists, social democrats, or for that matter neo-classical economists tend to believe. They are about values, pride, identity, status, self respect and kindred mushy things that the Left (including this writer) tends to scorn.
The reason why what happened in Sweden (or what is going on in Hungary http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/5359250.stm) is indicative of broader popular sentiments worldwide is that the Left got bogged down in the hundred year old bread and butter mantra, and does not have much to offer in the "identity and values" department. The bread and butter mantra simply lost most of their traction, people want to hear about who they are and what their place in the world is - and the Left ceded that market to the Right and religions.
Wojtek