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“It’s the Economy, Stupid !” Analyzing the Uprisings in Bahrain, Egypt and Tunisia As in Bill Clinton’s famous quip, “It’s the economy, stupid !” the revolts of the Arab Spring are often treated as a single monolithic phenomenon born of systemic economic pressures. A critical look at this dominant narrative reveals some of its internal contradictions as well as its inability to account for differences between Tunisia, Egypt and Bahrain. In order to evaluate the relative place occupied by the economy and politics in the grievances voiced by the populations in question, this article begins with a comparative political economic analysis of the three uprisings. Highlighting the unique role played by middle class youth in all of them, it notes that, despite the targeted measures taken on their behalf by authoritarian regimes, young people suffered from both high unemployment and relative deprivation. Yet economic grievance was not always the principal source of revolt and the relative importance of the middle classes, the poor, workers’ organizations and pro-democracy movements varied from one country to the next. Political discontent thus weighed more heavily in Bahrain and Egypt than in Tunisia. The existence of divisions within the ruling elite significantly contributed to the politicization of middle class youth and opened a space of mobilization for them around democratic demands. ■