A citizen of another country recently confessed confusion. This person
has watched hours of documentaries regarding Mr. Trump, but still cannot
understand how he can be President of the United States. Here are a
few points that may provide insight.
In one of the most colossal political blunders of all time, Hillary
Clinton, Mr. Trump’s opponent in the US 2016 Presidential election,
lumped half his supporters into a “basket of deplorables.” Yes, Mr.
Trump has support from some citizens with views that most would like to
think are contrary to American values, but insulting the supporters of
one’s opponent is not very intelligent. This elitist comment provided a
banner under which all of Mr. Trump’s supporters could rally.
Ms. Clinton was a weak candidate. She was not charismatic and there was an overtone of entitlement to her campaign. She was not one to inspire undecided people to vote for her.
Mr. Trump pays attention to the “flyover” locales. He has made, and continues to make frequent appearances for rallies in places like Hershey, Pennsylvania, and Tupelo, Mississippi. The mere notion that these are places to fly over rather than stop is offensive to the citizens living in these areas. Mr. Trump is especially good at telling
those people he cares about them, and that his opponents do not.
The decline of American manufacturing has drastically decreased the need for unskilled and low-skilled workers. Those decent-paying jobs are not coming back due to the low wages in competing countries. Though few in the current workforce were working during the post WW2 heyday of American manufacturing, that era is looked back upon as a golden age when anyone who desired one could have a living wage job. Hence at least one reason for the power of the “Make America Great Again” slogan.
Ms. Clinton was a weak candidate. She was not charismatic and there was an overtone of entitlement to her campaign. She was not one to inspire undecided people to vote for her.
Mr. Trump pays attention to the “flyover” locales. He has made, and continues to make frequent appearances for rallies in places like Hershey, Pennsylvania, and Tupelo, Mississippi. The mere notion that these are places to fly over rather than stop is offensive to the citizens living in these areas. Mr. Trump is especially good at telling
those people he cares about them, and that his opponents do not.
The decline of American manufacturing has drastically decreased the need for unskilled and low-skilled workers. Those decent-paying jobs are not coming back due to the low wages in competing countries. Though few in the current workforce were working during the post WW2 heyday of American manufacturing, that era is looked back upon as a golden age when anyone who desired one could have a living wage job. Hence at least one reason for the power of the “Make America Great Again” slogan.
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| The Official version costs $25, and profits are a political contribution to Mr. Trump. The knock-off shown here is available on Amazon for $6.99. |
The
retirement investments of middle class Americans have swelled on the
basis of Mr. Trump’s policies. The generation that suddenly had to work
longer until retirement due to the crash of 2008 has seen much of that
lost wealth returned. This may be the most important thing for the Baby
Boomer voters, and it is the fulfillment of a campaign promise to
stimulate the economy.
Businesses
large and small have benefited from deregulation. Most businessmen
viewed the regulations of the previous administration as unnecessarily
punitive, and are happy to see less government involvement in business.
The environment is a secondary issue to most Americans. A good deal of the deregulation compromises environmental safeguards, but most US Citizens are more concerned with other issues (including jobs) to worry about something that may not affect them until years later, if at all.
Mr. Trump is happy to use strong-arm tactics to get what he wants. This attitude is embraced by many citizens who are happy to see the desires of career politicians thwarted by Mr. Trump.
Mr. Trump promised more jobs, and has delivered low unemployment, continuing along the trend line of the previous administration. His deregulation and tax cuts for corporations have also worked towards this goal.
The environment is a secondary issue to most Americans. A good deal of the deregulation compromises environmental safeguards, but most US Citizens are more concerned with other issues (including jobs) to worry about something that may not affect them until years later, if at all.
Mr. Trump is happy to use strong-arm tactics to get what he wants. This attitude is embraced by many citizens who are happy to see the desires of career politicians thwarted by Mr. Trump.
Mr. Trump promised more jobs, and has delivered low unemployment, continuing along the trend line of the previous administration. His deregulation and tax cuts for corporations have also worked towards this goal.
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| Unemployment rate graph supplied by the Bureau of Labor Statistics |
Mr. Trump is in no way politically correct (PC). This is also embraced
by many Americans frustrated with the euphemisms employed by the
purveyors of political correctness. They feel that political
correctness is the enemy of straight, honest talk, and that only those
unable to stomach truth will try to be PC.
“Drain the Swamp” is the mantra employed to indicate that the federal government needs to be overhauled, or at least repopulated with representatives who are less concerned with personal enrichment than the welfare of their constituents. The outsider status of Mr. Trump purports to give him some better perspective on how this can be done than anyone with previous political experience, which includes almost all of his political opponents. Some honestly believe that Mr. Trump is exactly what the USA needs.
The Evangelical Christian community tends to support Mr. Trump because his presidency has the potential of providing Supreme Court Justices which will be sympathetic to their primary issue, which is outlawing legal abortion.
Many gun owners support Mr. Trump because he makes no attempt to rein in gun violence through ownership restrictions. The concern that gun ownership rights will be compromised has been fostered and reinforced by the activities of the NRA (National Rifle Association), one of the most powerful and influential lobbying organizations in the US.
24 hour “News” channels, spend the bulk of their efforts on negative and fear and smear campaigns. The biased media expands small bits of news into constant chatter about the awful activities of their opponents. At best, these attacks are overblown. At worst, they pervert reality for the political purposes of those who fund these outlets.
Divisive politics is the order of the day. This issue has become much worse over the past 20 years. Many politicians are more interested in thwarting the desires of their opponents than compromising for the sake of the populace. Compromise has become equated with weakness, and the election primary system tends to replace moderate candidates with more radical ones.
There is a lack of a strong, charismatic opponent for Mr. Trump. There is no Democratic or Independent candidate who can come close to Mr. Trump's media presence.
The citizens are suffering from apathy, media-imposed stress, and truth confusion. There are so many lies perpetrated all the time, it is quite difficult to determine the truth. The research necessary to ferret out the lies is exhausting.
Innocence of wrongdoing is the conclusion of many who feel that all negative accounts of Mr. Trump's activities are frivolous, politically-motivated attacks. That he has been under intense scrutiny for a long period of time without being convicted is assumed as an indication of innocence.
Big money has a negative effect on the political process for all but the largest donors. An unfortunate Supreme Court decision has allowed huge sums to be used to support candidates and political positions. This often becomes propaganda with precious little fact checking.
Mr. Trump delivered on his promise of a tax cut. In particular, there has been a major tax cut for corporations. The net result is a short term boost in the economy, a small gain for much of the middle class, and a huge addition to the government deficit and national debt. It may well be that the Baby Boomers have continued their lifestyle at the expense of their children and grandchildren who will have to deal with the debt.
Many patriotic citizens have been alarmed at the erosion of use economic and military power and welcome Mr. Trump's promises of Making America Great Again. Others embrace this motto because they are distressed and made uncomfortable by the changes they see, particularly in social mores. They believe America was a better place in an earlier age.
There is over-representation of states with larger percentages of rural inhabitants due to the legacy electoral college, which is the actual elective body. A vote in a state like New York is not as valuable as a vote in Wyoming, in terms of determining electors.
“Drain the Swamp” is the mantra employed to indicate that the federal government needs to be overhauled, or at least repopulated with representatives who are less concerned with personal enrichment than the welfare of their constituents. The outsider status of Mr. Trump purports to give him some better perspective on how this can be done than anyone with previous political experience, which includes almost all of his political opponents. Some honestly believe that Mr. Trump is exactly what the USA needs.
The Evangelical Christian community tends to support Mr. Trump because his presidency has the potential of providing Supreme Court Justices which will be sympathetic to their primary issue, which is outlawing legal abortion.
Many gun owners support Mr. Trump because he makes no attempt to rein in gun violence through ownership restrictions. The concern that gun ownership rights will be compromised has been fostered and reinforced by the activities of the NRA (National Rifle Association), one of the most powerful and influential lobbying organizations in the US.
24 hour “News” channels, spend the bulk of their efforts on negative and fear and smear campaigns. The biased media expands small bits of news into constant chatter about the awful activities of their opponents. At best, these attacks are overblown. At worst, they pervert reality for the political purposes of those who fund these outlets.
Divisive politics is the order of the day. This issue has become much worse over the past 20 years. Many politicians are more interested in thwarting the desires of their opponents than compromising for the sake of the populace. Compromise has become equated with weakness, and the election primary system tends to replace moderate candidates with more radical ones.
There is a lack of a strong, charismatic opponent for Mr. Trump. There is no Democratic or Independent candidate who can come close to Mr. Trump's media presence.
The citizens are suffering from apathy, media-imposed stress, and truth confusion. There are so many lies perpetrated all the time, it is quite difficult to determine the truth. The research necessary to ferret out the lies is exhausting.
Innocence of wrongdoing is the conclusion of many who feel that all negative accounts of Mr. Trump's activities are frivolous, politically-motivated attacks. That he has been under intense scrutiny for a long period of time without being convicted is assumed as an indication of innocence.
Big money has a negative effect on the political process for all but the largest donors. An unfortunate Supreme Court decision has allowed huge sums to be used to support candidates and political positions. This often becomes propaganda with precious little fact checking.
Mr. Trump delivered on his promise of a tax cut. In particular, there has been a major tax cut for corporations. The net result is a short term boost in the economy, a small gain for much of the middle class, and a huge addition to the government deficit and national debt. It may well be that the Baby Boomers have continued their lifestyle at the expense of their children and grandchildren who will have to deal with the debt.
Many patriotic citizens have been alarmed at the erosion of use economic and military power and welcome Mr. Trump's promises of Making America Great Again. Others embrace this motto because they are distressed and made uncomfortable by the changes they see, particularly in social mores. They believe America was a better place in an earlier age.
There is over-representation of states with larger percentages of rural inhabitants due to the legacy electoral college, which is the actual elective body. A vote in a state like New York is not as valuable as a vote in Wyoming, in terms of determining electors.
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| Wyoming is in the sparsely populated American West. |
There
is widespread frustration with gridlock and do-nothing politicians.
There is also frustration with the fact that our representatives seem to
get rich over the years, too often by guiding government money to
"friendly" places, or by investing with inside knowledge of where that
money is going. Many welcomed Mr. Trump as an alternative to business as
usual, even though his financial dealings are not particularly
exemplary.
The rise of targeted persuasion by organizations like Cambridge Analytica (assisted by big data corporations such as Facebook) have allowed politicians to characterize and sway voters in previously unseen manners. Tailoring information received by "influence-able" people has been proven to be effective.
Many politicians are completely convinced that they have a monopoly on the proper programs, policies, and proposals, and that there is no good in anything the opposition proposes. Party is put before country. More cynically, these politicians put their self interest, best supported by party, ahead of all else, and their self interest is determined by lobbyists.
There is a severe lack of empathy in America. Most do not believe that we are all in this together and treat fellow citizens as foes. We disregard the reminder that is on every one of our pennies. "E Pluribus Unum," ... Out Of Many, One. We are at our best when we remember this and act accordingly.
The rise of targeted persuasion by organizations like Cambridge Analytica (assisted by big data corporations such as Facebook) have allowed politicians to characterize and sway voters in previously unseen manners. Tailoring information received by "influence-able" people has been proven to be effective.
Many politicians are completely convinced that they have a monopoly on the proper programs, policies, and proposals, and that there is no good in anything the opposition proposes. Party is put before country. More cynically, these politicians put their self interest, best supported by party, ahead of all else, and their self interest is determined by lobbyists.
There is a severe lack of empathy in America. Most do not believe that we are all in this together and treat fellow citizens as foes. We disregard the reminder that is on every one of our pennies. "E Pluribus Unum," ... Out Of Many, One. We are at our best when we remember this and act accordingly.
Excellent summarization of our current national politics. Not a Trump lover, especially his bluster and personal life (past anyway) but I like his performance, which is, I suppose, the reason for his current hold up in his popularity. Unless performance stumbles, I don’t believe there is anyone on the other side who can affect him. The polarization will probably continue until someone in the middle can be embraced by both sides, which is not on the immediate or even foreseeable horizon.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the kind words and appropriate comments. It would not be surprising if Mr. Trump is elected to a second term, no matter what the reasons against might be.
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