Trump Supporters

In Sunday’s New York Times, within their Weekly Opinion Section (used to be Weekly Review) is a set of articles by their editorial (opinion) writers, concerning things they got wrong, despite the care with which they prepare their articles.  One of the writers, Bret Stephens, wrote one of particular interest—getting it wrong about Trump supporters. It is useful to note that he did not say he was wrong about Trump, especially now, after the January 6^th hearings. We now know conclusively that Trump planned and inexpertly tried to overthrow our legal system of governance in an attempt to remain in power.  But Stephens thinks he was wrong in how he harassed Trump supporters. He opens his piece thusly:

“By Bret Stephens -- NY Times Opinion Columnist

The worst line I ever wrote as a pundit — yes, I know, it’s a crowded field — was the first line I ever wrote about the man who would become the 45th president: “If by now you don’t find Donald Trump appalling, you’re appalling.”

This opening salvo, from August 2015, was the first in what would become dozens of columns denouncing Trump as a unique threat to American life, democratic ideals and the world itself. I regret almost nothing of what I said about the man and his close minions. But the broad swipe at his voters caricatured them and blinkered me.

It also probably did more to help than hinder Trump’s candidacy. Telling voters they are moral ignoramuses is a bad way of getting them to change their minds.”

 

In other words, he does not think the Trump supporters were/are good folks who were just misled, and thus should be spared any criticism. No, rather, he thinks that calling them nasty names is counterproductive. And he is probably right. Calling someone a racist pig is unlikely to get them to join your side.

 

And I began wondering myself, what can one say about the people who continue to support Trump?  Frankly, I am baffled.  So, then I wondered, well, why does anyone, knowing what we all now know, continue to support Trump?

 First, I guess we should understand that all of the people who now support Trump do so because they believe that he is on their side.  So, what are these “sides” taken by Trump, to which his supporters are devoutly attached? Because Trump has so few positive attributes, it is difficult to attribute voter support to things positive.  But it may also be the case that voters are all a mix of personalities, and professional characteristics. Perhaps unlike their chosen leader, they reflect both positive and negative qualities. But I see them drawn to Trump because he appeals to some of their strongly held negative views.  So, what are some of these views?

 

1.       Racism: Trump seems strongly racist. Now this characteristic is an interesting one. First, he denies being racist, despite his track record. Probably 60% of this country thinks that Trump made racism worse in this country. Now, how many people in America are racist? I don’t know.  I could find no statistics revealing how many Americans are racist, mainly I assume because, who would reveal in writing that they are racist?  We know that we have systemic racism in America. People of color experience more instances of violence against them by law enforcement. People of color experience relatively greater difficulty in obtaining jobs in the upper sectors of our economy.  So, if you are White, and are feeling economic pressures, you may be drawn to a man who seems to understand your plight and who promises to protect White, Christian America. Also, a curious issue exists among Trump supporters. Our country is a country of immigrants, yet many Trump supporters want our borders closed. They seem to hate especially immigrants of color arriving from South of our Border, while ignoring the ones arriving from Europe.  So, Trump supporters find his racism appealing, and they might well vote for him on that basis alone.

2.       Misogyny: This one is baffling. On the one hand, Trump seems to treat all women as his actual or potential mistresses. On the other hand, he numbers many women within his group of active supporters.  Why would women be drawn to a seemingly active misogynist?  Maybe it is the case that those women in particular view all men as misogynists, and select men based on other characteristics, like racism.  He seems to have experienced three unsuccessful marriages (his last to Melania continues but it seems less than successful), as well numerous sexual affairs, some more public than others. So, perhaps some of his male supporters like his maltreatment of women, while his women supporters prefer him for other odd reasons.

3.       Mental Incapacity: whether he is as idiotic as he often sounds, or acts remains a question I guess, but his fundamental incompetence is likely associated with a lack of intelligence. He has experienced six bankruptcies in business, and his performance as President can only be described as near-catastrophic.  Many believe that he simply is not very bright, and his operational incapacities (e.g., six bankruptcies) follow. It is possible that people who have had less than stellar educational experiences, feel angered at the folks who succeeded intellectually and used it to their advantage in business.  They might be drawn to Trump who seems more like them.

4.       Anger at the World: Trump seems angry at much of the world. He explodes easily and frequently, and often simply lies to explain his anger—he is angry because so and so (Hillary, Barack, Joe) did such and such, even though they did no such thing. His supporters don’t care if he lies, because they likely spend much of their lives angry at somebody or something beyond their control.  Which brings me to a last characteristic.

5.       Lying: Lying is one of the more baffling characteristics, drawing support.  According to The Washington Post:

“When The Washington Post Fact Checker team first started cataloguing President Donald Trump’s false or misleading claims, we recorded 492 suspect claims in the first 100 days of his presidency. On Nov. 2 alone, the day before the 2020 vote, Trump made 503 false or misleading claims as he barnstormed across the country in a desperate effort to win reelection.

This astonishing jump in falsehoods is the story of Trump’s tumultuous reign. By the end of his term, Trump had accumulated 30,573 untruths during his presidency, averaging about 21 erroneous claims a day.”

Now why would folks want to support a human who lies that much?  My only conclusion here is that they like the fact that he lies his way out of trouble (remember, he is not yet in prison, despite the facts against him, many of which seem to require imprisonment). So, I think his supporters like his chutzpah. He routinely, daily really, sticks his finger into the air, or into someone’s eye, and they love that, because it is how many of them feel daily. He is just like them, rather than those other politicos.

 

So, we may have a permanent support troupe who will continue to show at his rallies, and would certainly vote for him, or for any candidate he endorses.  And depending on how many folks fall into that pool, we may have a permanent “Sword of Damocles” hanging over the American System of Government. Note please that the only solution to this potential cataclysmic event is for folks who are intelligent enough to understand the risks posed by Trump, to get out and vote for any and all forces opposing him and his minions. If you wish to see America continue as a democratic nation, You Must Get Out and Support ethical candidates.  You Must.