A Republican explains Trump supporters:"They are experiencing a sense of loss in the America they live in."
I am trying to understand why people would support Trump.
Some people I think I do understand:
*** My U.S. Representative, Cliff Bentz, announced support for Trump for political advantage. Bentz explained that he was trying to ingratiate himself to the winning team within the GOP caucus in the House. It would give him credibility with them in getting support for things he really cared about, like the Salmon River dams. Politics is his job, and he was just taking care of business. I don't admire this, but I understand it.
*** I think I can understand anti-abortion purists. If they really think a fertilized egg is a human soul created by God, as human and immortal as any other child of God, then Auschwitz-style mass murder is taking place in America. In that case it makes sense to support the candidate that better moves the country toward the goal of totally outlawing abortion. That would be Trump rather than Biden.
*** I think I understand frustrated working people, the subject of so much commentary. They are struggling to get by, not quite in the middle class, angry about offshoring of manufacturing, angry about immigrants, suspicious and angry about seeing others get benefits and advantages, and worried about crime in their neighborhoods. They are falling behind economically and think they have nothing to lose by electing someone who will shake things up, maybe burn things down. That's Trump.
The people I have a hard time understanding are people who I have referred to in two prior posts with the old fashioned term "square." I think of them as "normal" good Americans. They are law-abiding good citizens, patriotic people who obey laws. These are people who teach their children to be good sports and to do their homework. They teach children to respect their teachers, respect their elders, and respect police officers. They come in any race, any gender, any age, any socio-economic group. So why in the world would law-abiding people like these support Trump?
My guest post author is such a person, a "square." He is unusual only in his advantages: White, male, educated, prosperous, successful in a well-paying profession, married, 401k, house, and community involvement and leadership. He has a great deal to lose from a politician who upsets the apple cart of American government and culture. The guest post author isn't a scofflaw himself, but he supports someone who openly and proudly flouts laws, insults judges and prosecutors, is flagrant in his nepotism and grift, and tries to overturn an election. A leader with the absolute immunity that Trump asserts a president has could confiscate the author's property and take away his freedom. Laws and civil order protect people with something to lose. So, of all people, why does he support Trump and think other people like him do as well?
He thinks he had something to lose and already lost it: His values and world view. Progressives stole it.
Anonymous guest post.
Square Republicans have little time to ponder or act on the culture war issues you mention. They are hardworking people involved with their family, their work, their church, and their Rotary club. They rely on their elected leaders to do the right thing for them. They don't ask for much - only to be defended from the progressive changes that are detrimental to them.
For years, the Romney-type leaders represented them and had many "reasonable" understandings and agreements with the opposition without the full understanding and consent of the Squares. Over time the Squares have observed that their American dream is under constant attack and they are experiencing growing angst when they read the news reports, see the riots where the rioters are not stopped or punished, the smash and grab mass robbery of stores they purchase from without the robbers being caught and punished, see news reports blaming white men for all the problems, see women's sports challenged in unreasonable ways, are accused of being bad people in general and are more fearful everyday. They are experiencing a sense of loss in the America they live in. They see themselves at the Mad Hatters Tea Party where nothing is familiar to them and everything seems wrong. For Squares, the truths of the 20th Century that they accepted are all now being rejected and the Squares are being accused of all sorts of dastardly deeds. Their heroes are now said to be villains.
The Squares don't have community organizers to advance their interests. They believe they can take care of themselves and their families. They want to be left alone to pursue their dreams. They believe they have been let down by the Romney-types and are turning to Trump because he is the rough and tumble leader that will not make the same "reasonable" understandings and agreements that appear to have undermined their place in the world. The Squares want to be loudly defended and protected. The Squares don't hate anyone. Their gripe is with the results of the never ending pace of change.
My comments are not a battle cry, but an attempt to understand the situation you described in your blog. The Squares don't trust the old guard and believe the old guard let them down.
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