Enemies, a Gov Story
As we cross the one year mark since Trump’s election win, many people on both sides of the aisle still can’t believe the other side votes they way they do. In particular, the anti-Trump crowd still can’t wrap its head around the idea that millions of people voted for Trump — and continue to support him even though many of his policies seem to work against their self interest. (Full disclosure: I’ve got one of those heads.) Politico Magazine’s Michael Kruse went to Johnstown, PA — and what he found there is worth understanding. Yes, people there voted for Trump. No, things are not much better. But their support for Trump hasn’t wavered. “His supporters here, it turns out, are energized by his bombast and his animus more than any actual accomplishments. For them, it’s evidently not what he’s doing so much as it is the people he’s fighting. Trump is simply and unceasingly angry on their behalf, battling the people who vex them the worst—’obstructionist’ Democrats, uncooperative establishment Republicans, the media, Black Lives Matter protesters and NFL players (boy oh boy do they hate kneeling NFL players) whom they see as ungrateful, disrespectful millionaires. And they love him for this.” Johnstown Never Believed Trump Would Help. They Still Love Him Anyway.
+ “If party identification is stronger than ideological identification, then as parties change their ideological identities, their loyalists will change with them, rather than abandoning them.” It’s not about what you believe, it’s about what team you’re on. From Vox: For elites, politics is driven by ideology. For voters, it’s not.
+ This NPR article is from last year, but it fits the broader picture. “In 2011, 30 percent of white evangelicals said that ‘an elected official who commits an immoral act in their personal life can still behave ethically and fulfill their duties in their public and professional life.’ Now, 72 percent say so.” Even religious views are taking a backseat to the sport of politics.
+ And a related book I’ve recommended before, and will keep recommending until you do your homework and read it: The Politics of Resentment.
