“Always make a total effort, even when the odds are against you” — Arnold Palmer
Here comes a rant
It is a paradox in American politics that many voters prefer Democratic policies even as they vote for Republicans. Reflexively, left-wing apologists point to bigotry and stupidity. These apologists need to get their heads out of their asses.
No doubt many MAGAs are dumbass racists. But many centrist/swing voters are not white nationalist morons. They voted for Trump in 2024 because they thought he would improve the economy. How they arrived at this poor choice is entirely on the Democratic Party.
The left-wing apologists will whine about biased media, voter suppression, gerrymandering, and the rest of the usual suspects. Boo hoo. Them’s the facts. If Democrats want a different reality, they will have to create it. The Republicans aren’t going to hand it to them.
OK. Rant over. Now for the good news.
It starts with an article in the Wall Street Journal, Trump Voters Splinter Over His Rapid Shake-Up of Washington. In it, Eliza Collins signposts the Democrat’s road back from irrelevance. The open question remains: Will they take it? (The good news comes with an asterisk.)
As the title suggests, many Trump voters are delighted at his progress. They seem impressed by the speed at which he has operated. However, how driving faster to get into an accident sooner is a win remains a mystery. Not that it matters. These dyed-in-the-wool MAGAs are lost to the cult. Democrats should waste zero time trying to talk to them or their craven Representatives. There is no common ground. (I’m talking to you, Hakeem Jeffries.)
However, there are Trump voters who are ready to vote Democratic. The WSJ features Staci White, who said she voted for President Trump because she wanted lower prices. And to stop fentanyl from entering the U.S. Now, with widespread federal layoffs and expected cuts, she worries her family will lose their house if her partner is laid off from his government-adjacent job. She is also concerned about ICE raids on the dialysis center where she works.
The WSJ reports:
“When he said safer borders, I thought he was thinking ‘let’s stop the drugs from coming into the country,’” she said. “I didn’t know he was going to start raiding places.” She said she didn’t believe he would follow through on some of the more hard-line policies he touted during the campaign.
“Now I’m like: ‘Dang, why didn’t I just pick Kamala?’” said the 49-year-old Omaha, Neb., resident, referring to the former vice president and last-minute Democratic nominee.
(Bolding mine)
People are usually frustrated with politicians who don’t deliver on their promises. In the age of MAGA, many of the deluded are surprised that Trump is doing what he said he would.
The paper further reports:
A poll released last month by The Wall Street Journal found that most wanted a tempered, less assertive set of policies than Trump promised in the most unbridled moments of his campaign. The Journal in recent weeks followed up with nearly two dozen of Trump’s supporters and discovered a divergence: Some expressed regrets or concerns, while many were gleeful over his early actions to shake up Washington.
Democrats must ignore the “gleeful”. They must seduce the Trump voters who hate what he is doing. There are a lot of them. The WSJ reports on another.
Emily Anderson, from Duluth, Minn., always considered herself a Democrat but backed Trump after Kennedy dropped out of the race. Anderson aligned with Kennedy’s “Make America Healthy Again” messaging, particularly the focus on getting toxins out of food. Kennedy is now Health and Human Services secretary.
Anderson, who works with disabled adults, said Kennedy’s government role is the only bright spot for a vote she categorizes as the “biggest mistake of my life.”
She added: “I feel so stupid, guilty, regretful—embarrassed is a huge one. I am absolutely embarrassed that I voted for Trump,”
Emily may love Bobby. I’m slow to fault her. My heart has not always been an unimpeachable guide. But as for the rest, she is begging the Democratic party to sweep her off her political feet. Will they? If you listen to Chuck Schumer’s civic love language, it’s at best a coin toss. Listening to that man drone on will dry you up and leave you limp.
Of course, anecdotes are not evidence. Public opinion surveys are better if imperfect guides to the national mood. The WSJ reports on one:
About a third of Americans support all or most of Trump’s policies and plans, according to a February survey by Pew Research Center. Meanwhile, 17% of those surveyed said they support some of what he is putting forward. Forty-seven percent of Americans oppose all or most of his plans.
That survey had Trump with a 51% disapproval rating, with 47% of Americans saying they approve of the job he is doing as president.
It shows a nation divided. However, you would expect a newly-elected president to have, at minimum, a positive approval rating — after all, unlike in 2016, Trump was elected with more votes than his opponent. Indeed, every President since Truman (i.e., since Gallup started asking) has entered office with more than 50% approval — except Trump, who has been underwater both times.
Democrats should also focus on people who say they still approve of Trump’s policies but worry he has gone too far, too fast. That hedging is how a Trump voter who doesn’t like what Trump is doing expresses their position without having to admit they screwed up. Many people are not like Emily and Staci. They hate to admit when they are wrong — and are loath to confess they are victims of a scam. Denial is a powerful drug.
As people who read my diaries (thank you) know, I am not an unquestioning fan of the Democratic Party. It’s not their policies. I don’t love everything they stand for. And I would rearrange priorities. But on no issue do I prefer the GOP position. My antipathy is toward Democratic leadership.
They are always thinking instead of acting. They talk too much and do too little. They can’t get past the planning stage. They think knife fights have rules. They get distracted by vocabulary. They whine. I want politicians who kick ass — not people who agonize over the best shoes to administer a good ass kicking.
Feel free to disagree. But if you do, I want to hear a better solution, not a defense of the status quo. Because that’s not working. Let me know in the comments. I don’t need to be right. I do need to be on the winning side.
