Learning the Wrong Lesson from the Trump Victory
Amidst all the post-election analysis, a consensus explanation of what propelled Donald Trump to victory is emerging among economically comfortable white liberals. The short version: Trump effectively spoke to the deep economic uncertainty among white working class voters, who turned out to express their frustration with a global economy that has left them behind.
Amidst all the post-election analysis, a consensus explanation of what propelled Donald Trump to victory is emerging among economically comfortable white liberals. The short version: Trump effectively spoke to the deep economic uncertainty among white working class voters, who turned out to express their frustration with a global economy that has left them behind.
This is an appealing narrative for liberal-minded people trying to make sense of startling election results. It allows them to express a requisite guilt about their class privilege, emphasizes compassion for their struggling neighbors, and points to economic populism as the way forward for a Democratic Party that has lost its way.
The problem, however, is that there is little evidence to support this post-election autopsy. Yes, exit polls showed that white voters without a college degree supported Trump by a huge margin, and turnout among rural and working class whites was key to the surprising Republican victories in rust belt states. But knowing these voting patterns tells us little about what motivated Trump voters.
Let's look at some instructive clues. African American working class voters did not channel their economic frustration into support for Trump. With an unemployment rate among black workers almost double that of white workers, economic concerns are even more severe among African American voters, so we should be wary of claims about the economic roots of the Trump vote.
Trump's most effective campaign slogans, the ones that whipped up crowds at his rallies and had followers buzzing on social media, did not emphasize economic issues. Instead, they activated the cultural anxieties of white rural and working class voters. The chant of "build the wall" mobilized longstanding nativist sentiments, similar to those animating the far right in Europe. The chorus of "lock her up" rallied authoritarian tendencies that legitimize strong leaders taking vengeance on their political opponents.
The "take our country back" talk - a widely repeated mantra among overwhelmingly white Trump supporters who were rarely interrogated about precisely whom they wanted to take the country back from - became an acceptable way to express racial animosity toward a black president. Even the core campaign tagline," Make America Great Again," was an expression of nostalgia for a past when those who chanted such slogans felt more powerful. Given the slogan's demographic appeal it is easy to see this as a coded way of saying, with a wink and a nod, "Make America White Again." Spend just a few minutes on pro-Trump social media and the racially tinged meaning of this rearview nostalgia is unmistakable.
"We should talk seriously about economic uncertainty and the persistence of inequality, but we aren't going to understand what drives the Trump train until we face up to the power of racism, nativism, and misogyny in America."Further, candidate Trump adopted the persona of an aggressive old-school tough guy, invoking traditional gender roles where both men and women know their place. His so-called "locker room talk" about women connected with deep-rooted strains of misogyny within US culture.
Persistent economic inequality is a serious problem that demands our attention. But emphasizing economic motivations for white working class Trump support oversimplifies a complex cultural dynamic and risks missing the election's most important lessons.
- By uniting the extreme right, including white supremacists, with loyal Republicans, 90 percent of whom decided they could abide such an alliance, Trump managed to succeed where past demagogues like George Wallace failed. This is a new, and quite disconcerting, development in U.S. politics.
- The daily drumbeat of sophisticated political propaganda that fueled the flames of fear and resentment was far more influential than professional journalism. You can trace Donald Trump's political rise to his central role in promoting the lie that President Obama was not born in the United States, an idea that roughly half of Republican voters believe is true.
- Racism and sexism remain powerfully toxic sources of conflict in U.S. society. Women, people of color and the LGBT community have every reason to be concerned about where we are headed.
Many of us are looking for solace at a political moment we find terrifying, but we can't let a bland optimism about the decency of our political adversaries cloud our assessment of the challenges ahead. Our Trump-supporting neighbors and relatives are not all raging, hate-filled extremists, and Trump's victory was not a result of simple bigotry. But unless we understand Trump's angry mobilization of white voters, we will never figure out how to combat the newly empowered hostility that plagues our communities in the Trump era. We should talk seriously about economic uncertainty and the persistence of inequality, but we aren't going to understand what drives the Trump train until we face up to the power of racism, nativism, and misogyny in America.
Urgent. It's never been this bad.
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission from the outset was simple. To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It’s never been this bad out there. And it’s never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed and doing some of its best and most important work, the threats we face are intensifying. Right now, with just three days to go in our Spring Campaign, we're falling short of our make-or-break goal. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Can you make a gift right now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? There is no backup plan or rainy day fund. There is only you. —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Amidst all the post-election analysis, a consensus explanation of what propelled Donald Trump to victory is emerging among economically comfortable white liberals. The short version: Trump effectively spoke to the deep economic uncertainty among white working class voters, who turned out to express their frustration with a global economy that has left them behind.
This is an appealing narrative for liberal-minded people trying to make sense of startling election results. It allows them to express a requisite guilt about their class privilege, emphasizes compassion for their struggling neighbors, and points to economic populism as the way forward for a Democratic Party that has lost its way.
The problem, however, is that there is little evidence to support this post-election autopsy. Yes, exit polls showed that white voters without a college degree supported Trump by a huge margin, and turnout among rural and working class whites was key to the surprising Republican victories in rust belt states. But knowing these voting patterns tells us little about what motivated Trump voters.
Let's look at some instructive clues. African American working class voters did not channel their economic frustration into support for Trump. With an unemployment rate among black workers almost double that of white workers, economic concerns are even more severe among African American voters, so we should be wary of claims about the economic roots of the Trump vote.
Trump's most effective campaign slogans, the ones that whipped up crowds at his rallies and had followers buzzing on social media, did not emphasize economic issues. Instead, they activated the cultural anxieties of white rural and working class voters. The chant of "build the wall" mobilized longstanding nativist sentiments, similar to those animating the far right in Europe. The chorus of "lock her up" rallied authoritarian tendencies that legitimize strong leaders taking vengeance on their political opponents.
The "take our country back" talk - a widely repeated mantra among overwhelmingly white Trump supporters who were rarely interrogated about precisely whom they wanted to take the country back from - became an acceptable way to express racial animosity toward a black president. Even the core campaign tagline," Make America Great Again," was an expression of nostalgia for a past when those who chanted such slogans felt more powerful. Given the slogan's demographic appeal it is easy to see this as a coded way of saying, with a wink and a nod, "Make America White Again." Spend just a few minutes on pro-Trump social media and the racially tinged meaning of this rearview nostalgia is unmistakable.
"We should talk seriously about economic uncertainty and the persistence of inequality, but we aren't going to understand what drives the Trump train until we face up to the power of racism, nativism, and misogyny in America."Further, candidate Trump adopted the persona of an aggressive old-school tough guy, invoking traditional gender roles where both men and women know their place. His so-called "locker room talk" about women connected with deep-rooted strains of misogyny within US culture.
Persistent economic inequality is a serious problem that demands our attention. But emphasizing economic motivations for white working class Trump support oversimplifies a complex cultural dynamic and risks missing the election's most important lessons.
- By uniting the extreme right, including white supremacists, with loyal Republicans, 90 percent of whom decided they could abide such an alliance, Trump managed to succeed where past demagogues like George Wallace failed. This is a new, and quite disconcerting, development in U.S. politics.
- The daily drumbeat of sophisticated political propaganda that fueled the flames of fear and resentment was far more influential than professional journalism. You can trace Donald Trump's political rise to his central role in promoting the lie that President Obama was not born in the United States, an idea that roughly half of Republican voters believe is true.
- Racism and sexism remain powerfully toxic sources of conflict in U.S. society. Women, people of color and the LGBT community have every reason to be concerned about where we are headed.
Many of us are looking for solace at a political moment we find terrifying, but we can't let a bland optimism about the decency of our political adversaries cloud our assessment of the challenges ahead. Our Trump-supporting neighbors and relatives are not all raging, hate-filled extremists, and Trump's victory was not a result of simple bigotry. But unless we understand Trump's angry mobilization of white voters, we will never figure out how to combat the newly empowered hostility that plagues our communities in the Trump era. We should talk seriously about economic uncertainty and the persistence of inequality, but we aren't going to understand what drives the Trump train until we face up to the power of racism, nativism, and misogyny in America.
Amidst all the post-election analysis, a consensus explanation of what propelled Donald Trump to victory is emerging among economically comfortable white liberals. The short version: Trump effectively spoke to the deep economic uncertainty among white working class voters, who turned out to express their frustration with a global economy that has left them behind.
This is an appealing narrative for liberal-minded people trying to make sense of startling election results. It allows them to express a requisite guilt about their class privilege, emphasizes compassion for their struggling neighbors, and points to economic populism as the way forward for a Democratic Party that has lost its way.
The problem, however, is that there is little evidence to support this post-election autopsy. Yes, exit polls showed that white voters without a college degree supported Trump by a huge margin, and turnout among rural and working class whites was key to the surprising Republican victories in rust belt states. But knowing these voting patterns tells us little about what motivated Trump voters.
Let's look at some instructive clues. African American working class voters did not channel their economic frustration into support for Trump. With an unemployment rate among black workers almost double that of white workers, economic concerns are even more severe among African American voters, so we should be wary of claims about the economic roots of the Trump vote.
Trump's most effective campaign slogans, the ones that whipped up crowds at his rallies and had followers buzzing on social media, did not emphasize economic issues. Instead, they activated the cultural anxieties of white rural and working class voters. The chant of "build the wall" mobilized longstanding nativist sentiments, similar to those animating the far right in Europe. The chorus of "lock her up" rallied authoritarian tendencies that legitimize strong leaders taking vengeance on their political opponents.
The "take our country back" talk - a widely repeated mantra among overwhelmingly white Trump supporters who were rarely interrogated about precisely whom they wanted to take the country back from - became an acceptable way to express racial animosity toward a black president. Even the core campaign tagline," Make America Great Again," was an expression of nostalgia for a past when those who chanted such slogans felt more powerful. Given the slogan's demographic appeal it is easy to see this as a coded way of saying, with a wink and a nod, "Make America White Again." Spend just a few minutes on pro-Trump social media and the racially tinged meaning of this rearview nostalgia is unmistakable.
"We should talk seriously about economic uncertainty and the persistence of inequality, but we aren't going to understand what drives the Trump train until we face up to the power of racism, nativism, and misogyny in America."Further, candidate Trump adopted the persona of an aggressive old-school tough guy, invoking traditional gender roles where both men and women know their place. His so-called "locker room talk" about women connected with deep-rooted strains of misogyny within US culture.
Persistent economic inequality is a serious problem that demands our attention. But emphasizing economic motivations for white working class Trump support oversimplifies a complex cultural dynamic and risks missing the election's most important lessons.
- By uniting the extreme right, including white supremacists, with loyal Republicans, 90 percent of whom decided they could abide such an alliance, Trump managed to succeed where past demagogues like George Wallace failed. This is a new, and quite disconcerting, development in U.S. politics.
- The daily drumbeat of sophisticated political propaganda that fueled the flames of fear and resentment was far more influential than professional journalism. You can trace Donald Trump's political rise to his central role in promoting the lie that President Obama was not born in the United States, an idea that roughly half of Republican voters believe is true.
- Racism and sexism remain powerfully toxic sources of conflict in U.S. society. Women, people of color and the LGBT community have every reason to be concerned about where we are headed.
Many of us are looking for solace at a political moment we find terrifying, but we can't let a bland optimism about the decency of our political adversaries cloud our assessment of the challenges ahead. Our Trump-supporting neighbors and relatives are not all raging, hate-filled extremists, and Trump's victory was not a result of simple bigotry. But unless we understand Trump's angry mobilization of white voters, we will never figure out how to combat the newly empowered hostility that plagues our communities in the Trump era. We should talk seriously about economic uncertainty and the persistence of inequality, but we aren't going to understand what drives the Trump train until we face up to the power of racism, nativism, and misogyny in America.