Anti-Trumpers are the lone voices in the dark, and they continue to resist against the "lord of the flies" mentality currently holding sway. Anti-Trumpers may not have always been anti-Trumpers. News agencies are amassing details that are undeniable. The big picture is recognizable by growing numbers of people worldwide, leading us all to a search for our individual as well as our collective integrity.
27
Mr. Brooks, I am afraid but I can't NOT criticize an ignorant and lying demagogic president who plays on the fears of people with legitimate grievances.The tax bill, his one so-called success, is a gift to the economic elite, including himself, his family and the members at Mar-a-Lago. The column's only sentence that we anti-Trumpers should take to heart is this: Focus instead (although I would say primarily rather than instead) on the social problems that gave rise to Trumpism.
47
Eloquent, but wrong. The strongest of Trump's voters like this sick man himself as enamored of his vulgarity, his petulance, his finger in the face of intelligence and civility. If he shot someone on Fifth Avenue he would absolutely stay with him (though less certain if he shot someone in a small town that doesn't represent the elite). Trump could actually change his policies and it would not make a whit of difference to the staunchest members of his base. As long as he retained his vulgar, course, and petulant personality, they'd remain. But if he behaved in a more civilized, humane way a good many would flee. Trump is the natural presidential pick in the Kardashian Age. The question is how do CIVILIZED people wrest back the power? How do CIVILIZED people wrest back power from this monstrosity of a President?
71
So vote for Democrats. Duh.
47
Well said. It amazes me every day that people in the 20 states who voted for Hillary routinely, and savagely, disparage the people in the 30 states who voted for Trump... then consider themselves enlightened, despite knowing little or nothing of the communities and values of their targets. Talk about myopia.
27
It is way too early for anyone to legitimately predict the outcome of the Mueller investigation, with any real sense of how it will all play out. Although the investigation has been in progress for many months, it appears to be far from over. It seems to be a complex investigation, with an ever increasing web of apparent illegal activity. We will only know whether it will "fundamentally alter the course of the administration" after it is completed, and the public and the Congress have had a chance to see and digest it. For one thing, if the Democrats are able to retake the Congress (wishful thinking I know) and either the investigation or Congressional action on it is not yet complete by then, and Mueller's final report reveals serious misconduct by Trump and his cronies, impeachment is not outside of the realm of the possible, or perhaps even the likely. I am not predicting this. I am just saying that at this juncture it is premature to predict the ultimate outcome of the Meuller investigation, even for one as connected and insightful as Mr. Brooks.
17
Whatever. Trump has record disapproval ratings (see 538 for a comparison to other presidents going back to Truman), Mueller's investigation appears increasingly likely to have Trump as a target, and, based on staff turnover and ethics violations alone Trump's is the most dysfunctional presidency ever. Trump's appointment of folks like Bolton or his personal physician as head of the VA isn't a sign of strength but of circling the wagons. With the press, FBI (who'd believe it) and the DOJ on the job who needs "anti-Trumpism?" Also, contrary to the author, Democrats don't need to understand the folks who are moved by Trump's misogyny, racism and calls for violence against the press and protesters to win in the mid-terms but to overwhelm them at the ballot box.
41
He feeds off attention. At this point, simply report what he does. Everyone knows how horrible he can be and some 40% of us like that. Don't tell us its horrible.
Stop making him a martyr. Ignore him. Find other sources of humor. Tell us about parts of the world who struggle, and want to improve their lot in life.
He'll not be impeached. That would just galvanize that horrid conglomeration of fringe elements that passes for the Republican Party. Let it fall apart, maybe we'll get three parties out of it as we should!
And Democrats, stop looking out the windows and tsk tsk-Ing and get your own house in order, because someone's going to have to clean up this mess.
37
As Mr. Brooks was describing the landscape of the GOP and the nature of the typical Trump supporting Republican several words came to mind -- cult of personality. Those are dangerous words.
23
Mr Brooks.
While the minority in this country sit by and support daily evidence/proof of corruption, lies, bigotry, hate, ruinous decisions, and all the other un-American mess that trumps spews and promotes, the majority are not sitting by quietly. You suggest in this article and other recent articles that we are somehow condescending to those who support trump but you are mistaken; we are outraged and furious.
This is why:
Freedom, religious or otherwise, bare responsibilities. Those who dare to invoke “religion” to support hate and bigotry will surely infuriate those of us who take civil rights and freedom seriously - religious and otherwise. The hypocrites will ultimately lose, ironically, from the hand that “feeds” them since they too will suffer from the corruption and stupidity that is the Republican Party.
Most importantly, those of us who will fight trump and his “agenda” and battle all those who support him are most interested in defending VALUES - remember those, the things you Republicans have been screaming about for 30 years?
American values are being redefined by an ignorant, falsely entitled, deplorable few and the majority of us will not tolerate it regardless of whether or not you think we should be nicer.
42
I think you miss the point of anti-Trumpism. It's truth telling about what is going on in our government. It may
not result in changing minds in Trump supporters, but it is still the right thing. Telling the truth always will be the right thing to do. For all your moralizing, I think you would know that.
40
The real reason he may continue in power is that a large number of eligible voters who are now greatly harmed by Trumpism, probably will still go off and pout and not vote next time
10
Mr. Brooks, I detect the beginning of a softening around the edges of your distaste for Donald Trump. You don't like him, but you "get" why so many support him...and hey, he speaks to people's real grievances, doesn't he? Somehow, you imply, this is really all the fault of those stuck-up liberals, isn't it? Well, take heart, sir. From the start, there has really only been one way to defeat Donald Trump--at the ballot box (where he never would have won in the first place had the Dems put up a more appealing candidate). See what happens beginning in the fall of this year. Perhaps you'll realize that the majority of the voting public don't need to be persuaded that Trump doesn't represent them.
19
Two factors largely reinforce his base's continuing support for Trump:
1) Protection of religious liberty.
2) The prospect of more Neil Gorsuch-like SCOTUS justices.
To win in 2020, Democrats have to find a way to increase their turnout in MI, PA, and WI. Should not be that difficult.
12
Donald J Chaos & Co. are liars, and good ones at that. Trump lied throughout his campaign. "Mexico is sending rapists to our country." "I'm gonna bring back clean coal," "The tax cuts are not gong to the rich, only the little people," The liars list goes on and on.
So, many people were hurt by the 2008 Bush recession. So, many laid off. I feel that a lot of those people saw someone who would fight for them in Trump. When you're desperate, it doesn't matter if the man you are looking to save you is not a saint. Democrats need to repeat the democratic values they have always stood for. Values that were eloquently spoken by Joe Kennedy jr in response to the Trump state of the union message. Get on it, man!
11
The reason none of the "billions of words" churned out by never-Trumpers don't have any effect on his support is simple. Trumps supporters either don't read them or dismiss them as "fake news".
15
Far, far better than impeachment would be for the Supreme Court to ANUALL the election! I am sure that Justice Clarence Thomas, as a result of his Catholic catechism class knows that the true meaning of anullment means undoing an action as if it never took place. This would allow the most damaging of DT’s executive orders and appointments to be REVERSED! A caretaker of high quality, ability and compassion would be appointed, or Mrs Clinton could be appointed. To preven crazed super rich families from buying another election of another DT, THE Citizens United ruling should be reversed as well as the gutting of the enforcement tools of the Voters Right Act. That latter ruling was done on the promises that “Junior has grown up and can be trusted.” Unfortunately, “Junior’s behavior has been the opposite. It is time to “take his car keys back!” A Pence Presidency would be intolerably horrible as he has far more ability and brains to push through the extreme right wing agenda!
11
Unless you have "inside information" delivered to you in a parking garage advising that Mr. Mueller and his team have struck several dry holes as they say in the oil patch, why the pessimism? Trump has, as the editorialists here say spent much of his life associating with grifters, con men and those who cut ethical and legal corners. Undoubtedly he also has some less troubled souls in his circle too.
Given that history, it is unlikely the investigation comes up with nothing and he gets a mere knuckle-rapping in the final report. Thus, the better insight on your part was near the end.
You quote someone who dealt with Italian politics and Mr. Berlusconi. Ignore the personality and the personal foibles and outrageous behavior. Instead, address the issues, and offer some real-world solutions to enough of his less manic followers.
Finally, I could not agree more with your takedown of that offensive Edsall piece about the alleged psychology/personality traits of HRC and DT voters. Smug, elitist, stereotyping academic malarkey claiming all progressives walk in a golden field of noble perfection and enlightened wisdom, whereas Trump's minions are all up-tight American Gothic types with pitchforks, guns, and Bibles, who never seek change. In fact, there are varieties of personality in both camps.
7
When I read a so-so piece I try to imagine how difficult it is to write a column under regular deadlines. No need to speculate along those lines in this instance. This is a beautifully focused and concise piece of work.
2
"The main reason Trump won the presidency is that tens of millions of Americans rightly feel that their local economies are under attack, their communities are dissolving and their religious liberties are under threat. "
Substitute "rightly feel" for "have been made to believe" and you have a far more accurate statement. I just took a long ride through central Pennsylvania, along a local Route 11, that passed through small town after small town. It was a real slice of Americana. Striking was not any sense of decline, but rather the sense that little has changed in thirty or forty years. Life seemed not unpleasant, but bland and white-bread-ey. Old houses, old factories and refineries, old institutions. No more or fewer dilapidated houses and poor sections of town than you would find anywhere else. Add to that a sense of relative safety and you have a not particularly stressful existence that nonetheless yields the existential crisis of meaningless that results from the utterly mundane lives that middle America generates.
Trump supporters like to point out that their average income is higher than the nation's average. At the same time we are supposed to pity them for feeling left out. They are in no more need of pity for economic reasons that the millions of poor non-Trump poor. I pity them because the culture in many of these towns is so bland and unstimulating that drugs seem a logical, if not unfortunate solution.
23
Is there a line in the sand that when exceeded there can be no coming back for either the president or his supporters?
What were thought to be limits that the office would enforce on him have proven to be left in the dust. Every day new levels of excess and insult have been seen and yet none have furnished as a limit.
No pronouncement lasts until a new one replaces it and/or reverses it.
Individuals in support of the man have come and gone, are they not supportive enough? Another, more rabid in support or more extreme in outlook is sought and raised to a position of authority.
It is said that the human mind seeks patterns in life to develop an outlook for coping with reality. When will there be evidence that the supporters and the as-yet-unmoved will see and recognize these patterns and take action to cope with the reality of our daily life?
Is there a line in the sand that will save our country?
2
Trump people have some sway due to their irrational support of Trump, David, but they couldn't elect a Trump-backed Senator who molested young girls. And Trump has had adulterous relations. Yet Trump supporters complain about Bill Clinton.
You state, "Trump understood the problems of large parts of America better than anyone else." Therein reveals why Trump supporters stick with him: they are naïve. How does Trump understand parts of America better than anyone else? He doesn't have the education or intelligence. But he has successfully mesmerized a population into a suspension of disbelief... into the belief that Trump understands.
David, that feeling of dissatisfaction over the way things are has been around forever. It's just that, in the past, politicians didn't unabashedly lie to their voters. Trump has simply gamed those people, and they bought it.
Yeah, yeah, I get it; being condescending to them solidifies them. It's just that, when I was a child of Republican parents, if I said the same things that Trump people say today, I'd be chastised for thinking poorly. Republican teachers also chastised us for irrational thought.
If the U.S. is going to fail due to Fox News's and Trump's mendacity, then it's just going to fail, David. Accepting molestation and adultery, baldfaced lying, insults, and a president that can't assemble an administration, won't make America great again. Trump people need to learn that. Or we'll fail.
29
Well David, it's pretty hard to focus on the social problems we have in any meaningful political way when we are being governed by this administration, which is feeding off of and magnifying those problems on a daily basis.
I take your point, though, that opponents of Trump need to do more than decry him and his policies, though both are worthy of this treatment. We need to articulate, and work toward, specific reasonable solutions. These will require compromise. Both sides must stop seeking their conception of the perfect republic, that way lies chaos, and instead work together to seek to increase the sense that our system will work for all of us.
I also agree with your often stated position that these efforts need to be presented by centrist Democrats and Republicans, though it is, of course quite a challenge to remain centrist in these times.
It's very sad and interesting to me, as a long time anglophile, to see a parallel developing between our political and cultural processes and the ongoing self destruction of much of Britain's hard earned diversity and economic strength over Brexit. I believe that the development of increasingly extreme positions in the both countries' populations and major parties is an outcome shaped by fear. We have not done enough to alleviate those fears, and things will proceed to get worse until we do.
3
The last paragraph is exactly right but no one will follow that bit of advice because it goes against our own tribal impulses.
4
So David 89% republican support as it stands now accounts for 28- 30% of the voting public. All the dems have to do is shut up, stay out of the way and watch the racist, incompetent oaf self-destruct.
21
Politics in the US is a turnout game. The point of criticising Trump is to keep the other side, i.e. the anti-Trumpers, stoked and ready to show up at the ballot box. It is evident that whatever loathsome undeserving creep one party may put forth as its standard bearer, some, unfortunately many, will give it their full support no matter what. Respect for the principles, values and good name of the United States of America as a guiding principle is neither to be assumed nor counted on by the other side.
8
I know many Trump supporters (most of my family)--all claim to be "Christian." All say that Trump is a "good leader." All of them watch Fox News and insist all other news sources are "fake." All are racists (they hate the Obamas). All are sexists (they hate Hillary). All are bigots (they hate Muslims). The Trump base is mainly white supremacists--both garden variety haters and hardcore neo Nazis. What they fear is not loss of economic security per se, but that Blacks, Hispanics, women, Muslims--all people of color--are getting more than they "deserve," which is cutting into their own power and resources they insist are "theirs." Trump is the leader of the Party of Hate. Explaining his appeal to deplorables any other way is mistaken.
32
The problem with your analysis is that for generations now, any Republican voter, no matter how decent and temperate the candidate, has been slimed as "racist," "sexist," "bigot." Had squishy Jeb! Bush been elected, his supporters would have been slimed in this manner. All Republicans always are.
So what did those who voted for Trump have to lose, the respect of the left?
3
You label anyone who dislikes Obama a racist, anyone who dislikes Hillary a sexist, and anyone who supports Trump a neo-Nazi... and THEY are the haters? Mirror, mirror...
7
"Trump understood the problems of large parts of America better than anyone else."
Not really. Trump has had these delusions for decades. It just happens his delusions now coincide with some other people delusions. I seriously doubt he thought he had any supporters before his Birther idiocy. Then he found out that there a lot of other idiots out there and away they went. He is "president" of the idiots of our country, no one else.
The "problems" the trumpers go on about were ALL caused by Republicans. Therefore, if they had any serious thought about it at all, they would be voting out Republicans.
24
Mr. Brooks is becoming insufferable in his constant crusade to encourage people to treat Trump with silk gloves...
20
Mr Brooks,exactly where are religious liberties under attack in America?
18
David,
You clearly make some valid points concerning the ineffectiveness of the Anti-Trump movement. However, I'm not so sure the Anti-Trumpism was ever intended to convert the core Trump supporter. You are correct - his core support is all about tribalism, and perhaps that can be said about the Never Trumpers also. However, the Anti-Trumpers do not have to convert his supporters, they only need to convert the convertible (independents) and motivate women (which is clearly happening), the young and minorities to actually vote. If the Dems take control of either chamber next November Trump will be effectively neutered.
8
Note to David: discriminating against other people's religion is not the same thing as "losing religious liberties". You are a Republican, who spins the Kool-Aid.
12
Trump ran on branded messages like "MAGA", "Crooked Hillary" and "Believe Me". The elementary level of his discourse, repeated over and over again ad nauseam was to paint Democrats as atheists, baby killers and lovers of criminal illegal immigrants. He appealed to people who only respond with their amygdalae, not their cerebral cortexes. Limited ability to step away from the ranting, maniacal rhetoric of this film flam con man put them into a permanent trance. This group would have been followers of Hitler's Third Reich or in present time, Putin. We must regard them as dangerous to our democracy and do everything that we can to marginalize them in government representation.
15
is this therapy for you, Mr. Brooks, who feels guilty for creating Trump?
14
Such fear anger and hate
5
I don't understand why Mr. Brooks fails to include bigotry in his discussion.
10
Looking back to the Nixon Era.....the history lesson we teach ourselves now seems a little narrow minded.
We all laugh and mock Nixon for being a beady-eyed paranoid......even as we give the era a more objective view of the bigger picture....it appears Nixon was correct!! "They" really were "out to get him"!.....It seems very sad to me as I recall how Richard Nixon was almost literally run out of town on a rail.....forced out not by Congress....but by the RNC Chairman who had frightened enough repubs into the Impeachment Camp.....GHW Bush.....the man who most recently endorsed Hillary Clinton....and it now appears the same man to whom all the current conspirators owe allegience to...from the Ugly Billy Bush allegatiions during the campaign, right up to Robert Mueller and Rob Rosenstein....along with nearly every Repub Senator currently serving......
1
The Mueller investigation doesn't seem to be producing much of anything? Darn it, David Brooks picked the wrong week to stop sniffing the Trumpist glue.
6
Anti-Trumpism fails because the Trumpiets are too delusional. Even Buddha and Christ didn't save everybody, but only those willing to listen and thought for themselves. It's been always the case that truths do not always prevail, at least not in the short term.
Historians had asked, why holocaust of the Jews, why slavery of the Africans, why the Rwanda genocide; one day in the future, they will ask, why Trumpism in America?
7
The election of Donald Trump is a result of the failure of our Democracy, the failure of our system and process of electing presidents. the failure of the organization of the United States into 50 jurisdictions whose borders (outside Hawaii and Alaska) are entirely irrelevant to the forces that drive the American nation. It is also the failure of our ethos and our deification of the dollar which is the foundation of our culture of money. It is hard to believe that our system has put into the Oval Office a draft dodging, women abusing, Nazi supporting, galactically ignorant, ethically challenged and a possible collaborator with a foreign adversary to rig a national election. We are witnessing the triumph of the lowest common denominator in every imaginable way in the person of Donald Trump. The Democratic Party and Robert Mueller are all that separate us from a descent into a darkness we have never known. The Democrats must win one of the Houses of Congress into 2018 and Mr. Mueller must expose any and all wrongdoing by the White House and its opposition. Will Mr. Mueller consider a presidential run once his work is concluded?
7
I need someone, anyone to explain how a Christian's liberty is under threat and by who. Churches are all around us. As I sit, there are a dozen churches within one mile of me. They pay no property taxes and some contributions to them are tax exempt. They run schools, charities and hospitals. Please tell me where the government closed a church legally doing its mission. Church goers are more likely to be defrauded by their pastors more than anything else.
24
You can't go a quarter of a mile without running into a church down this way.
(I, in fact, can't go out the front door; there's one across the street.)
4
For me the issue is the track record in how the Left is fighting Trump: a corrupt media fabricating scandal after scandal and just sloppy reporting, a corrupt Obama administration setting Trump up for a phony Russia-collusion investigation, calls to change the electoral college, calls to restrict conservative speech, the use of teenagers as puppets to launch anti-Trump walkouts, the lie of the "Women's March" which was really just an anti-Trump march and was organized by a self-proclaimed jihadist, the calls for the rights of non-citizens superseding those of actual citizens, how youtube, Google, and Facebook restrict conservative voices, Hollywood's turning into a propaganda machine, the Left's disrespect of the Flag, the insults to Trump's wife and child, and yes the smug, simplistic, insular viewpoint that Trump voters are stupid racists.
It just seems that the Left hates Trump and also hates the Constitution and America in general.
If this is who the Left really is, then I will vote Republican for the next 25 years at least.
2
Is this humour? The comedy festival is underway in Melbourne. Come on down.
4
There too many lies and false premises in your rant to respond to! Not that I would try. Words of disagreement with many on the right are only taken as fighting words. This changes nothing, generating no light, only an excess of heat.
John Lennon was right that living is easy with eyes closed- but only for you to continue voting Republican for 25 years and everyone else will deal with the aftermath.
10
Trump is winning because Demeaning him is the sin you accuse him of committing and emboldens his supporters You suggest no stratgey -the same you accuse him of lacking
Abandon The Anti trump strategy cause its not a strtegy
Develop a For Americans strtegy how to improve lives of the middle and lower class Theres lots to go in that direction Dont propose higher taxes on the wealthy Propose how that will benefit americans by increasing wages through better education and trraning
Propose how democrats will create a unifed Congress who will work for the good of America not for their party
2
We saw the same tribalism with Reagan supporters. No matter how unfounded his policies and the criminality uncovered in the Iran Contra scandal, they stuck by their man. That was the first time the term Teflon President was used. The more the pres revealed about his presidency, the more they rallied to defend it. I hate to admit it, but Trump is benefiting enormously from that same attitude. This started in 1980 and has been going strong ever since. It is a reaction to Watergate and the belief that the left and the “crooked press” railroaded Nixon out of the White House.
8
Maybe you should have said, "Trump understands best HOW TO EXPLOIT the problems of large parts of America..." as this is what got him elected and what he persists in doing and why he so admires his hero, Putin.
8
Does anyone notice the States that are most supportive of Trump currently have teachers on strike because classes are overcrowded, lack of textbooks and low pay. In other words, poorly educated kids. Probably has gone on for generations. Ignorant people make ignorant voters. 'Nuff said.
17
Yes David, I suppose the problem with Hitler, was that the left so vociferously opposed him. If they just had been more reasonable about the guy, then his followers would have become more reasonable, and he wouldn't have had so much unchallenged power. I don't buy your arguments. This is not only a political emergency, it is an epistemic emergency. The reason that Trump is getting 40 % support is because there is a near media monopoly in the U.S. that's acting like Russia Today, only without the variety of viewpoints that RT features. The Fox/Sinclair abdication of journalistic standards is the real problem and reason that Trump keeps his support. The opposition's voice is being drowned out by money.
17
Mr. Brooks will never admit to himself the real reason that Republicans can't lay a glove on Trump: Their attacks reek of hypocrisy. The modern GOP was born the day Ronald Reagan got a nice laugh with this contemptible slander: "The most terrifying words in the English language are: I'm from the government and I'm here to help." This after the EPA had cleaned up our water and air, we had eradicated polio and TB, the Arsenal of Democracy had vanquished Hitler, etc. etc. etc.! No Republican ever called The Great Communicator out on this disgusting lie, then or now. And if government is truly so terrifying, why not have it run by somebody who is inept, incurious, and very possibly unhinged? The less adept its leadership, the less damage government can do, right? Republicans gasp in horror and clutch their pearls not because they disapprove of what Trump is doing, but because he is doing it so indiscreetly that their appalling agenda is laid bare.
18
Trump can keep his 40%. In an election year that means he'll lose in a landslide. Stop blaming Trump critics for doing what they ought to be doing. It's Republicanism that is an utter failure, not those of us who oppose it. Republicans are a shrinking party. That they've dug in their heels doesn't change that fact.
15
"Democratic anti-Trumpers had better hope they win in 2020, because their attacks have only served to entrench Trumpism on the right."
Entrenched Trumpism will help Democrats win, as we've already seen.
6
When, oh when, are the Democrats going to articulate a positive vision of the future for all Americans? Where does a potential presidential candidate think the country can be in 25 years?
5
"Don’t focus on personality or the man, Zingales advised. That will just make Trump the people’s hero against the Washington caste. Focus instead on the social problems that gave rise to Trumpism."
EXACTLY!!!
The problem is, when I tell this to my liberal friends and colleagues, they denounce me as a bigotted right-winger. Yet, I consider myself a rational moderate, virtually indistinguishable these days from David Brooks.
If anyone has any idea how to bridge THAT divide, please let me know. I haven't been able to figure it out yet.
9
I'm afraid that David Brooks has become the Neville Chamberlain of the "Never Trumpers".
8
"Rich Lowry just had a column in Politico called “The Never Trump Delusion” arguing that Trump is not that big a departure from the Republican mainstream."
As the entire Left has been arguing for months.
4
I'm not sure I agree... I know a few Dems and Republicans who voted for Trump but won't do so again. And, he cannot win again unless he maintains both the Dem/crossover vote and the Independents. Perhaps a better view of what might (though certainly is not guaranteed to) happen in November is what's been happening in local races around the country- a strong reaction to Trump's ignorance and boorish behavior. And I strongly disagree that ..."Trump supporters voted for the man precisely because they wanted transformational change." The academic study that suggests that Trump voters are "close-minded and desperate for security" seems far more on target. The only 'change' they want is to turn the clock back a generation. Every Trump voter I've spoken with- respectfully- strikes me as rigid, seeking authoritarian assurances and afraid of being left behind in the harsh world of free market capitalism that we've created. The irony that Trump is all about unfettered capitalism and could care less about their travails hasn't escaped all of them.
5
So, people are not supposed to care about about their own security?
1
As to the Repubs drinkig the Trump-aid. Sure they are. As professionals Republicans its required of them. So right now a few shots of T-aid, before the event (elections) outside in the parking lot...ain't gonna hurt them. Maybe make them stagger a little...slur their ethics...
But as soon as Trump becomes a full liability for their re-elections - its hot potato time. Drop him him faster then the eye can see.
Face it Mr. Brooks, Trump is heading towards a breakdown. With all the chaos - most not of his doing, so its not productive for him - he's careening towards the wall.
Look at whats on his plates right now...and who he has advising him, now. Not yesterday, not a few months ago...but now. Plate; gun violence. Immigration. A skittish Wall St. An easily toppled slow-moving economy, and soon to be ballooning deficit. (all his fault) Syria, Iran, Iraq, Russian aggression, Chinese pushback. Side dishes; untested Pompeo, wholly untested Bolton...a marginalized Kelly. The loss of trusted "servants". (Hicks, etc.) Stormy, et al, and those effects on his home, aka; Melenia. Swirling ethics problems, emolument issues, his sons, The Kush, Pruitt...
Compounded by Appointees with integrity towards their vows to the Constitution. (Sessions, can ya believe it? Rosenstein. The SDNY prosecutor. Various other Republican siding judges, honoring the laws.)
And clearly a high level LEAKER. (Conway, IMO)
Trump is 100% out of his league. His temper is being tested like never before.
2
Yes, academic analyses are so insufferably condescending when they reach conclusions you don’t like. Sorry David, you don’t get to have your own facts. And tens of millions of Americans “rightly feel” their religious liberties are under attack? How so? Perhaps you’re referring to Muslims?
5
Brooks links to an article to supposedly prove that academics call trump supporters ".... closed-minded, change-averse and desperate for security."
However, the academics quoted in the article actually describe conservatives using value neutral words, saying they "...value social cohesion, certainty, and security." It was Brooks' colleague, who Brooks praises, that summarize it in those terms.
There are many examples of people using less-than-ideal (counterproductive, even) language to describe conservatives, but this isn't one of those examples.
6
They rightly feel that their religious liberties are under threat? And which, pray tell, are those religious liberties that are under threat? Would it be their religious liberty to bar people of different religions from their country? Would it be their religious liberty to control women's bodies? Would it be their religious liberty to assert the teachings of their prayer book over the constituted laws of the USA? Or the right to assert the supremacy of pale pigmentation, or their sole right to the ballot box, or their right to exclude anybody they don't like from the commercial life of the country, etc.?
13
While I agree that we need to focus on the social problems that gave rise to Trumpism, the sickening truth about those 40% of the electorate that still support him is that what they care about far beyond their troubled lives is knowing that someone is out there working to make the lives of their enemies worse than their own.
6
Left leaning individuals should thank their lucky stars for we have not been put in a moral dilemma and crisis that right leaning principled conservatives like David Brooks are going through. The anti-Trump rhetoric has little to do with Democrats and much to do with principled conservatives and independents. Will the independents and the 10% of the anti Trump Republicans who I believe are still conservative in principle and practice and virtue be able to get past the tough decision to scuttle the ship called the Republican party. Trump stays at 40% approval and that means 60% can be against him. Democrats get 60% of the vote, they win the House and the Senate. Will David Brooks be principled enough to cut the limb?
Trumpism will not dominate because it is morally bankrupt. We have seen this in the past in many places around the world and it has always failed. Why should this time be any different? The only question is how much damage if any will it do to the moral fabric of America? Time will tell. Stay tuned and be optimistic. MLK is part of American character, so is KKK. The former defines the best of what we can be, the latter forms the worst of America. I would like to think the American character is strong enough to not just bear this but come out of it better.
4
Sorry, David. The "main reason Trump won the election" is that the election was very cleverly rigged using the Electoral College as a tool of corruption. Of course, had he not had his supporters, even that wouldn't have been effective. He would have come depressingly close even without the cheating, but the cheating is why he won.
While identity politics is nothing new, Trump is the first to organize white conservative Americans into another grievance group. Why is anyone shocked by that?
We live in a time where the "end of white America" is openly celebrated, the DNC touts its "demographics is destiny" election strategy, and the US - humanity's most open, diverse and equitable society - is denounced as "white supremacy." We're told that every pathology - from poverty, crime, sexual harassment, mass shootings to the opioid crisis - is either due to traditional white males terrified of losing their socioeconomic dominance, or the result of that dominance.
We are disallowed to see white, straight males as anything but oppressors, and non-white straight males as anything but their victims. At every turn, the "anti-bigotry" vanguard demands we see each other not as individuals, but as members of a group identity. Skin color, sexual orientation, gender and ethnicity have now been imbued with moral meaning by the "good guys" in ways indistinguishable from that of the bad guys.
For generations we've been told by progressives that race and gender are Everything, that in fact the American meritocratic system is really just a spoils system set up by white men. And so, in 2016, along comes a demagogue who, rather than resisting the poison of that terrible notion, organizes culturally maligned and economically vulnerable white Americans on those very same terms.
And good liberals are shocked. Shocked!
4
Thing is, changes are everywhere, including religions worldwide. 'Threat' is in the eye of the beholder; the non-threatened accept change.
2
Mr. Brooks, please explain to me how you were able to determine that because of the number of people speaking out against our dictator, things would not be worse?
4
Brooks' keeps naively suggesting that Republicans owe the world a response to Trump. Why? Trump is the pathetic Republican Party at its simplistic core, appealing to the lowest common denominator of deregulation, callousness, lower taxes, and white supremacy. The more responsible Americans will respond to Trump on November 6th by electing a Democratic Congress to, at least, neutralize this disgraceful chapter in our history until 2020.
4
You didn't mention sheer survival instinct along with what you feel is tribalism. We've been asked in past Administrations to absorb too much nonsense. The third world is not full of middle class individuals who will save our economy; if it was, it would be in better shape itself. We have not stopped having our own children, and stand in little need of a servant class. Western values of civil liberties have given us a pretty good life; while a limited number of ethnic restaurants are nice, I don't need to be so diverse as to risk having many people who don't share Western values. Walls work to preserve your property and existence; just ask anyone in a ranch in Texas picking up the pampers, condoms, and drug paraphernalia on their land, or answering demands at their door for food in the middle of the night. Foreign policy that gives nations that are antagonistic to Western values nuclear weapons has been so crazy as to possibly count as treasonous; North Korea, Pakistan and Iran could not have developed their nuclear capabilities without Western help, and it was suicidal to do so. Just recognize, please, that wanting to stay alive and keep the life style that your ancestors fought for is a powerful motivation. If you need further proof, look at the difference in reaction in Europe to one lone pitiful toddler body on the beach to today's attitude of "ho, hum, another 80 people found dead in the bottom of a migrant boat this weekend".
3
Is it condescending when the most charitable explanation for a Trump voter is that they fell for the con? No voter gets a pass for the epic fail that is Trump, If that's condescending, I accept it gladly.
7
I think Trump's red state loyal base is afraid to try to compete economically, afraid they'll lose in a high tech, modern world they don't understand. It's safer to stay in their rural hamlets , dig in, refuse to retrain for good jobs, and collect food stamps and disability paid for by taxes on those very elites in the blue states that they despise. Many of the "elite" that Trump's base despises came out of those same small towns and farms a generation ago. The ones who never left and never changed are the ones feeling condescended to and angry. Nothing anyone can say is going to move them from their fox hole. They will remain angry and put upon, and feel like the world is ignoring them, because it is. Trump won't and can't save them, and the Democrats shouldn't try to either. Coal is not coming back, robots are going to take jobs. Black and brown people will continue to achieve and gain status. Women are not going to have 8 children and home school them. Christianity will not become the official religion of the US. Change is a constant, and those who don't adapt are left behind.
5
Perhaps it's because "Trumpism" has nothing to do with Trump. It is a reflection of a strong undercurrent in this country of anger, disillusionment, fear, paranoia, and racism. As other commenters have duly noted, those sentiments were fostered for years by the Republican party and, albeit indirectly, this column. No amount deserved criticism of Trump as a person or president addresses these issues.
5
Oh come on, David! Your reasonableness has become unreasonable. The research reported by Edsall is far more convincing than your arguments. For example, you say Trump voters voted for change even though the research on their authoritarian streak suggests that they shouldn’t want change. You’re intelligent enough to know why that criticism lacks force. Trump voters could want change in some areas but not others. The change they want could be, and in many cases is, regressive, e.g., a return to the 1950s. In other cases, the changes they want (e.g., “drain the swamp”) don’t factor into the sort of aversion to change the research is talking about. There’s no reason why someone with low openness in the big five trait taxonomy would be averse to rooting out corruption, for instance. The list of problems with the article could go on. I think you empathize with Trump voters in the wrong ways sometimes. You whitewash their racism by saying that they feel under attack and that their communities are being destroyed. How accurate are these perceptions? Have they not been created, or at least stoked, by FOX News and Trump? A lot of trump voters live in areas with very few immigrants, for example. I think arguments such as yours essentially rationalize fears and opinions that are really just racism. Where does the empathy come in? Let’s acknowledge that a lot of this is driven by racism but also realize that these people are racist because American society is deeply racist.
6
You don't think communities have been destroyed??? Please do some research. There is plenty of information available, if you can use google. Look up photos of Detroit past and present. Or Baltimore, or Flint or the Bronx or St. Louis. You want to pretend that people have not experienced what they have experienced.
1
Best column written about Trump and Trumpism. Ever.
I have loathed the man for over 35 years. But I have warned my democratic friends to stop the vitriol and venom spewed at the President. Go after his policies---not him.
And for the love of God, stop denigrating his voters and supporters. It only drives them further into his arms. The last paragraph in this essay says it all.
4
Archie Bunker never went away. He was just laying low for fear of being maligned as racist, Islamophobic, homophobic, anti-immigration etc. No more. Trump has slipped off the choke collar and let him loose. And there's a lot more of him than we realized.
3
Why is Mr. Brooks so kind to Trump supporters? The ones I have spoken with are either adherents to some extreme, distorted version of Christianity, ignorant of science and economics, racist or all of the above.
2
Brooks sounds fatigued and looking for a quick resolution or end to Trump administration. This fight is gonna be a prolonged one. Tooth and nail. Maybe Brooks isnt up to such a fight.
2
No one is doing anything to Republicans that they're not doing to themselves with your close minded, alt right now, science fearing, holier than thou, infowar swallowing DNA. Do not blame the mirror holders, Mr. Brooks. It's time for the reflections to own up to reality instead of living in the hate fantasy world of their own making.
3
"On trade, immigration, entitlement reform, spending, foreign policy, race relations and personal morality, this is Trump’s party, not Reagan’s or anyone else’s."
That pretty well sums up the Trumpatista Republican's fearless leader: self-aggrandizing at all costs, anti-trade, pro-deficit spending, race-baiting, lying, cheating, misogynist. The perfect guy for David Brook's precious flyover evangelists. Let us be frank about this Mr. Brooks:
What a sordid pile of hypocrites.
2
Oh for god's sake Brooks, step into reality. Trump wasn't elected because of economic or religious insecurity. He was elected because of racism, misogyny, homophobia, and religious paranoia. You keep ignoring the myriad self-reported attitudes and hostilities of Trump supporters and instead look for something that will salve your own conscience in helping to create the modern GOP. But its not there. Trump is the natural result of the racism and hate that has infested the GOP for decades. Stop trying to lay it on "liberal elites" -- liberal elites don't control the press or the billionaires who have funded the GOP.
6
Trump's support has not evaporated for the same ancient reason as always. Many humans fervently believe in fantasy. Only in Matthew is it mentioned that saints(not named) rose from their graves and walked through Jerusalem, also some other walking dead on the day of the crucifixion. No other reference in any of the New Testament books or letters about this or in histories. One would think that a notable event. Did the dead go home for lunch? Did they continue to live? How long? People believe in nonsense, that's why the base will not budge. How dare anyone use reason to convince them they back a grown infantile man with no curiosity about the world at all other than real estate shenanigans, and self promotion. Billions love their lies they live by.
http://jdstone.org/cr/files/thenewtestamentsgreatestevents2.html
1
Well said. The liberal antitrumpers are unable to look at themselves as they really are, sore losers. They need to be issue oriented. You offer pearls of wisdom and insight for anti-trumpism to succeed, but the left would rather rant than win.
2
David, what if the recent academic analyses of the personality traits of Trump supporters are actually correct?
It certainly doesn’t seem that facts and reason are a hallmark of Trump loyalists. More a combination of suspicion of change and human difference, along with a remarkable kind of credulity which places trust in a most untrustworthy leader.
It’s hard to know where to start. What would be the magic key, David?
4
Another problem is that the rabidly liberal left wing of the Democratic party is more successful of driving moderate voters away than the Tea Party types of Cruz' ilk.
And that is no small accomplishment.
The Democrats go out of their way to show the voters that they don't have their priorities right and that they are despising those who are not screeching along with the Warren and Gillibrand types. By contrast, what Trump is doing is providing rallying points with whom a sizeable number of people can readily identify and that polarize the country.
In short, the Democrats are demonstrating how to go about losing elections, Trump shows how to win them.
2
Most of the people who still support Donald Trump actually like Donald Trump, or what he represents. It will be impossible for people on the left (or in the middle) to turn those people against Trump. I think the best that Trump's opponents can hope for--short of bipartisan impeachment--is for Trump to turn people off on himself. There are specific ways he might do that, such as with a trade war that directly harms a segment of his constituency. The better approach for Trump's opponents is to use anti-Trump sentiment to motivate the rest of the electorate. A majority of the electorate does not like Trump. They have to not like him enough to actually vote him out.
3
Perhaps the Anti-Trumpists should try presenting an actual alternative to the status quo that Trump supporters oppose. You know, the increasing poverty reality that many democratic voters whose jobs have been lost overseas and to slave wage immigrants also suffer from, but have chose to allow the democrats to scape goat onto 'evil white males' and fake trumped up news threats of exploding racism and the fantasy return of a 4th Reich.
We have done so, and we are winning.
1
One can debate all the reasons why tRump won, but the one reason that cannot be argued, is he won because of the electoral college.
6
I agree with your assessment, Mr. Brooks, we need to deal with the social, and I would add, economic problems that face the middle and working class. However, there is a two fold problem. One, the Democrats do not have a coherent policy dealing with today's problems, such as income inequality, wage stagnation, immigration, the cost of higher education, runaway healthcare costs, etc. They are caught up in the same partisan politics the Republicans are. And yes, I think it is way past the time the likes of Nancy Pelosi and the other septuagenarians in Congress move on and let a new generation of leaders take the helm with new, fresh ideas. Second, even if someone or political group put forth a comprehensive action plan, the 40% of Trump supporters would not listen, even if it would help them. Heck, I doubt the other 50% of people would listen. We have all gone tone deaf. The only ones that can hear are the politicians, and they only listen to the donor class.
4
Brooks' assignment of the goals of anti-Trumpism seems to be a bit of a stretch to me. Why would Brooks get to decide what the goals are of people who find Trump reprehensible? Couldn't it just be a justified reaction to a man who reeks of a lack of conscience and criminality? One of the goals Brooks states, "weakening his support", seems especially far-fetched, as he's only been in office for 1.3 years and Republicans have all 3 branches of govt. Maybe the goals of anti-Trumpism were just to get him out of office. In that regard, anti-Trumpism seems to be moving along just fine, as Trump may be moving to another of his addresses none too soon. Let's hope so
3
I am not so sure about these other addresses. But I am concerned that we will see a huge TRUMP sign on the White House none too soon. Let's NOT hope so....
1
Given that I saw Trump coming at the time of the SC GOP primary and countless op-ed contributors told us there was no way he'd win the nomination, far less win the presidency, Mr. Brooks included, I'm far less inclined to listen to them opine, and trust my own judgement instead. Having said that, it's likely that no amount of care given to the economic predicament that Trumpers find themselves in is likely to sway their opinion. Having said that, it's definitely the right thing to do to care about their well-being. Just don't expect to change any minds. It's confirmation bias in its purest form.
2
David Brooks's appears not to know anyone who is less privileged. He seems to be a good person, but without any direct contact with the conflicts and difficulties of our majority underclass. My life, on the contrary, has put me in touch with those who are victims of our predatory system. In my working life, I was unusually privileged to have three black bosses, one a CEO, who shared their generosity with me as well as their "own". I lived in ghettos where I was protected. For whatever reason, I had to good luck to discover that bighearted people of other races & religions and in other circumstances, while they care for each other, had extra room for me.
Now I have a chance to give back some of the gifts of love and materialistic success I received. Occasionally, I've had to do battle with a court system that fines people for being poor, and condemns victims while not investigating the proprietary predators who have figured out how to use "the system" to take from those who have less to give to those who have more. I've been powerless in several cases to do anything but stop the process of weregild that prevents the progress of their victims towards security.
It's not exactly a failure of imagination, but as a member of the "elite" I recommend a visit to some nursing homes and hospitals to find our who it is that cares for you when you are in need. Who it is who practices the core precepts of the best in religion, Christan, Jewish, or Muslim, on your behalf.
4
Sorry about my proofing errors, that darned 1500 character limit. But I would asked you all to think about:
Who is the giver, who is the taker?
"Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." Simple until you try to actually do it. Nonetheless, a more than worthy goal, and if you feel your "religion" is threatened, you might want to look again - the gospels, don'tchaknow.
2
"We have persuaded no one. Trump’s approval rating is around 40 percent, which is basically unchanged from where it’s been all along."
To me that seems to indicate that there are two Americans. One is Trumpers and the other anti-Trumpers. Trying to persuade them to switch side is just like trying to persuade a Frenchman to become a German or vice versa.
"Focus instead on the social problems that gave rise to Trumpism.
That is the advice we anti-Trumpers still need to learn."
Very true. But if recent history is any indication no one is going to learn anything that is outside of their own ideology. All problems, particularly social problems, are human problems. But I haven't seen any attempt in the past forty years from anyone who is willing to address these problems with human beings being the source of the problem in mind.
3
This is the first time in my long lifetime when a party is permitting a President to go far and repeatedly outside the lines prescribed for a President and defend him because he is theirs. This isn't about condescension (whether it exists or not) - it is about a party that permits a candidate and President to hide his taxes, to keep his business interests, to make a direct profit from the Presidency (Trump Hotel, MaraLago, foreign properties), etc. etc. I learned in business from an auditor that we can protect against fraud but collusion across department lines is difficult to find. That is what we have: collusion between a majority party that doesn't care about the rule of law or the Constitution (emoluments). Never before, hopefully never again.
8
While I agree that responsible journalism hasn't kept Trump from being Trump, it's also a mistake to say that it hasn't "hindered" him. Imagine what he would be doing if he had absolutely no fear of repercussions (he presently has little fear of repercussions). The opinion pieces may have little impact in the long run, but the investigative reporting is as crucial as ever.
Second, to the point on how to beat Trump - you are 100% right that opposition has to come in the form of issues and not just on how bad Trump is. I am, for instance, generally a Progressive in terms of beliefs and voting record, but I look at JB Pritzker's website for his gubernatorial run and see a bunch on liberal social issues and "standing up to Trump," and nothing on fixing the fiscal mess Illinois is in. I frankly don't care about a Dem candidate talking about his/her opposition to Trump - that should be an assumption at this point, both ideologically and in terms of character. The issues are and will always be what are important. If Dems don't focus on those and instead make it all about Trump, I agree that they're going to be in for a rude awakening...again.
5
"Focus instead on the social problems that gave rise to Trumpism."
To do this, I suggest the GOP anti-Trumpers need to look in the mirror. Account for your role in fostering and exacerbating the social problems.
I could give you a short list:
Telling rural and suburban poor people (i.e., white working class), who desperately need health insurance, about Obama Care's "death panels". Promising to repeal the only shot many of them have to obtain health insurance with no promise of a replacement. When they complain, telling them that they have to learn to sacrifice.
Preaching fiscal restraint when it comes to social programs that might help poor people, but spending lavishly on tax cuts.
Do everything you can to weaken unions and facilitating the exporting of jobs overseas, and then telling the people left behind that if they don't like it, maybe they should move to where the jobs are.
Cutting unemployment benefits in the midst of the worst recession since the Great Depression.
Insisting that the Federal government is the problem--and then govern as though to prove the point, thereby undermining people's faith in the institutions that should be trying to help them.
7
David, a good piece as usual. I'd like to take issue with one point: is it really a justifiable position that anyone's legitimate religious liberties are threatened?
It seems to me more likely that the real concern is the perceived inability to force others to adhere to their religious beliefs and practices. We can cite the examples: opposition to equal rights for the LGBT community, reduction and elimination of abortion services, teaching of creationism alongside real science, recitation of The Pledge of Allegiance in its current form, recitation of prayers in public schools, etc.
Keep up the good work!!
3
Recently, I have been following the troubles of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who is dogged by scandals and likely to lose his position. Before the scandals, Japanese observers assumed he was a strong figure who would continue to control the majority in parliament for a very long time.
But Japan has a British-type parliamentary system, and thanks to its Constitution the United States has a presidential system that can be really abused and turned into something resembling absolute monarchy. At least, that is what Trump is trying to do with it.
2
Indiana = Ranked 11th from the top in States Most Dependent on Federal $. Residents rank #7, state govt ranks 22. So, You're welcome Indiana, from a coastal elite whose tax keeps you afloat. You may not be #2, like Kentucky, but you're close. And don't tell us it's because you get federal $ for university research. You're on the dole, Indiana. Mississippi. Louisiana, SC, Alabama.
12
Trump addresses the fears and anger of his base to gain their support, pandering to their concerns while not delivering real, long-term solutions. Such rah rah short term tactics only go so far.
6
If David Brooks had spent more time listening to Rush Limbaugh over the past several decades, none of this would surprise him. Trump may be the most garish manifestation yet of what the Republican party has become, but what he embodies is hardly new--at most, Trump has merely perfected what the Republican party has been cultivating all along. Don't fool yourself. This is not about economic deprivation. It's about hate. The Republican party has fostered hate for years now. Trump is exactly what its voters have been told they need and exactly what they now want. The more hateful he becomes, the more popular he is. You can't appease his voters with economic reforms. You appease them only with ever more virulent hate. But appeasement isn't what we need now. We need just one thing: the Republican party's complete and utter defeat.
8
So what do we do Mr. Brooks? Capitulate?
No. We wait. Trump will destroy himself more completely than any outside force. Just watch and wait.
Th problem is: what happens when the Trumpers come to the realization they've all been snookered by an empty shell who doesn't care what happens to the country.
4
As usual, I think Brooks does a decent job identifying a real issue, and a far flimsier job addressing the reasons for this issue or the solutions to it.
But writ short term, he’s right that all the anti-Trump rhetoric has not stopped the runaway Trump train from barreling down the tracks, even as it derails itself on a regular basis.
It’s the same reason why I lightly admonish some of my liberal friends who can’t see past fact-checking and obvious GOP hypocrisies. Dwelling on Trump’s lies is largely a waste of time. Pointing out Republican hypocrisy is largey a waste of time. It doesn’t change a single mind on the right. Or build power.
Fact checking and hypocricies only matter within the bounds of liberal discourse. Trump and his base don’t operate from a place of liberal discourse. Facts literally don’t matter to them. For that matter, neither does actual democracy.
No, we’re operating in an era of pure power, not liberal discourse.
What we need more of is organized people. Really organized. And this is where Brooks is right — organized to address the social problems that gave rise to Trump.
That’s why I mostly organize people around bread and butter issues with a democratic socialist bent. These are the issues that enjoy support ranging from the Black Lives Matter platform to conservative-leaning populists to active church-goers who’ve actually thought about what Jesus was saying.
They’re also the issues Democrats can use to unseat Republicans now enabling Trump.
4
Thomas Edsall's analysis of the characteristics of Trump voters might strike David Brooks as "condescending" but it happens to be supported by all the evidence and true. Trump voters are overwhelmingly authoritarian and have low educational achievement when compared with Hillary voters.
4
Perhaps, it's time to face facts, Mr. Brooks. The Republican party has had a problem for a long time. Their raison d'etre is to advocate for limits to government power so as to retain power in the traditional non government power bases of religion and wealth (the aristocracy). However, arguing for this (sometimes) noble cause (depending on how close you believe we are to totalitarianism) is a difficult sell if you wish to deal in truth and reality. The Republican party since about Lee Atwater (as far as I can tell) has instead opted to misrepresent their goals and the state of the country. In order to get this con to work, they have also worked tirelessly to keep the population stupid and easily manipulated by underfunding education and pushing religiosity (see also: Betsy DeVos) and restricting voting rights and turnout. Trump is the logical conclusion to this Faustian bargain. If the Republican party had demonstrated any logical consistency or honesty (say, perhaps, during the Cheney administration) perhaps there would exist a Republican party outside of the Trumpists (ignorant xenophobic, jingoistic, theocrats - ha! you said they were concerned about their "religious liberties"!) In the meantime, good luck with "entitlement reform", you disingenuous heels.
6
SOMEONE amid this chaos and corruption needs to speak the truth. And it sure isn't coming from the Republican side, and it looks like it never will. I agree with most of what you've written, but your emphasis seems all wrong--we're dealing with a corrupt and cultish dishonesty that has colonized one entire political party. It's being left solely up to the Dems to come up with a worthwhile theme and purpose, but the Republican abdication of responsibility is staggering. Many many voters are still trying to come to terms with it, simply in their own minds.
4
We can't accept delusions of the fringe right. It is like debating with the nonsense. Religious liberties are not under assault in this country. Rural America voted for the government off their backs last 40 years, now they feel abandoned? They have voted to channel money to rich people and now feel left behind? Liberals are not "for abortion", they just don't accept the laws that makes it criminal. Can we seriously accept the future where each miscarriage is followed with the funeral??? Because that's what the fringe right is implying!
Liberals just don't care if this sounds condescending, wrong is wrong based on facts, building the future of this country on wrong policies is just wrong, period!
5
No, trump voters did not seek "transformational change". And if they wanted it, the change they were favoring was a rollback to the good old 50's, when "everybody knew it's place".
For an anti-trumper, you are "too" understanding of their foibles.
3
Well, looking over reader's comments, David's point is pretty well established about insufferable condescension on the part of many anti-Trump folks. Until both sides can figure out a way of communicating with the other rather then simple zealot-like condemnation, it is unlikely the present course can be corrected at least by way of the Constitution of the United States.
3
We do not need to be afraid. We need to vote and encourage our family, friends, and enemies to vote.
Give control of Congress to the Democrats.
4
When we talk about Trump supporters I think we can't ignore that what we're really talking about are predominately white men.
Trump plays directly to white male fears with overt and covert racism and sexism. So if you're trying to understand these guys you have to say it. I feel like many people want to explain the 40% away as the "forgotten Americans" as if we're talking about a broad cross section of America. I don't think we are. It's hard to face how entrenched racism and sexism are in white males but it needs to be called out by analysts and the media.
And it's not about jobs, the economy, foreign affairs or religious or moral purity. Does anyone seriously believe that if white men loose their jobs, they'll turn on Trump- no way. It'll be Hillary and Obama's fault, which is to say women and blacks.
We keep acting surprised that he's not loosing support even after proof of corruption, treason, lies or bizarre incomprehensible speeches. As long as he embodies racist and sexist fear, that's all that matters to his base.
So to me we need to break the code- call it what it is. And somehow figure out how to help stop white guys from feeling so terrified.
3
Looks like Robert Mueller has taken your advice! RIght now, he's the got the best brand of Anti-Trumpism going, wouldn't you agree?
3
Two things, Mr. Brooks:
1. I don't believe for one second that you are anti-Trump. You just pretend you are in order to side-step the humiliation of your president's appalling behavior.
2. Trump voters are indeed psychologically inferior. I have proof of that: Trump himself. What is your proof--I'd even take a small shred of evidence--that they are not psychologically inferior? You offer none. Take a look--and listen--to Trump. Anyone who could have thought for even a nanosecond that this man was fit to be president is too psychologically inferior to be making decisions about who should and should not be in office.
4
Some criticize the Democratic Party for not doing as much as they could for the blue collar workers and especially rural blue collar workers.
But the Republican Party is much worse for those workers and they are voting for Republicans, even before Trump.
It is the culture wars and Fox News and Rush Limbaugh and liberals are bad.
Republicans are great at misinformation.
3
Mr. Brooks and his reveries rarely hit the mark with me. In reporting on Trump, the media rarely focuses on the prurient or crass (or idiotic, for that matter). Syria. Immigration. Deregulation. Trade War. These are the topics dominating the non-Fox news. I haven't heard much about Stormy Daniels, the President's intelligence, his competence and other "personal matters".
"On trade, immigration, entitlement reform, spending, foreign policy, race relations and personal morality, this is Trump’s party, not Reagan’s or anyone else’s."
David, you are still in denial. Trump does not have a cohesive or comprehensive thought about any of these things, so how can he possibly have molded the party into anything?
Ronald Reagan was born in 1911, in an era before a safety net, when parents who couldn't feed their kids either sent them to live with relatives while they hustled for jobs, or put them in orphanages, or if they had some kind of disability, got sent to institutions to live out their lives. Despite his having warned against the dangers of enacting Medicare, he did not seek to dismantle it as President.
Perhaps his familiarity with widespread poverty moderated him. Perhaps it was the fact that the House of Representatives was overwhelmingly Democratic.
Since the era of Newt Gingrich, the party has been adapting a more extreme anti-govt approach and been tolerating all kinds of conspiracy theories. Are Mitch McConnell and Paul Ryan's party the party of Reagan? Is George W. Bush at home in this party?
You refused to acknowledge the dark turn the party has taken on so many issues for a long time.
Face facts. This is not the party of Trump. It is the party of Gingrich, Ryan and McConnell. Trump is merely the salesman peddling their agenda.
3
I would add it is the party of the Koch brothers and Libertarian propaganda.
Freedom, the freedom for someone making minimum wage not to have healthcare.
1
Final Poll, Presidential Primaries, Sanders vs Trump,
Sander 49.7 %
Trump 39.3%
https://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/2016/president/us/general_elect...
The Democratic establishment, controlled by Wall Street, frozen with fear that Sanders would introduce the Nordic model to the US did whatever in their power to stop Sanders.
The Democrats deserve what they got.
Until the Democrats return to be funded by labour Unions and small donations, they will not win the workers of America back.
They know that Wall Street makes money on moving factories to China and the US
And they know that the leader of the Democratic Party is in their pocket.
Top contributors , Charles E Schumer, 2011 - 2016, Campaign Committee & Leadership PAC Combined:
1 Paul, Weiss et al
2 Deloitte LLP
3 PricewaterhouseCoopers
4 Lockheed Martin
5 NorPAC
6 KPMG LLP
7 Citigroup Inc
8 Blackstone Group
9 New York Life Insurance
10 Lazard Lt
4
One thing almost all can agree on...HRC, regardless of qualifications, was the worst possible candidate the dems could have had...and the sad part is, some of them still don't know that. And, we're about to re-live a version of that in the mid-terms thanks to Chuck and Nancy. It's time for the old guard to step aside or be pushed aside.
2
I agree with all you said.
What doesn't make sense is that Republicans are even worse for blue collar voters and yet in places like West Virginia, Oklahoma, Kansas, etc. blue collar workers are voting Republican.
And go look at the donors to Republicans the same plus the Koch brothers and Robert Mercer.
2
Polling something that never was makes such sense.....
Have you noticed that there wasn't a single political ad that attacked Sanders in 2016?
1
In order for the social problems that gave rise to Trump being elected to be addressed, you need Democrats in power. The Republicans are never going to address these problems.
5
Brooks is like the fish who can never discover water. He consistently fails to realize and atone for the fact that he has been a scribe in service of GOP Orthodoxy for his whole professional life and has been in service to the Republican Downward Deviancy exhibited from St. Reagan (Ketchup is a vegetable) to †Я☭mp (so much lying, ignorance, and NR/Lowry-like fecklessness). • And with this essay he wants to assign some blame for †Я☭mp to those of us who are not religious extremists, sexists, racists, or easily duped. • †Я☭mp's success (such as it is) was a collective effort of rightwing tax-cut zealots, climate-change denier$, Mercer-esque oligarchs, unpatriotic party-over-country types, rural rubes who believe †Я☭mp gives a whit for them, and Clinton-haters who have believed 30yrs of agitprop from the Rightwing Noise Machine. Thankfully this is still a minority POV, in spite of the GOP Big Lie that voter fraud is real.
4
50 years ago The Republican Party created the Southern Strategy, the conscious effort to appeal to the segregationist Strom Thurmond and George Wallace Democratic voters.
In the 1980’s the Republican Party gave us the culture wars and Reagan and the dog whistle politics of welfare queens and States Rights and created the Reagan Democrats.
In the 1990’s we got the Newt Gingrich House of Representatives take no prisoners confrontation, the Clinton impeachment, Whitewater, and Vince Foster murder conspiracy.
With Obama, they created the Tea Party and gave us the birthers, death panels, and support of the Confederate flag.
They coopted Christians with abortion instead working to get women birth control.
And all these years, the Republican politicians have been using the Reaganomics talking points of small government and tax cuts for the job creators coming from the right-wing think tanks.
For thirty five years, the rising tide of Trickle Down Economics has mostly helped the wealthy at the expense of the rest.
And the Republican establishment is sick, just sick I tell you, to think of Trump representing the Republican Party.
They can’t understand how the Republican voters, who have been losing their manufacturing jobs all these years as Mitt Romney and his Wall St. colleagues sent those jobs to China, these same voters who have been listening to talk radio and Fox all these years, how they can blindly follow Trump and not listen to reason.
7
David Brooks, DJT voters do not rightly fear that their religious liberties are under attack. They imagine this, because they are finding it harder and harder to impose their views on others. People are free to attend church, every day if they like. They are free to support their religious causes. They are not, and should not, be free to demand that the government support them in these endeavors (hello, fake “crisis pregnancy centers”). They are free to espouse whatever religious beliefs they want, but they are not entitled to approval and affirmation. They are free to teach their children whatever they believe, but they are not entitled to have their religious beliefs be taught in schools as fact. DJT voters believed and believe a lot of things that just are not true, and conservative media and politicians encouraged this in order to win power. This is why the conservative “never Trumpers” failed: because you still endorse the lies and scams of the Republican Party. You just don’t like the embodiment of your philosophy that is DJT.
5
I think paranoia was a clinical term at one point. Now it merely characterizes the state of mind of political opponents. Lots of folk allowed themselves to be convinced that societal reshuffle was coming at their expense. People don't seem on the verge of backing down. Could say if we don't hang together we are bound to hand separately. Oops, there goes my paranoia.
This Brooks column could have been written about Berlusconi, in Iraly; Orban, in Hungary; Morawiecki, in Poland; Kurz, in Austria; Erdogan, in Turkey; and Netanyahu, in Israel.
In other words, in the face of a corrupt, impulsive, autocratically inclined demagogue, don't attack him, don't resist him, just try to empathize with his millions of supporters. They know something you don't.
As the great sage said, "You can't fix stupid."
3
"just try to empathize with his millions of supporters. They know something you don't."
Indeed they do. What they had was failing them, and no other alternative was offered to them.
So don't just attack those voters, offer them something better than they had, and better than this.
But you won't, because without empathy, with vast condescension, you still want them to take what they had before and like it. Which is why these guys got elected.
2
This county has a very big problem when 40% of voters support a man who won that support by peddling fear and anger based largely on lies.
That problem is not, as Mr. Brooks seems to believe, those of us who oppose these lies and the leader of this fearful and angry minority. The problem is them, and their delusion, and above all those who take advantage of them to gain power and control.
The academic studies about personality types largely told the truth. Those of us who see this vile president and administration for what they are can see the truth. To abandon truth simply to make nice with those who have bought a monstrous lie is to and lose our collective soul and moral compass.
3
More and more, I think David is engaged in his own entrenched 'tribalism', as he puts it. Enough of the years and years of hearing his falsely equivalent analyses of the shared problems of liberals and conservatives. Accept it David, your once-defensible conservative ideas were usurped by decades of GOP leaders in Congress using that smokescreen to profit the rich more and more and more. THAT is why there are "...problems with large parts of America..", but you refuse to accept it.
4
"The main reason Trump won the presidency is that tens of millions of Americans rightly feel that their local economies are under attack, their communities are dissolving and their religious liberties are under threat. ' Rightly????? How are the religious liberties of white Conservative Evangelicals under threat? How many of their churches have been bombed or defaced? How many threats have they received??? The only thing being threatened is their ability to discriminate against others. Stop acting like there is a real threat they are responding to. Being asked to treat all Americans as equals and to acknowledge other people's civil rights can hardly be seen as being under siege. Communities are dissolving due primarily to opioid addiction and lack of economic progress thanks to the destruction of unions and the rise of the GOP and trump is not going to save them from any of that.
5
The issue is not with the anti-Trump movement; it's with the peo-Trump propaganda which continues to poison the debate.
2
The Democrats have always focused on the social issues that troubled the ordinary American people, Republicans included. But the Republican pundits and political machinery have always been better in making their base believe their politicians are bringing help when that is not true in most cases. I have always wondered why Democrats can't win the argument even when they are on the right side of it.
Yes, the Republican voters have legitimate grievances and genuine pain, but having have their thinking dumbed down for so long by Republican politics, they cannot see the right solutions. They look for salvation in all the wrong places and blame all the wrong people.
2
Ah, David, you haven't been reading our comments again. Tsk, tsk.
If I knew nothing about this country and this article was the only thing I had ever seen, then I might buy your thread. This thread is the weak-kneed version of the columns from the Times last year, where the writers were begging us/scolding us/sneering at us to just give trump a chance.
And, in varying degrees we wrote back and said: "It's not just trump - it is the whole shebang!"
It's:
the cuts in the "Safety Net"
The roll-over of McConnell and Ryan
The roll-over of the Democrats on the military budget
the "Freedom Caucus" and their agenda that eliminates 252 laws that protect the poor, the environment
it's that the "Tax CUT" RAISED taxes on the poorest of the poor
it's that 58% of Republicans think that "higher education is a danger to this country" as Pew noted
It's the concept of "Lazy Law", getting rid of "2 laws for each new one"......
You see, while you're having such fun with all of us pointy-heads squealing like a stuck pig about "trump", there is a real world happening in my life, directed by the men of the Republican Party.
I am female.
I'm the target.
I'm an atheist.
I'm the target.
I receive Social Security.
I'm the target.
I'm the one who has to live with the Ben Carson's and the Scott Pruitt's, nasty, ignorant men out to line their pockets - just like their Master.
Only a wealthy Republican could have written your column today...... or any day.
I have a landline but -
#NOT MY TRIBE
2
so much hubris, so little original thought.
no, David, your job is not to persuade, weaken or prevent. it is to inform and opine.
3
Keep wagging your finger at the resistance. You are not a part of the “we” in any sense!
5
David makes good points about the danger of personalizing the struggle for the lawful Republic. True, there will be a reflex, that attacking Donald means 'attacking me who put Donald there'. There's also a core of Donaldites who love his deviancy. What does that mean, that we should pander to it? Deviancy and personal rule is the way Trump has defined himself. That's what the Republicans are now, a cult of personality around a core of Believers, ensconced in a propaganda silo. Forget them, they will have to hear the truth from the legal state that defends the constitution. Donald is -- there's no other description-- the most dangerous idiot to ever rule, and the biggest threat to responsible government, and he's dragged his crime into his own administration by committing it in conjunction with the election. They're finding the evidence and they have no legal right to ignore it. Let Bannon lead the crusade against law enforcement.
1
Trumpism, like all demagoguery, is the politics of reaction. And the politics of reaction tends to SEEM unstoppable until it collapses with shocking speed. One reason for this is that the forces inflating reactionary politics are (Brooks's contradictions, notwithstanding) fear and rage. And certain failures cause these forces to turn very quickly on the people who unleash them.
This proved true for Huey Long in the 1930's, and George Wallace in the 1960's. But, perhaps the most illuminating example comes tracking Hitler's popularity in Germany between 1940-1942.
As much as people have laid into Donald Trump, no one has ever been more passionately and eloquently opposed than Hitler, from the minute he entered public life in the 1920's. Yet, in 1940, those attacks appeared to have failed, utterly. The conquest of France in May of that year persuaded foot-dragging Germans of Rich Lowry's ilk to leap into Hitler's camp. Hitler's popularity was at its high.
Then, came the failure of the Battle of Britain, the invasion of the USSR, and real hardship to Germans. If Germany had not been a totalitarian state at that point, Hitler would not have been in office by 1944.
The point, here, is NOT to draw a direct analogy between circumstances in the USA, today, and those in Nazi Germany. The point is not to lose hope. And, to remember, that hubris always lays waste to would-be tyrants.
Trump will immolate. Pray he does not take us with him.
1
David, remember the good Germans?
7
I can't agree that Americans "rightly feel their religious liberties are under threat." Millions do feel this way, but the feeling is an illusion. Being required to sell wedding cakes to gay couples does not violate anyone's religious liberty. Such a claim is bogus. But there is an objective reason why Christians feel threatened. It is because the left includes and embracing many individuals who crudely insult every person of faith. It is reasonable for people on the left to oppose Christians who oppose abortion rights or the teaching of evolution. However, many on the left do not stop there. They insult everyone who believes in God calling them childish and idiotic. Such crude attacks on all religious believers, including very many people who vote Democrat and side with progressive politics, contributes to the tribalism that is tearing apart the social fabric of America.
1
The irony may be that Trump’s opponents make a better case for Trump than he does.
4
How did you fix your hand to write "The main reason Trump won the presidency is that tens of millions of Americans rightly feel that their local economies are under attack, their communities are dissolving and their religious liberties are under threat. " That's so much hooey, and you know it. And "Don’t focus on personality or the man?" Well, tell that to the Central Park Five, that it's not "the man" that should worry them. In fact, I challenge you to take your "it's not the man" conclusion to any community of color and try to sell that. It IS the man, going all the way back (at minimum time leap) to the DOJ prosecution of "the man" and his father over housing discrimination. Don't focus on "the man." Seriously, Dave? SERIOUSLY?
6
I think anti-Trumpers like Brooks failed to realize how racist and ignorant the GOP has become. The country club and educated folks have left the party. All that’s left are the drug added uneducated racist homophobic Evangelical bigots that make up the Trump coalition.
6
Trump brings up strong feelings, no doubt about it, but if those in the Democratic party want to make substantial wins in 2018 they will have to concentrate on those issues that are of importance to their constituents, become involved in grassroots efforts to register voters, then get those voters to the polls on election day.
4
Tens of millions of Americans voted for him because they didn't like having a black man as president, and they didn't want a woman to be president.
10
In effect, Mr Brooks is still lamenting Ms. Clinton's use of the word "deplorables" to describe Trump supporters.
Ms. Clinton was right.
I am the very archetype of the popularized Trump voter. I'm a white male who retired early because I couldn't find work. I eat too many cheeseburgers. I'm a firearms enthusiast. I don't speak Spanish in a border town. I live, or try to live, entirely on Social Security benefits. My credit is in the tank, and I'm always one step ahead of the repo man.
Yet President Obama, Eastern Elites, The New York Times, foreigners, or people of color, are not responsible for my financial misery. It is I, and I alone who made poor life-decisions--and I alone can fix that, to borrow a famous phrase from Mr Trump's GOP coronation.
And if there's "American Carnage," we have only ourselves to blame. Government cannot save people from themselves. Instead , a government can only endeavor to create the conditions under which personal betterment is more possible.
I'm proud to have voted for the first woman to win the popular vote, the people's vote, for President of the United States. President Trump will always be President Asterisk because of my vote. I'm poor, but I voted for the good of the United States. Mr. Brooks, expect no less from every voter, no matter their station. Don't coddle anyone who does less. The repo man cannot have my vote.
12
@William: Thank you for your eloquent answer.
1
Bolton is in the White House and all is forgiven.
Trump is a vulgar bigoted narcissist. That is not a political statement that is a fact. There can be no reason or excuse for anyone to support a vulgar bigoted narcissist. And I have no respect for anyone who is too cowardly to admit that truth.
11
The country must die in order to survive...
Death will happen hard, painful, and it will happen.
When is a guess, this potus will certainly be a creator of such a death, but it will become necessary and the sooner it happens the better because we are running rapidly out of time.
1
David Brooks telling people not to be so condescending is like Donald Trump telling people not to brag so much.
10
Wrong on all counts, Mr. Brooks.
The reason why Republicans support Trump is because he is the ultimate embodiment of their party.
At least since Nixon, Republicans have courted the George Wallace crowd for votes while promoting plutocrat's policies that benefit only its principal donors.
At least since Reagan, Republicans in power have always run huge public deficits to pay for colossal military budgets and historic tax giveaways to the very wealthiest.
At least since Reagan, Republicans have been hostile to any public investment or spending for the common good (Trump distractedly talks about improving our infrastructure, but his proposals would slash spending for it, except for his wall, which his merely the George Wallace crowd's monument to Mexican-bashing.)
Donald Trump's principal contribution to the Republican Party has been to cast aside the dog-whistles in favor of a bullhorn. He has exclaimed aloud what Republicans really stand for: massive tax cuts and protections for those who least need them; massive military buildups; the gutting of all other public investment; the willful despoiling of our planet and environment; corrupt dealings in every direction; and mean-spirited views on most topics.
Free trade was the one issue that Republicans used to get right, but now they have started an unprovoked trade war, threatening the world economy.
Any constituency that votes for such policies deserves what it gets. But the rest of the world doesn't.
12
Racism used to be an undercurrent of GOP rather than a theme. Trump merely re-branded a bit. Of course, to acknowledge this would be to note your complicity in a perverse and corrupt institution. SAD!
4
Another laugher from David. "Trump voters feel their local economies are under attack, their communities are dissolving and their religious liberties are under threat."
Republicans have supported racist policies and behaviors for decades, and especially since Obama was elected. Birtherism, racism Harvard Professors being arrested in his own home, and black kids being beaten/shot by cops are all things regular Republicans cheer. Limbaugh regularly called Michelle Obama a cow. They were fine that Garland never got a hearing and love Confederate statues. Trump just says it out loud. And that is why 89% of Republicans support him whole heartedly.
It has zero to do with religious liberty or local economies. They just cannot stand people of color, period.
Nice try though.
11
So, even though I'm a registered Republican, I voted for Obama in 2012. In 2016, I voted for the iconoclastic Trump because I felt that:
1. The political establishment had become so entrenched, dysfunctional and corrupt that it was incapable of addressing the important issues facing our country;
2. I was tired of being told how I should think and feel by the MSM, the political correctness cult, the pollsters, special interests, etc.;
In that sense, Trump has exceeded my expectations. He has taken on issues that other politicians have been too timid, complacent or too dependent on special interest to address, i.e., illegal immigration, tax reform, the shortcomings of the ACA, the continued rise of North Korea, China's unfair trade practices, the working/middle class hurt by unfettered globalization, our blind adherence to the dictates of the climate change movement, over-regulation of businesses, the shortcomings of congress, etc, etc. So, while he may not be winning many style points , he is rebooting the conversation about where this country should be headed like nobody before him while basically rendering the likes of David Brooks irrelevant.
This is what real, needed disruption looks like. Haters, take your medicine; it's long overdue.
1
And you say you voted for Obama twice? It’s hard to figure how you could jump ship so fast from supporting a measured, intelligent leader to a bankruptcy law opportunist/Reality TV persona — adopting all his wacky moves as your own truth — unless you just didn’t want to support a female as President.
1
Trump won the White House because of a failed electoral college, faulty gerrymandering and that fact that millions of more Americans did not vote either through voter suppression or their own disillusionment.
Every man is flawed, however, Trumps flaws are fatal enough to cause real concern, notwithstanding the fact that he has divided the country and made us weaker. We will stand as a nation or we will fall. Trump and his supporters clearly demonstrate where they stand.
1
I recall the Luigi Zingales article well. He's right. There are plenty of real issues to focus on, but when you call people stupid they almost never agree with you.
4
A paraphrased quote comes to mind:
"Against stupidity, no argument can succeed".
So, a lot of us don't care if someone's precious feelings are hurt because: The stupid are incapable of rational thought and discussion and the time for accommodating their stupidity is over.
So why is it considered acceptable for the right wing to call people unpatriotic, haters, libtards, sheeples, crisis actors, co-opted fools, etc. when these people disagree with the conservatives? This has been going on for decades; yet oh the horror! Hillary called them deplorable! How mean! We will never ever get over it! The hypocrisy and sheer entitlement of the right is appalling.
2
As usual, Mr. Brooks manages to make the daily horror show that is the POTUS and enabled by the Republicans the fault of the Anti-Trumpers.What does it say about the Republican Party that could embrace such an inarticulate, crude, narcissistic man? Own up to the failures of the Republican Party to allow this completely unqualified man to represent the GOP because putting the blame on those who call him out is insulting.
5
I suggest you apply for the recently opened position of the Director of Homeland Security. Your secret admiration for, and pre-rational defense of, the lies lies and more lies of Trump is embarrassingly clear.
I will buy you a Trump tie for your job interview, if I can find one on Amazon.
4
The conundram is that the social problems that gave rise to Trump have been caused by the anti-social platform embraced by the Republican Party over the past 3 decades. Republicans were the free-trade evangelists, Republicans laid out the red carpet to the Chinese and didn't seem to mind offloading our entire manufacturing capability to them, Republicans have methodically destroyed or denied the efficacy of a social safety net, Republicans repeatedly used race to divide Americans, and Republicans refuse to acknowledge the damage caused by the economic inequality that their agenda created. Oops. So I take Republican "never Trumpers" with a grain of salt. They love his policies (and most of his pronouncements), they just don't like how crass and uncouth he is. The Republicans totally deserve the reckoning that Trump has foisted on them and forced on the rest of us. They created Trump out of whole cloth, and now they worship the monster as he eats them alive. But you are right - Democrats and independents must start calling out the pathologically anti-social policies of the Republicans and provide clear policies to address the social problems created by right wing policies.
4
David cites a statistic on Republican support for the President that is accurate and misleading at the same time. The statistic needs to be framed as a percent of the Republicans that are left. Many of my friends are jumping ship.
3
If Trumpism prevails, America is over.
2
Good, well-reasoned article, Mr. Brooks. You hit a homerun, just not a bases-loaded homerun, in my necessarily biased and myopic opinion:
"Voters are willing to put up with a lot of nonsense for a president they think is basically on their side."
You got it half-right: 45 is not just on their side: He is them; he is speaking their words, doing their work. Therefore, when you criticize 45, you criticize them.
45 is a salesman: He listens and tell you what you want to hear. When his crowds yelled "Lock her up" at his campaign rallies, he didn't pull a John McCain copout: "No, Mr. Obama is a decent man." No, 45 chanted with them, and when he got control of the mike, he said, first thing: "Yeah, lock her up." Touchdown; extra points.
When 45 promised to build a Mexican wall, and he saw the signs promoting it, he doubled-down. It became a big, beautiful wall. 50-feet high?
His audiences carried anti-Obama signs. Easy-peasy: "We're gonna get rid of Obamacare on Day One." Oh, yeah, we're in the sweet spot now.
45 became them up on the stage, saying what they most desired to hear. It was a pep rally for their ideas. A team, a large new tribe, had formed, super-glued together by anxiety, anger, and frustration.
This leviathan is @ 40 per cent of American voters. It can be defeated, but not dissolved; 60 million voters helped build it, maintain it, and defend it still. That is what we Democrats are up against. Victory won't be easy. Maybe we should begin chanting "Lock him up."
5
This morning at 6am I watched Fox News. There was not a word about the raid. There was, however, a long segment on people pouring across the border, and that's why we need a wall. Since it appears Trump's viewers watch Fox, they wouldn't know about raids, or anything else actually going on in the administration. All they know is illegal immigrants are flooding the country, and we have to stop them.
6
We are Germany, 1933.
1
So ... we should be focusing on the imaginary idea that Christians in America don't wield enough power? Is that it? The "liberty" to practice Christianity is somehow being impinged? (I'm sorry. This is an absurdity.) I guess we Anti-Trumpers would be better to spend our time and efforts reinvigorating the coal industry. (More absurdity.) That there are dying pockets of religious fanatics, who are so desperate to cling to the economic failure of their grandfather's profession, and who cannot accept the reality of climate change, and who so desperately loathe the idea that our country is more diverse than it was a generation ago, and who rage against the idea that women and gay people are their equals ... it does not mean that those people who understand that this is the world in which we live are just FAILING to address legitimate concerns. Sorry West Virginia, there is no Santa Claus.
4
well Mr Brooks doesn't seem to have noticed the 20 or so local and statewide elections that went against Trump and the GOP in the last 6 months
6
I believe Trump won the election because of the targeted ads that were sent to the evangelical congregations. For example this "Army of Jesus" advertisement:
Satan: ‘If I Win Clinton Wins!’ Jesus: ‘Not If I Can Help it!’ I do not believe Trump won because understood the problems of large portions of Americans better than anyone else.
4
Why Trump retains the support of his constituents is because he is on track to deliver to them the White Christian Nation he has promised and has enriched the wealthy who support the Republican party. On some level Trumpers understand that this hope is anti-democratic and unconstitutional and rightly believe that only someone as corrupt and amoral as Trump could bring this about. Nothing he could do would be too heinous as long as his goal is achievable as he is their last and greatest hope. These are people that believe guns are a God-given right, that women who have abortions should be considered criminals, that immigrants are destroying this country, that terrorists are behind every corner, and that the Christian religion is under attack.
Yes, the anti-Trumpers have failed because we are fighting against faith and not logic. We scream about the lies and corruption and ignorance but he is above that. God, in their eyes, brought us Donald Trump who will defeat "the liberal agenda" which seems to be everything evil in this world.
What is wrong with telling people they are hurting themselves and their families with their vote?
7
I am anti-Republican not anti-Trump. Your party is the problem. Every major policy of the Republican party is a disaster. Your economic policies lead to recession, you military policies are immoral and deplete our treasury, your environmental policies are immoral and kill people, your health care policies are immoral and kill people. You are the party of death and destruction. Why?
6
No, David, what you need to learn is some perspective. Success is not measured, as you suggest, by persuading pro-Trump people in just one year. Pro-Trump supporters are essentially irrational by definition in this area. It is a fool's errand to persuade them. The task is to do as much as we can while we wait for the accumulation of REAL WORLD IMPACTS of Trump to affect all Americans - ordinary people, senators, congressmen, etc. - to the point that a change occurs. There is lots of evidence that this is working. Witness recent elections in Alabama, Pennsylvania, and other places
I have been struck by how short-sighted you have become. Ever since Trump took office, you suddenly believe civilization has been collapsing for the past twenty years. Yes, the GOP has fallen into a cycle of corruption and failure, that is true, but these negative societal trends you suddenly have become aware of are not as deeply entrenched as you postulate, many are singular to Trump, an outlier clown who does not represent America by any stretch of the imagination.
4
The main problem that gave rise to Trump is still a problem: the mainstream politicians ad media ignored what a large segment of America has been living through for several decades. The working and middle class have seen their share in the economy reduced steadily for decades as jobs and wages have been outsourced and off-shored, and their pensions and healthcare eliminated. Trump had no answers for this, but he did know it was an opening for him to gain power, and as long as he spews his empty promises, his supporters will believe.
Mr. Brooks is right. The only way to get rid of Trump is for the Democratic Party and MSM to let go of their obsession with defeating him, and focus on producing answers and policies that will address the concerns of the working and middle class. In the end, the problem is still how Bill Clinton framed it: "It's the economy, stupid!"
2
Brooks rejects a perfect description of conservatives, most notably needing security and scared, and then says:
"The main reason Trump won the presidency is that tens of millions of Americans rightly feel that their local economies are under attack, their communities are dissolving and their religious liberties are under threat."
Just to be clear, not all these feelings they have are "rightly" possessed, as no one is attacking their religious liberty, but rather their liberty in foisting their religion on everyone else in a political manner.
The rest is their own fault, having supported candidates up and down the line for forty years that created the wonderful mess their communities suddenly find themselves in, and to think, these people actually voted for a wealthy conman miscreant to save them from the disaster that all the people they voted for prior had given them, both over the short and long term past. Republican voter, self-defenestration be thy name. Republican party, grand ol' pella.
3
At least the academics whose analyses you denigrate tried to look into the issue in a structured way. All you have to offer is what "strikes" you.
2
The telling point to me is the percentage of republicans who are more Trumpists than Republican.
For years the ever failing Republican party has been defined by their seeming antipathy to facts, from creationism, to guns make you safe, to climatology, and birtherism and under it all the so called Southern Strategy.
Face it, bowing to prejudice and failing to speak truth to ignorance brought us to Trump, and now the 'party faithful ' who have been nurtured on this mix, have taken over.
Since for most of the amoral (politically anyway) have no goal other than re-election, they embrace their leader of die.
2
50 years ago The Republican Party created the Southern Strategy, the conscious effort to appeal to the segregationist Strom Thurmond and George Wallace Democratic voters.
In the 1980’s the Republican Party gave us the culture wars and Reagan and the dog whistle politics of welfare queens and States Rights and created the Reagan Democrats.
In the 1990’s we got the Newt Gingrich House of Representatives take no prisoners confrontation, the Clinton impeachment, Whitewater, and Vince Foster murder conspiracy.
With Obama, they created the Tea Party and gave us the birthers, death panels, and support of the Confederate flag.
They coopted Christians with abortion instead working to get women birth control.
And all these years, the Republican politicians have been using the Reaganomics talking points of small government and tax cuts for the job creators coming from the right-wing think tanks.
For thirty five years, the rising tide of Trickle Down Economics has mostly helped the wealthy at the expense of the rest.
And the Republican establishment is sick, just sick I tell you, to think of Trump representing the Republican Party.
They can’t understand how the Republican voters, who have been losing their manufacturing jobs all these years as Mitt Romney and his Wall St. colleagues sent those jobs to China, these same voters who have been listening to talk radio and Fox all these years, how they can blindly follow Trump and not listen to reason.
3
I guess once again someone has to remind you: YOUR party, YOUR candidate, YOUR president, YOUR policies (the ones you have been either championing or excusing since the venerable Saint Reagan). Far from the antithesis of the GOP, Trump is the apotheosis of malignant Republicanism, in all its fraud, bigotry,racism, homophobia, xenophobia, misogyny, phony baloney Christianity, raw narrow mindedness, union bashing, mindless obstructionism, warmongering, economic sabotage for the good of the few, and slavish subservience to its masters and owners: the Koch Brothers, big business and the NRA. I believe your new found opposition to YOUR REPUBLICAN PRESIDENT is simply self serving worry about the ruination of your precious Republican brand, which beginning in the next election, is hopefully headed for the ash heap of history, and its former officeholders, after commissions and investigations into their many crimes over the last forty years and especially their treasonous conspiracy with Putin in 2016, a prison cell, where most of the GOP has long belonged.
3
What I don't understand Mr. Brooks is why you didn't bring up the most important reason Trump's support has not evaporated as many thought. It is not just "Anti-Trumpers" who are driving his 40% support but that the Media (save the limited conservative media, e.g. Sean Hannity, Fox News, et.al) are fostering this whole anti-Trump narrative. They have the clout, the voice, the foundation to take him apart and so far, as I can see, he is staying even. I believe most people don't like bullies, and though Trump is a bully himself, the fact that the Left in this country, the Media and, (so it seems) even the FBI/Justice Department have all ganged up on him. That is enough to drive even someone like me who could never vote for Donald Trump to question the motives of those who oppose Trump and to actually have some sympathy for him.
They want him out of the White House, do not see his election as legitimate and will stop at nothing to see him fail. My common sense tells me something is fishy here.
64
I'm sorry, but this is flat out wrong about the FBI and Justice Department. Even Republicans in Congress are acknowledging that the investigation is going on in a proper fashion. They are NOT "ganging up" on him.
And I also think plenty of people who could never vote for him (even someone like ME), absolutely do NOT think his elections was illegitimate--a terrible mistake, but not illegitimate. So please, before you lump everyone in together who "smells fishy," try to find out a little more about the diversity of anti-Trump views out there!
55
Sorry for not wanting an ignorant, dishonest, creepy old fondler surrounded by equally incompetent grifters running the country. We got used to having a brilliant, charismatic, hard-working decent person at the helm, and it's hard to go back to stupid or corrupt. We'll try harder.
76
How can you feel sorry for Trump who conned millions of Americans - who may rightly have grievances - into thinking that he is at all qualified to be POTUS. The job is a boring job - he is an entertainer. The job requires truth-telling - but he lies to us daily. The job requires an even temper - but he is intemperate. The job requires at least some governmental experience - but he has zero. The job requires that he speak for all Americans - but he only speaks for his "base". He is extremely dangerous. And we all suffer because of his egocentric view of himself. God help us all.
51
Mr. Brooks, you and your Republican friends are the ones who helped get us to this point. And what is this point you ask? A point where the GOP and its rich puppet masters are in enough control that they can wreck the social safety net millions of Americans may need or do need. A point where our civil rights are meaningless because we're so consumed with surviving that we cannot use them or notice that they are being stripped away from us. A point where the incompetence of the president is not noticed because it's the same as the incompetence evinced by the GOP.
This is your party Mr. Brooks. You have supported them through every insupportable thing they did to Obama, to working Americans, to prisoners, to minorities, etc. You have helped to foster this cultural acceptance of incompetence and lies. If it bothers you that much start writing about why it shouldn't survive.
5
Brooks disagrees with Thomas Edsall's opinion that Trump voters are adverse to change.
As proof, Brooks says "Trump supporters voted for the man precisely because they wanted transformational change"
The transformational change Trump supporters voted for was to return to the 1950's.
It fits exactly with the Thomas Edsall column.
3
I think Mr. Brooks is right, and many comments are right.
Instead of "liberals" (that's a wide swath with degrees) denigrating his character, let's focus on policy. Lets focus on what the social problems are and have a debate with him. He can not follow a thought to a conclusion because he doesn't study the issues. I truly believe we need a young person from the media/digital age with law training, business experience and social work experience to explain solutions.
We need to reach out to business and ask them to not only stand with democratic principles but to also create jobs, modern jobs and modern training for those who are struggling.
We need to re-vamp public school and make a safe, caring place. For many kids, that's all they have. And we need to give kids hope for careers that they want.
We can do this.
Enough fighting. Yes, I'd like to get Trump out. But let's get to work and show how we are the people's party. Because we are.
2
For years, the Republican Party has made the “liberal elite” the boogeyman.
The Republican voters are mad at the liberal elite like me.
I learned I was the liberal elite in the Bush election of 2000.
I grew up in a blue collar family, first generation in my family to go to college.
I worked my way through high school and college, going to a state university in math and computers which I paid for myself. Saved my money and got a masters in engineering which I paid for myself.
But Bush was the regular guy even though he is third generation multi-millionaire, whose family paid for him to go to Yale and then to Harvard.
And what makes Republicans call me a liberal is that I want to help people less fortunate than myself.
Kind of sounds like a Christian but so many Christians I know go to church on Sunday and say buyer beware Monday through Friday.
I want to pay more taxes to help those factory workers with retraining and health care.
But for them, I am the liberal elite and the bad guy.
Go figure.
Obviously, the Republicans have great marketing. In fact, it is Orwellian.
11
I'm prettying sure the price of soybeans would be higher in a Hillary administration. When pork prices collapsed in the 90s Bills administration treated it like an emergency. Farm income has been declining in recent years. It would be better with TPP, but parsing different regional interests is no longer something Congress can do. The only bipartisanship we are going to get is red state Democrats working with left wing Democrats while holding legislative majorities. Trump has exposed the essential problem of the GOP: tax policies for the rich; limited government in terms of things ordinary people need like healthcare, education and Social Security; and ideological extremes of bigotry, intolerance and racism exploited by plutocrat funded propaganda. Brooks is whistling past the graveyard. Trump isn't a leader - he's the terminus, the place we got to at the inevitable end of the road GOP ideology and tribalism has been taking us for decades. Gingrich is still around to remind us how we got here before we had Bush the lesser, let alone Trumpolini.
2
I'm sorry to say this but I'm afraid the US may be finished as a democracy. It's certainly finished as one that other countries would seek to emulate. First Reagan, then W. Bush and now Trump. It's said for the country of Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln and Roosevelt.
3
"Don’t focus on personality or the man, Zingales advised. That will just make Trump the people’s hero against the Washington caste. Focus instead on the social problems that gave rise to Trumpism." That is precisely what Bernie Sanders has been doing for over a year now.
Good column.
But David, Trump's takeover of the Republican Party doesn't mean that those who vote Republican are Trumpists. The tribalist hard Right is a minority within the Republican Party, and Trump is not heartening the Republican heartland, which may favor Trump only because he's becoming more mainstream Republican, not voting Republican because the Party's becoming more Trumpist.
Trump is not delivering for Republicans. Krugman's point today that voters care deeply about health care serves the point well that Democrats may indeed regain control of Congress.
And DoJ investigations are quickly making a case for impeachment.
3
Mr. Brooks, generally love our column, this was not one of them. You insinuate Thomas E.'s column is bad journalism. I thought it was GREAT journalism, because it explains how we humans think.
Long before this President, I sat next to (watching high school soccer) a Psychology professor visiting from Denmark working on the topic cited in the article. Through twins studies we ARE born in significant ways to grow up conservative (less open)/liberal (more open). That is a fact.
I think is important to know this especially for the more open (in part through our DNA) to be aware that not everyone is like them. Not to condescend, that is I agree with Mr. Brooks is a HUGE mistake, to realize we all need each other, that's all.
Trump voters did NOT vote for change, I do think they voted because they believe they have been left behind, they know it, they are disappointed. And in many ways I can see why they are.
My home town voted overwhelmingly for this President. When I look back all of my friends pretty much left. If we had stayed we would have done things to provide better jobs, to connect people up with opportunities, instead we abandoned them for larger cities (because we felt like we had to).
Turns out there was a cost, and we are paying it now. We simply HAVE to provide better opportunities for EVERYONE in a Democracy or I think there will be NO DEMOCRACY.
THAT is what this research says....
5
What happened to republican’s ‘Free Market System is the best’ economic paradigm? It doesn’t allow for taking care of everyone. Repubs brought this economic misery on their supporters, but made sure that they don’t develop thinking capability. So Fox News and Rush types can keep on fooling them.
Perhaps Trump has more approval from those remaining in the Republican Party, but all over SC, people have been leaving the party. Others are working for a more moderate version of the party they loved for a long time. If the Republican Party chooses not to moderate itself, I suspect many of these will leave it as well. So, sure, the remainder may approve of Trump, but they are not the Republicans of old.
3
I admire David Brooks immensely. However, I think it is mistaken to think that Trump voters wanted a new approach. What they want is a return to the past when old white men ruled. They want their traditional culture back. It's not coming back.
9
The Democratic Party and anti-Trump Republicans are akin to Britain's 19th century Liberal Party. Like 19th century Liberals they're not that keen on the working classes who are patriotic, protectionist, often religious and invariably lacking in what Liberals think of as good taste.
Trump doesn't get "taken out." Instead he crashes and others go down with him. Think about the contractors who worked on his buildings who got stiffed when he went into bankruptcy or those who bought into Trump University to learn how to get rich. He's lucky to have the Trump money which has shielded him from financial ruin. As for the Republicans trying to stir his supporters by saying Dems will impeach him, that's an easy one to counter. Most Dems would rather have Trump than Pence. One plays dumb while the other is ideologically dangerous. As a team they are a no-win combo, neither is good. Better to take control of Congress and simply stone wall them. The argument the Dems should be making is that in chaotic times like these we need balanced government. No one party should rule all three branches of government.
4
Very true. All the words in the world will not change things now that the Republicans have shown they are utterly, hopelessly corrupt; more interested in maintaining power than protecting the Constitution.
It is clear the only recourse is to vote out all Republicans and Trump.
2
If Mr Brooks was the last Never Trumper, there would still be hope for GOP revival. The crux of the Trump problem: the rank and file's "discomfort with diversity" has always been saddled like a white horse and waved like a white cowboy hat.
Some semblance of racial identity is imbued in each person, that's THEIR nature. Can candidates stop commandeering people's nature for self-gain and instead demonstrate high standards?
Both parties could do better at institutionalizing "public service standards". Bad apples, like Joe Arpaio, RESTART their diatribes inspiring a visceral suspicion of every minority encountered. It's sick, still bad apples go unchallenged by conservative media.
Tricksters, like Roger Stone, are not recognized for their abhorrent histories. Somehow should-be pariahs are dancing as darlings on the Fox stage. The last man believing that the Iraq War was a good idea - is now clearing his National Security Adviser nest of those who adhere to rule of law.
It's a very volatile time. The Republican-led Congress has proven incapable of containment and certain leaders, like Nunes and Meadows, are in cahoots with the media giant's shield and sword.
It's a pivotal moment and malfeasance should be exposed. A stabilizing "line in the red sand" needs to be drawn by many conservative journalists. Not just a few. Vindictive payback will follow. Citizens must track journalists’ common defense of democracy and every retaliatory strike from media and business.
1
The failures of anti-Trumpism are based upon essentially two things: 1. the anger of white middle America at "the system" and 2. the incredible stupidity and bad taste of middle American voters. Among the people I know (a bunch of well-educated Easterners- both Democrat and Republican), the very idea that Donald Trump is POTUS is simply inconceivable. But we are very out of touch- we don't patronize Applebees or watch professional wrestling.
2
"...tens of millions Americans rightly feel their local economies are under attack, their communities are dissolving and their religious liberties are under threat.
Yet the truth is that none of that is true. Their local economies failed because they failed. Their communities are dissolving because they were complacent, content to allow large corporations rule their lives. Once the corporation left they are lost. It is telling that these anti-government Trumpers are demanding the Government make companies stay in their towns. Can't have it both ways folks. Guess they could try moving to where the jobs are now. Nah, too much trouble. They would rather be on welfare and take taxes from the Blue states.
And, lastly, their religious "liberties" are not under threat - they are just as free as always to practice their religion. However, if their religion demands they discriminate against other people then that will not be allowed. It seems then they are whining that they are not allowed to discriminate as they have been used to doing. Boo Hoo. Grow up and join the 21st century folks!
6
It is much easier to blame others than themselves for their woes.
1
Thanks for writing this. As you correctly point out, “Trump’s takeover of the Republican Party is complete”. The GOP is Trump and Trump is the GOP.
However, the rest of us - moderate, independents, and Democrats - accurately understand this moment as the culmination of decades of work by the Republican party, not something that happened in the last 2 years.
So the real question for folks like you is -- given that anti-Trump is not a national party -- are you still calling yourself a Republican? Because if you are not willing to leave your tribe now, you never will.
When people like you try to explain what is happening by repeating the propaganda and lies that Fox News has broadcast into the masses since 2000 (the Federal government is attacking local communities, there’s a war on white people and Christians), you show your allegiance.
“Tribalism” has started a lot of wars over the years, killing a lot of innocent people. An increasing number of level-headed, highly qualified people are warning that we are heading in that direction. So the real question for folks like me is what am I personally prepared to do about folks like you in order to save my country from your tribe?
4
Brooks is correct on this one.
3
Isn't Berlusconi the corrupt (personally, politically and in business) celebrity Italian billionaire who ultimately fell from power because of his corruption? Small world ......
2
Don't underestimate the resistance!
There are multi-millions of "anti-Trumpers" in the US (not counting, worldwide.) These figures are growing, every day.
The word is also out that many Republicans who voted for Trump, can't stand him or his policies. Will they vote for a Democrat? We will have to wait and see.
As Trump's base appears to be constant in numbers (I would challenge this assumption), I would also wager that as time goes on, the Trump-supporting farmers in middle-America, along with many in the southern and western states, will begin to see our economy, environment, trade and Federal debt reach new destructive and dangerous levels.
Will they even care? My guess is that the die-hard, pro-Trumpers will continue to go along with what they are handed. Yes, like true masochists, they like to get beat up! They like to suffer! Even if it means the demise of our country!!!
There’s a fundamental contradiction in the conclusion. How do you address the fundamental social and economic problems that gave rise to trumpism when the man trumpistas elected has no interest in solving them?
Yes, the continued support of trump by his base is all about tribal loyalty. But what are the issues and values that motivate trumps loyal base? Racism, nativeism, misogyny, homophobia and grievance ... among the more obvious.
Why should we Democrats feel any sympathy for our so-called fellow citizens when they continue to vote against their own interests so they feel good about feeling bad.
Get a spine mr. Brooks and stop whining.
6
The most ridiculous moment of the Trump administration -- the emergence of the beret wearing, baguette chewing, Gaulloises smoking resistance. What a bunch of anti-democratic fools.
Face it -- the purpose of the entire anti-Trump movement has been to bring down the Trump presidency thus overturning a democratically elected president and disenfranchising the millions who voted for Trump.
The correct answer for those who oppose Trump is to pick better candidate(s) next time, not overthrow the government. But that has clearly been the intent of the resistance and many writers (all perhaps) at the Times. How many anti-Trump articles on the op-ed page per day over the last 18 months or so? How many anti-Trump or Trump appointee news articles or "analyses." Face it. The far left, the anti Trumpers, have made fools of themselves. I will never vote for a democrat again after this display of arrogance from the left. And the pity tour from Clinton just simply confirms what a horrible president she would have been. And it won't surprise me if when we get to the bottom of things, the only chicanery in the 2016 election by Americans were the political manipulation and direction of the FBI and other intelligence agencies to attack Trump.
1
"The main reason Trump won the presidency is that tens of millions of Americans rightly feel that their local economies are under attack, their communities are dissolving and their religious liberties are under threat." Hillary had nothing to offer on the first point. That's what carried Trump to the presidency, along with crass racism, and re-whitening America. No one's religious liberties are at risk in the US, unless you pray where armed conservatives shoot people they don't much like. This sort of hand-wringing article leaves much to be desired ..... where is the culpability called out for Mr Ryan and Mr McConnell, who is enabling a criminal traitor to the USA? This ain't on anti-Trumps ..... Trump, his appointees, and his Republican congressional enablers own this mess, and it's going to get worse before we dislodge "trumpism" from US governance.
3
Mr. Brooks, pay attention to the "social problems that gave rise to Trumpism", yes. But, with respect, I do not apologize for one minute for calling out this man's racist, misogynist, cruel and lying presidency. Every attack he makes, he does to protect his own skin. To pretend he is looking out for the well-being of struggling Americans is dishonest and unfair. And I will continue to blame Republican politicians for ignoring the real danger this ego-maniac poses to our country just to protect their own political hide.
3
The nasty, negative anti Trump attacks will likely ensure his re-election because few challengers will be willing to expose themselves and their families to such relentless, almost obscene, slanders. Who wants their children assaulted on airplanes, their lifetime of sexual experiences exposed, their spouse the topic of late night mockery. How many want their parents, siblings and friends put under a microscope. Has anybody lived a perfect life? If you’re successful enough to run for president, you will likely decline the offer today rather than allow haters to attack your family, friends, colleagues and yourself.
Trump voters “rightfully feel that...their religious liberties are under threat”, David? Really! Pray tell how that is the case?
6
I suspect that the person who really feels offended because “liberals” view him as a “psychological inferior” is David Brooks. Brooks concedes that Trump is popular with Republicans because his views are basically mainstream Republican. And what is the source of those repugnant views—climate change is a conspiracy of liberal eggheads to take over the world—waves of Mexican rapists and drug dealers are swarming across our borders while Democrats block law enforcement from trying to stop it—investigations into the Russian government’s hostile attacks on our political system are a “deep state” witch hunt against the great Donald? Well, you see, it’s all because liberals are mean to conservatives. Liberals say that it's irrational and dangerous, for example, to treat climate change as some Dr. Evil conspiracy. How do you expect people to respond to such insufferable snootiness, other than rushing into the arms of Donald Trump?
Brooks wants to believe that conservatives are still reasonable, and only acting out because of the nasty meanness of liberals, because he wants to believe that he, a conservative, is still the voice of reason for a “psychologically inferior” nation. No. The conservative movement is now led by a proto-fascist who lies constantly, dangerously, recklessly, and who parades his contempt for the constitutional order (“so-called judges”) before adoring crowds. You need to ask yourself why they adore him. It's not because liberals are mean to them.
3
The people who voted for Trump fell into two categories: racist white nationalists freaking out about becoming a minority in what used to be “their” country, and fairly reasonable people who didn’t trust Hillary, were disappointed by Obama, felt like they had no more to lose, heard Trump say a few things they agreed with, looked at his success and figured he was competent. (“The economy” had less to do with it than many people think, and in any case seems to mean something different to voters than it does to politicians on either side; it’s about making the jobs we have work, not about reviving destructive industries or waging more wars.) The latter have been disabused of their illusions by now and are waiting for the Democrats to throw them a bone, someone they can vote for who understands their concerns. The former have become emboldened and now we see that there are more of them (the ones Clinton unwisely called “deplorables”) than we thought - but they’re still a minority, electorally defeatable if the DNC starts acting truly democratic and stops promoting spineless corporate shills who have to “evolve” into their new poll-tested positions from the opposite ones they took five years ago. While that seems to be happening in local races, the prospect of a Democratic candidate uniting all the sane people of America seems bleak.
My prediction? Mirror image of the Obama years. Congress will turn blue this November and stay that way - but Trump will be re-elected. Sorry...
Sorry...a blue congress impeaches Trump...or worse. It will be time to test that indictment of a sitting president thing everyone likes to muse about...
1
Brooks is mostly correct, and, as usual, generally insightful. We (those opposed to the man and his disaterous policies and appoitments) take Trump literally but not seriously. The conerns he brings up - crime, un and under employment, trade deals, and so on, are real and deserve attention and discussion, and in many cases, ledgislation that helps guide the issues. We continue to focus on "shitholes" rather than on immegration policy and how to properly support countries. Add to that the lack of cohearnet response other than "Oh My! How aweful is he?!?!?" - where is our thoughtful, articulate, understandable alternative? Simply being against things isn't a plan.
This story is way off track on reality. Does the propaganda machine set in place by Cambridge Analytica from illegal use of millions of Facebook accounts ring a bell? The supporters are still programmed just like Jim Jones' followers. They have been manipulated and need deprogramming.
2
Hilarious to see Mr Brooks critiquing Mr Edsall for being condescending and simplistic. How many times have we seen pop-psychology columns where Mr Brooks divides the US or the world into a few neat bins, and then explains to the peons why people behave the way they do.
As for the argument that some Americans feel that trump will somehow save their communities or preserve their religious liberties (under threat?? hilarious ...) they might as well believe in the tooth fairy too. Sorry, but I can't help but be elitist and declare them too stupid to care about.
1
What religious liberties are under threat? The Supreme Court held that school administrators couldn't lead children in prayer in 1962. Kids can pray in school now. The Southern Baptist Convention supported abortion in 1971, two years before Roe v. Wade. The Separation of Church and State was recognized over 150 years ago. Those seem to be the hot-button issues for Christians but these three issues weren't contentious issues until fairly recently. What's changed is the rise of Christian fundamentalism, Christian dominionism, Christian fascism. An ex-New York Times reporter named Chris Hedges wrote a book entitled: "Christian Fascism: The Christian Right and the War on America" in 2008 - very, very frightening. (I dare David Brooks read that book - or just skim it.) Barry Goldwater warned against the Christian Right. The list goes on. There is no war on religious liberty; we're waging a defensive action against Christian fascism.
1
It's on these 40 % DT supporters. Trump & repubs are joined at the hip and can't survive w/o the other. DT has metastasized in the republican body. The repubs have to be removed. An ugly time for the repubs and America.
2
We the 60% are mocked by the manipulation of gerrymandering, the Electoral College, and voter suppression.
Checks and balances are swayed by McConnell, one of two senators from Kentucky, and Paul Ryan one of only eight representatives from Wisconsin, neither representing a major United States population center.
The NRA lobby exerts an unholy significant policy making power at both State and Federal levels as if it were a dominant political party.
Racist gay bashing antisemitic evangelicals turn the other cheek every time
trump makes a mockery of the Ten Commandments and indulges in the Seven Deadly Sins.
It's up to the 60% to restore peace, justice, and the American way. We can do it because we must!
Amy Chua, when she wants to say that racism can't be the factor driving Trump support, asks: "Okay, maybe a few thousand of them are racists, but when you start talking about millions of people ...?" But why CAN'T millions of people be bad? Not that I'm taking a kind of "Hitler's Willing Executioners" approach, but we need to stop acting as if people are angels. They are not.
Why do you always pose as the defender of the Common White Man? No one said those people are inferior, only different. And stop using the term "us" to indicate a group of people that you don't, in truth, see yourself as part of. Talk about condescending. ... Certainly destruction of local community is part of the Trump thing. People don't have the same attachments and support they once did. Isolation breeds unhappiness breeds anger.
Economics plays a role, but for the Left, EVERYTHING is about economics. They'll claim they're all for values, etc., but then they instantly revert to complaining about neoliberalism or something. There is no problem on this planet that, in their minds, cannot be solved by government intervention in the market (or revolution to issue in collectivist utopia).
A lot of this unhappiness is not just about money. While we do have to find ways to help rural America, there's more to it than that. Why are so many so unhappy with modern life? How do we learn to live on Earth in a way that is more fulfilling? But be this as it may, NOTHING justifies support for this Tsar wannabe.
By now, Trumpism cannot be defeated. Trump the man can; but somebody worse will come after him with the same message of hatred for education and science, xenophobia and class envy. It’s not nationalism in the European model because the US is not a nation like, say, Austria. It was based on an idea and by now, Trump has gotten hold of this idea and perverted it into a uniquely American form of fascism. Everybody keeps forgetting that both Nazism and communism targeted intellectuals before they targeted anybody else. People who think are the enemy of the stupid, the lazy, the credulous and the envious. This is why Mr. Brooks’ advice to be “understanding” of Trump supporters is so misguided. Nothing willl pacify the rabble except the blood of the elites. So the elites have to fight back. We have the money and more importantly, the technology. Without the Silicon Valley, “middle America” is a Third World country. So instead of “understanding” Trump voters, how about using the leverage the elites have to make life so miserable for them they’ll think twice about their choice? Unfortunately the Democrats are going the opposite way, offering their own version of populism, Trumpism lite, which is not going to be either effective against the real thing nor capable of defeating the GOP in the ballot box.
David- Regarding your Valley Forge metaphor.
I’m not sure if you’re aware, but the soldiers in Valley Forge won the war.
In all seriousness, though, I like your columns, but you always seem to either a)prop up bad people or b)put down good ones.
It’s kinda weird, not gonna lie.
Well let's see what put him in office? Hmmmm I know it was the media who gave him a billion dollars of free tv, radio, and web time. The NYT disgraced itself by demonstrating the Hillary pretty much controls them and their message. NPR, Washington Post, and all of the rest are guilty as well. Stop giving Trump everything he wants.
Brooks you act as if Trump was selling something real when he wasn't. He STILL has no policies. Hillary offered the laid off workers, etc. some real policy ideas that were meant to hopefully change their lives. So essentially the had a choice between a rich real estate agent who is a bully, racist and misogynist or a woman who has dedicated her life to service and had never done a job that she hadn't excelled at.
They didn't choose Trump because he told them he feels their pain. Even Trump voters realized that he would have zero idea what it was like living poor. They chose Trump BECAUSE he was a bully, racist and misogynist. They didn't even care that their lives were not likely going to improve much under Trump. They chose Trump because he thinks like they do.
And no the GOP base isn't going to change. We're just going to have to outvote them.
1
It seems that Trump and his supporters are a tribe haunted by death, who guaranteed their unending existence? I want in on that guarantee.
David:
What do you make of an actual Holocaust survivor who says America under Trump is reminiscent of Germany in the late 1920s and early 1930s?
http://www.newsweek.com/im-holocaust-survivor-trumps-america-feels-germa...
Where is your column on the failures of Trumpism? On the DANGERS of Trumpism and the rightwing propaganda and paranoia that has led us to this for the past 35+ years?
Being Anti-Trump IS being realistic about the dangers of Trumpism.
Remember Pastor Neimoller's entreaty?
First they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Socialist.
Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Trade Unionist.
Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Jew.
Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak for me.
WE are speaking up now. Is America listening?
3
So you think Trump is dangerous because we want to make our country great again and you think your country is great with no jobs overpopulated with illegal immigrants and refugees eating out our substance and foreign countries owning our resources and controlling our lives.
2
Which part about the upset victories of Doug Jones and Connor Lamb is Mr Brooks having the most difficulty with regarding having his MAGA fake while cheating it too?
Hey David, if you're so anti-Trump, you could always, you know, actually work to help the Dems defeat him. You do an amazing job complaining about Trump, all the while only offering criticisms of the one party with any sort of ability to stop him. Do you love your country enough to man up and get over your nostalgia for a conservatism that Has Not Been for 30 years? It might take you owning up to your own party's moral bankruptcy, and I'm not sure you have the grapes.
1
Focusing on the social problems that gave rise to Trump gets you Bernie Sanders. Having solutions that do not change what generates these problems, treating symptoms and cheaping out on the treatment, gets you mainstream Democrats. Claiming that the problems will go away if the size of government is reduced and the budget balanced, gets you mainstream Republicans.
The mainstream right and the mainstream left have both failed the left-out parts of the nation, so their choice boils down to Trump or Bernie. Anti-Trump Republicans should grit their teeth, take their medicine, and go for someone who is serious about including the left-out parts, or decide to settle, support mainstream Democrats, and hope they can do better than Hillary did.
2
FINALLY! Someone provides us a perspective into what I have been observing and alarmed about: all our hand waving, and hyper ventilating has produced no impact on Trump, his ability, and the ability of his chosen people to lay waste to this beautiful country.
The problem is with the conclusion: i.e., the notion that democrats should take care of social problems that produced a Trump.
This is nonsense. 40% of Americans' problems today is the surrender to white christian supremacy, and the clamor for a strongman who will hurt people they don't like. People will argue that it is not a dichotomy; everyone who is not a democrat, is not a christian white supremacist. Decidedly not. But the difference does not matter if they still vote for a candidate who wants a medieval theocracy desired by christian white supremacists, and is producing the kind of scorched earth is is this president. Besides hatred of women, hatred toward Hillary, and ethnic minorities are unAmerican. I am not sure I am interested in listening to, or placating republicans about their seemingly benign reason for voting with white christian supremacists.
I don't have much confidence in the spineless, disorganized, whimpering democrats. I will disdain them more if they try to placate the Trump supporters. What they need to do is to reach out to their constituencies, and get them to care, and vote. Is all.
'Don't focus on personality or the man...focus instead on the social problems that gave rise to Trumpism'! With all due respect to the admirable Mr. Brooks, this is hopeful humbug. Mueller must and will win the day. The imposter in the White House is a sleazy and obtuse crime boss flying by the seat of his pants, and if justice is served, his money trails - at a minimum - will eventually have him sitting next to Capone, with his position in history indicated by nothing but a large asterisk. Not to say that good might not come from this frightful American lesson, but playing Mr. Altruist or Idealist now will only spur his Fox News supporters (take away that channel and *then* see what happens to his 40% rating) to dig in their heels. Mr. Mueller's outing of this child-king cannot come soon enough.
I wonder if you're willfully missing the point of Donald Trump. He is a pathological liar and a con artist who cares only about himself. You stated that Trump won because Americans feel "that their local economies are under attack, their communities are dissolving and their religious liberties are under threat," which strikes me as a not-so-clever way of sidestepping the obvious--Trump is a demagogue who appealed to racial and religious fears. People were willing to put aside his glaring lack of ethics and elect him anyway. Why are you trying to validate an electorate who responded, predominately, to racism and fear?
2
Trump is a Republican. He has full support of Republicans in Congress. This is a Republican government in all ways. And it is what one should expect when Republicans rule.
Mr Brooks has supported Trumpism for his entire life. The bigotries against LGBT people. The smaller government when it comes to social programs, the military might. The America first, except for Israel. The patriarchal white government, that has been dog whistles for generations.
The only thing Mr Brooks is against is Trump the Man. All of this was ok under more reasonable sounding republicans. The only difference is trump yells instead of whistles.
The only wedge issues I see for Mr Brooks is tariffs.
Everything else is a monster that Mr Brooks helped create.
No one is following Mr Brooks “middle” because they get his Republican policies in Trump. David Brooks middle never included the left of center, and still doesn’t
1
This article should be required reading for some of your colleagues, David. Case in point: Charles Blow, who has spent practically ninety percent of his total output in these opinion pages over the past year-and-a-half on hysterical ad hominem attacks on Trump. Doesn't work.
2
The "transformational change" Brooks thinks Trump supporters voted for is not transformational but reactionary. In the very next paragraph, Brooks writes, "the main reason Trump won the presidency is that tens of millions of Americans rightly feel that their local economies are under attack, their communities are dissolving and their religious liberties are under threat." To say that their local economies are under attack is to say that they want to stop the course of capitalism at the moment in history when the Chinese were still walking behind water buffaloes and the Mexicans behind burros. To say that their communities are dissolving is to say that they want to freeze social relations where they were when the local factory was open and nobody spoke Spanish. To say that they want to preserve religious liberty means in practice that they want the right to openly despise queers as inferior and to control their employees' sex lives.
I’d submit that the “psychological inferiority” mentioned in the piece is self-evident in Trump supporters. It may hurt their feelings, but it’s undeniable.
The man is an ignorant, soulless abomination, and should be no where near the levers of power in a democracy; the irony is that the “College of Electors,” conceived to prevent such an aberrational ascension, failed us catastrophicly in 2016.
(“Insufferable condescension” you say? Guilty as charged, with absolute justification!)
One of Trump supporters “social problems” is that America has too many brown people (and Muslims). We are not going to focus on that “problem,” so you need to find another prescription.
3
Brook’s dismisses Thomas Edsall’s evidence-based article with: “This evidence strikes me as psychologically wrong.” I had no idea that Brooks was a psychologist or had a Phd like the linguists, political scientists, sociologists, and behavioral economists who provided the science for Edsall’s article. Brooks’ tone is as “insufferably condescending” as he accuses anti-Trumpism to be.
And as for a solution to the Trump problem, Brooks offers a single line with no specifics: “Focus instead on the social problems that gave rise to Trumpism.” Really David? And what social problems are you referring to and what solutions do you propose? As usual Brooks is long on criticism and short on solutions. As he claims to be a psychologist, perhaps we can assume he is also a credentialed economist-sociologist-political scientist and is brimming with ideas.
Brooks is short on solutions because our social problems have been caused by conservative policies he embraces, particularly conservative free-market policies that have gutted the middle class and enriched the capitalists.
What Brooks typically deems a solution to our predicament usually falls into the idealized-romantic, ethereal-abstract dimension – things like faith and religion, and national narrative and myth.
Perhaps if Brooks would fall to his knees and pray, our national problems would disappear. In the meantime, if he comes up with anything more concrete, we are all waiting with bated breath.
1
So I guess David you are saying if you can't beat em then join em? I thought you had better morals than that.
We saw much the same with Nixon, had popular support until almost the last of his presidency, and when it was over you couldn't find a soul who would admit to voting for him. History doesn't have fond memories of Nixon and for those of us who are literate and don't receive our information from the boob tube, it would appear history is not going to find Trump any better off than Nixon.
The Right has has completely lost their sense of direction. Just imagine, trillion dollar deficits, 100 percent of GDP. Truly they have lost their collective minds.
David please remind me just what was it you stand for and just what is it you are trying accomplish with your vote? Signed, very confused in Utah. P.S is this suppose to be your attempt at humor?
"and an epic attempt to offend 40 percent of our fellow citizens by reducing them to psychological inferiors"- so tired of hearing about how "smug" and "condescending" we are when we recognize Trump supporters for what they are: selfish, paranoid, backward, and small-minded. They got us into this mess. Don't tell me I don't have a right to think them inferior.
1
Wait until the blue wave hits in November, then lets see where the Trump defenders stand.
Mr. Brooks doesn't mention various special elections that have taken place around the country. Democrats have done well in them, winning in several cases and showing large increases in support in most others. What's happening on the ground will decide the election in November of this year, and Democrats are working hard to support candidates who can win in each district and state. I like this column because it warns Democrats not to take anything for granted. We won't change the minds of hardcore Trump supporters, but we can win over Independents and get out the Democratic vote.
1
I question the high poll ratings. How was the poll conducted (I couldn't find that info on the link to the NBC/WSJ)? I suspect the telephone (the old-fashioned landline) was the main component. If so, not scientific, and definitely biased. If someone contacted me to ask for my opinion of Trump, I'd decline (probably also insult the poller, just because...) and I suspect many others who share that low opinion would do the same.
The real problem with you Antis is that you focus on irrelevant things like say Tweets, previous activities outside his responsibilities and other idiotic things. His basic policies are rule of law and for our government looking out for our citizen's interests first, just as most other reasonable governments do. So you fail because you are not rational.
1
It is not just Trump. It is the Republican Congress.
Neither Trump or the Congress are paying any meaningful attention to the social problems that brought us Trump.
And they never will.
Trump is in the White House because of the Electoral College. The Electoral College was intended to keep power in the hands of the educated and well to do, not the run of of the mill citizen. It has to be eliminated.
Trump will never help anyone who is not a millionaire. Nor will the Republican Congress. They all lack moral courage and soul.
Bernie Sanders could do the job with one hand tied behind his back. But the DNC preferred the elite candidate.
So long as we have the same people in power, nothing will change for the average citizen.
It is not just enough to be Anti-Trump. You must stand for doing the right thing for all citizens, regardless of party.
This is where we have failed.
1
Every one of your arguments is wrong, starting with the notion that Trump is not too far from the GOP. he isn't. the party is full of sexist, racist truth deniers. Until that changes, nothing else will for you and your ilk.
1
Mr. Trump is wrong in many, many fronts. Unable to focus on America's greater good (prefers to favor specific groups), unprepared to lead (unable to set effective goals considering all stakeholders -- consumers, corporations, government, environment, etc. and their needs), and unable to execute.
But Trump knew in 2016 how to do one thing very well: how to win the battle of the mind. By keeping things ambiguous, setting up a fake but aspirational mantra (MAGA) and channeling hate towards Hillary, he won the hearts and votes of many people that chose to like him and not scrutinize him.
Going forward (2020), anti-Trumpism will succeed if there is focus on the big center (moderate liberals, practical conservatives) via one big idea that is simple, relevant and credible, that Trump (or whoever replaces him) can't knock down.
David Brooks, I didn't want to hear what you wrote in "The Failures of Anti-Trumpism"! Thinking about it, made me reconsider. I agree with you, tribalism and the original social problems that brought Trump in are the reasons for his election and staying power. I am a very strong democratic liberal. Tell us David, what will help us get rid of Trump? He is a dictator and free thinkers know it. You've told us a lot of your reasoning, now tell us the solution.
2
Shortly before leaving office, Nixon asked Senator Barry Goldwater how many senatorial votes Nixon could count on in the event of an impeachment in the House. Goldwater said, "Not many, and not mine."
Nixon had the support of a third of the country and delusions that that was enough. Sound familiar?
1
The main reason Trump got elected is bigotry plain and simple. Even the Trump voters' economic fears are rooted in bigotry. Until Republicans own this truth, and figure out how to evolve past it, there can be no further discussion. We are well past words.
2
Mr. Brooks,
I don't follow your point. Seven of 11 California Republicans refuse to mention trump by name. You don't mention a single instance of pro-trump supporters who lost special elections, including Alabama and Pennsylvania. Moderate Democrats and Independents are turning away from the trump ilk that drives wedges between Americans, flaunts our US Constitution and rule of law.
It's not for grins that the Republican leadership is concerned about a blue wave in 2018 and 2020. trump has united the anti-trump forces.
"Focus instead on the social problems that gave rise to Trumpism."
I do think that is actually good advice. Unfortunately for Mr. Brooks and the majority of Democratic Party brass, that means taking a serious look at socialism.
1
Mr. Brooks, you wittingly took part in the quiet but real 'dog whistles' for years leading up to Trump. You GOP loyalists painted 'the other' as an existential threat no matter how you framed 'other'. So Mr. Brooks, don't run for your salts now that the GOP base, his base/your base, is inured to facts and believes the disinformation being spoon fed to them by outlets like Fox. The GOP base now believes the dog whistle narrative you actively participated in creating. You built it, you bought it. RIP GOP, hopefully, the country's institutions will survive with your party at the helm, shameless cowards all present company included.
2
To AWW
Maybe you and I don't read the same columnist named Brooks. The one I read has done none of the things you accuse him of.
How about 'focusing' on the milieu of disingenuous nonsense(trickle down economics, climate change denial, islamophobia, voter fraud, and on and on...) that is the ideological swamp from which a Trump can emerge?
3
Ah "Islamophobia," Christopher Hitchens warned us before his death the Democrats would grab hold of this word and try to co-opt it to their advantage. Just a made up word to fight against real problems and real fears.
1
Mr. Brooks might also want to consider what would be arguably the greatest detriment to Donald Trump's presidency. If the stock market continues to tumble, if farmers continue to lose money, and if his compulsive trade war continues ,then a great number of people who had high hopes of improving their economic status will eventually have a very different opinion about this president. Being an obnoxious , dishonest , philandering jerk won't get him thrown out of office but disappointing millions of Americans who were hoping for a better economic future will.
.
2
"The main reason Trump won the presidency is that tens of millions of Americans rightly feel that their local economies are under attack, their communities are dissolving and their religious liberties are under threat. Trump understood the problems of large parts of America better than anyone else. He has been able to strengthen his grip on power over the past year because he has governed as he campaigned."
As always wanting to have it both (or more) ways. So enough with the nonsense. Are Trump supporters justified in voting for him? You do your best to cite all their 'good' qualities? So what do you think? Are they hateful or not? Are they racist, sexist, xenophobic, bigoted?
Are Trump supporters justified in voting for him? for he is racist, sexist, xenophobic, bigoted.
The excuses and back bending to explain Trump support is obnoxious.
A good part of America (still a minority) is hateful and fearful of the 'others'. It's hate and anger. Trump is hate and anger.
Enough with your nonsense. There is no justification for supporting Trump. Full stop.
5
Perhaps that good part of America that is "hateful" also voted for Clinton?
1
The Democrats are also racist, and classist in that they don't like working class whites. So, what is a working class white person to do?
So, you spend several sentences heaping insults on your fellow citizens (people you have never met) who may have voted for Trump, and then you finish by saying "Trump is hate and anger". Hmm..
I agree with Brooks. And I am astonished how many of the readers don't get what he means.
In the Trump voter world the government once built nice highways, many services and big industries. Nowadays they see their city decaying and the government doing nothing.
From there it is easy to think that much of your tax money of it is wasted on vague liberal hobbies. Many see Obamacare as just another liberal hobby and only after they get to know it they change their opinion.
They may not agree with all the moral conservatism. But neither do they like a government that considers toilet rights for transgenders as a top priority. There are more important things.
They may have doubts about Trump's solutions. But at least he sees what the problem is and doesn't discard them as deplorables.
Before Trump there was the Tea Party. And a few years from now there may be yet another "solution". That is how democracy works: it looks nice when everyone agrees what should be done but it can look quite ugly when a society is divided and searching for solutions.
7
The "failure" is not the issue. It is the responsibility of journalists and citizens, who recognize what DT is and what he represents, to speak out against the craziness. Otherwise, "normalization" of his fascist view of the world has a better chance of taking hold. I think that your editorial misses totally on this point. Too bad.
1
This revelation forces a reckoning about the moral, ethical & cultural nature of the American people.
The term 'good person' is bandied by Trump regularly. What exactly does he mean?
Here we have an individual in office who presents an apparently total lack of what generally is termed 'virtuous'.
I won't start detailing the specific ways Trump defies any of the qualities considered virtuous by numerous cultures & societies across history.
But Virtue is historically an ideal, & its clear by now Trump unabashedly defies that ideal:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virtue
We know also that this would not be an insult to Trump, he seems to take personal pride in all vices, he lies, cheats, steals, all of it.
So the question then is what does this say about his supporters who remain such a large 40% of the population?
Evangelicals, as we know, have apparently given him a 'mulligan' for past lustful cheating, but what about the rest of it?
Supporters are focused on this promised 'economic nationalism', & gamble that Trump will make them significantly more money.
While Trump's actual influence on whether supporters actually get more money remains to be seen, is money the only thing that matters to Americans?
The question of virtuousness in the time of Trump is one that needs expert analysis.
Is a society that sustains a president who clearly lacks virtue, a virtuous society?
Are these 'good people', & does virtue even matter, or is it all only about money, & being mean.
2
What a beautiful suggestion! Let us just bury our anxiety and concern for democracy by concentrating on socially beneficial concerns. Will macrame and finger painting do the trick, or shall we take up ping pong with prolonged ice baths?
I am not a Trump supporter. I am surrounded by people who worship Trump. In August of 2016 I would argue with people that there was clear evidence on face book that Russians were involved in manipulating the election. I could see this clearly. I didn't need an investigation to see the Russian adds. Obviously fake videos of Hilary Clinton as a pedophile. With Russian slant to the video and Russian sounding names as well. The Russian stuff was all over the place on face book.
I would talk to people at work and mention that Trump had sold condos in Florida to all Russian clients for years. The women at my work just would brush the Russian influence on face book and the evidence in the news paper of Trump having a lot of Russian business deals aside. The woman at my work almost acted like they thought he was like a perfect husband or the men a perfect friend. Like a fantasy.
For me seeing all these women around me just light up when Trump is mentioned. Nothing could ever make them examine their motives. In reality he has had three wives all with minimal college educations and he is totally unfaithful. The women I talked to or were around at work all act like he was some sort of substituted for all the unreliable men in their lives. The men Trump seemed like the kinda guy who behind closed doors talked bad about women and minorities and that was considered a good thing.
Trump is crazy, his supporters are crazy, and we need to impeach Trump as soon as possible.
2
Governed as he campaigned? In style, certainly. In substance, not so much.
Health Insurance - Promised cheaper, better & everyone will be covered. Delivered, nothing even close to that.
The Wall. - Promised on day one , with Mexico paying for it. Delivered, a few laughs from Mexico, but no wall.
Nafta - Promised to end it unless better terms could be negotiated. Delivered, nothing yet.
Trade with China - Promised, "trade wars are good & easy to win. Delivered, a stock market plunge & panic among US farmers.
Coal - Promised a resurgence. Delivered, no substantial change in the new jobs or any likelihood that coal will reverse its declining prospects.
Tax cuts for the middle class - The Middle class of millionaires got some tax relief. The top 1% got a lot more. For the rest, some crumbs.
Loosening environmental regulations - Promised & delivered in spades. Yahoo, we get a degraded environment and a likelihood of more climate related disasters.
1
More than one third of registered Republicans still supported Richard Nixon on the day he resigned from office in disgrace for lying to the American people about his personal role in directing the Watergate break in. I would not expect today's Trump voter to think any differently. New York Times op-ed writers, however perceptive and cogent their observations may be, have no credibility with those voters and should not expect to.
1
With this kind of analysis, I often feel like we're shouting at someone driving us the wrong way in traffic, and they're complaining that we're too loud and red in the face.
1
David Brooks is a national treasure. I'm guessing that he wrote and filed this before the Mueller investigation raided Trump's lawyer yesterday afternoon. It already feels dated. He gets my respect anyway. He has courage to not have pulled and amended it. Unfortunately, it has more mistakes, or challenging comments, than usual. Some of his counsel is rock solid sound, but there are two critical comments I fully endorse. (Michael Hogan and Cathy Lollock.)
There is a comment by V I liked a lot, but couldn't recommend, because it gets ugly and rude at the end, after making a series of excellent points. Brooks sounds soft sometimes on the GOP leadership. HIs digs are subtle, even oblique.
We should always listen respectively to David Brooks, who despite his blind spots, or gentleness, is a national treasure. His multiplicity of strengths far outweigh his weaknesses, such as when he writes about psychology and philosophy and love and values. He also covers a wider range of topics than many of his peers at the NYT.
And he is right, that Hillary Clinton, and many of her supporters, disrespected many of the Trump supporters. Fearless Brooks does not tire in reminding us to always show respect to our opponents and people in fly-over country. He never promises you a rose garden, but will help you identify and climb mountains.
David Lindsay Jr. is the author of "The Tay Son Rebellion,” and blogs at TheTaySonRebellion.com and InconvenientNews.wordpress.com
2
Although I agree with Mr. Brooks that criticism of the Trump mad house isn't working on the cult of Trump, he offers us no viable alternatives.
He suggests that we concentrate instead on the social problems that theoretically motivated Trump voters to install the sociopath in the White House. Let's think for a moment about what those might be.
Does he think we all must discriminate against minorities? Does he think we should treat women like sex toys? Does he think we should all participate in the effort to deport over 12 million people? Does he think we must require all Americans to carry concealed weapons?
Maybe he thinks we should improve education so that the ignorance that installed Trumpism can be cured? Maybe he thinks we must pass laws that would prohibit all media sources of misinformation that "inform" Trump voters? How does he think we can do that when the entire government is in the hands of Trump enables, i.e., Republicans?
How about some POSITIVE suggestions, Mr. Brooks?
"...tens of millions of Americans rightly feel that...their religious liberties are under threat."
Only if by "religious liberties" you mean the right to force your religious beliefs on others. No one on the left has suggested constraining Christians, or any religion from practicing what they preach. Their persecution is their inability to punish those who don't conform with their ideology.
3
"... he has governed as he campaigned." Governed? Seriously, governed? If you mean by "governed," lied, threatened, defamed, insulted, shouted down, rambled, stumbled, incited, and lied about his lies, well yes, he has "governed" as he campaigned.
"Why has Trump dominated?"
Because prominent conservatives like yourself didn't endorse Clinton when it mattered. Now it's too little, too late.
I fully expect to read your full-throated endorsements of Trump's Democratic rival in 2020. Otherwise, enough with these calibrated criticisms.
I think Mr. Brooks is minimizing the impact of anti-Trumpism. First of all, I would argue that a good portion of the 40% are either not paying attention or are still in denial. So as long as there are these two significant groups, Mr. Brooks is right that Trump's approval rating will probably remain around 40%. However I think the analysis should also look at where Trump's approval would be without the anti-Trumpism in the country. Based on the state of the economy (It's the economy, stupid!), I suspect the approval rating should probably be near 60%. Low unemployment. And until the recent tariff talk by the President, a stock market as high as it as ever been. Solid public confidence that the economy is in good shape and getting better. Now whether Mr. Trump deserves significant credit for all the good economic news is another issue. However presidents in this area get the credit or blame in this area for the most part whether they deserve it or not. But if one looks at where his approval rating would be without the anti-Trumpism, I suspect it would probably be about 20 points higher. If so, then anti-Trumpism is having an effect - a significant one (or maybe a bigly one).
1
Let's see what happens in November.
Mr. Brooks again ignores the core values of the tribe which blindly—and with continued low and false information—supports this administration. This tribe is animated by racism and a desire for white Christian dominance. This tribe hews to its views wth continued reinforcement from propaganda on the right. We ignore the immorality of this tribe at our peril.
1
Yeah, but:
This article is really about tactics, isn’t it, about how to win over Trumpism. You seem to be talking about convincing the 40 percent, but that is (obviously) not the only approach to defeating Trumpism. After all let us again be reminded that he lost the popular vote miserably and only won the electoral vote by a few thousand votes, in less than a handful of districts in less than a handful of states. So bad that the argument has been plausibly made that he did not win but rather the Democrats lost.
Having said that, coming from the northeastern white working class, as a young man in the sixties, with the rise of the civil rights movement and the already declining promise of abundance made by the victory of World War Two, the seeds of today’s Trumpism were already to be seen. Then Nixon declaring for the “silent majority” and Regan with, “government is the problem”.
No, I put a good deal of blame on nice republican intellectuals such as yourself, and the sons of liberal New York intellectuals who made a pact with the “devil”.
As Trump would say, “so sad, very sad”.
1
"For all the hype, the Mueller investigation looks less and less likely to fundamentally alter the course of the administration."
I suppose that this is one of those times when an author has the spectacularly bad luck of publishing an article on the very same day that the news cycle reveals one of his fundamental premises to be deeply flawed.
1
The only way to get rid of Trump and his followers is by getting out the vote. The rest is nonsense. Register today and show up on election day.
"tens of millions of Americans rightly feel that their local economies are under attack, their communities are dissolving and their religious liberties are under threat. " David, how are religious liberties under threat???
“Trump opponents, the academics say, are open-minded and value independence and novelty. Trump supporters ... are closed-minded, change-averse and desperate for security.”
You say the analysis is “psychologically wrong (every human being requires both a secure base and an open field ...), journalistically wrong (Trump supporters voted for the man precisely because they wanted transformational change) and an epic attempt to offend 40 percent of our fellow citizens by reducing them to psychological inferiors.”
I think that you’re right but the intellectual case is complicated.
Edsall also said many studies measure “authoritarianism” or “intolerance”.
I think scholarship and law are poorly served by verbal architecture which uses broad powerful terms the meanings of which inevitably guide people’s thinking. As umbrella terms for academic studies, or as legal categories repeatedly applied, powerful terms will further broaden. And to begin with we’re only correlating traits - wanting safety and stability isn’t identical to actively supporting Mussolini.
Using narrower, less loaded terms and showing the interplay between various tendencies and a changing environment seems like a better way for scholars to go.
I still believe that unless and until the Dems can put forth a vision for America that both includes and respects Trump nation, then Trump nation will not lose any support. Which brings me to the question of what can Dems do or what should they do? Personally, playing to Trump nation is not a winning strategy, as well as a bridge too far. "Embrace the Hate" is not a party I want to be part of. Perhaps, it is time for Dems to write Trump nation off. Salvage what can be salvaged and move on. Do it respectfully, but move on.
Pres. Obama already tried that...
"Trump supporters voted for the man precisely because they wanted transformational change."
Please, David. This is nothing but propaganda. Thomas Edsall in this paper summarized most of the serious studies which told us that Trump voters, who were relatively well off, were principally motivated by racial resentment. In light of that, what Trump voters want is reactionary not transformative. They are demanding a return to white male Christian dominance. Are you seriously arguing that the rightwing in America deserves to be called tolerant? They might feel their religious liberties are at threat but surely you can acknowledge how untethered that feeling is. Perhaps you are referring to their freedom to compel us to carry a fetus to term even if we have been raped or a victim of incest?
1
David, you wrote:
"The main reason Trump won the presidency is that tens of millions of Americans rightly feel that their local economies are under attack, their communities are dissolving and their religious liberties are under threat. Trump understood the problems of large parts of America better than anyone else. He has been able to strengthen his grip on power over the past year because he has governed as he campaigned."
The first part of that may be true, i.e., Trump understood what people were concerned about, BUT TRUMP IS NOT, WAS NOT, AND NEVER WILL BE, the solution to those problems. This never-Trumper (conservative, albeit not Republican), however condescending I may be towards those who don't get this, will not ignore that Trump *talked* the talk, but he has not, and never will, walk the walk. Because he's a liar who will tell people whatever they want to hear.
4
Mr.Brooks, if you want to rescue the Republican party from Trump just tell them to enact the Democratic agenda and support social programs that help people instead of corporations ( who are NOT people). It would help if people were struggling less and angry less as they always are in the Republican trickle down economy and the Sinclair Broadcasting brain washing cabal
2
I think that you are a good man, David...... but this should never be about poll numbers, or winning and losing. This is simply about right and wrong. Trump is a monster; a home grown American monster. He is a mutant made of our worst traits. He must be opposed because it is the right thing to do. Let the poll chips fall where they may. Let the elections run their course. People wanting to be on the right side of history cannot stand by quietly.
4
What this column doesn't mention is that Mr. Trump's opening salvo was birtherism. This started years before he opened his campaign and drew those who couldn't support a president who didn't look like them. There is a huge segment--if not 100%-- in Mr. Trump's base of racism. Anyone that heard the dog whistle and hated an African-American president is never going to turn against their leader.
6
Brooks writes: "The main reason Trump won the presidency is that tens of millions of Americans rightly feel that their local economies are under attack, their communities are dissolving and their religious liberties are under threat."
This is what the Kotch Cabal and the Fox mouthpieces have been telling Republicans for years, and it is total nonsense, but the audience buys it.
Please Mr. Brooks tell us who's religious liberties are under attack? The evangelicals who support a Muslim ban? And who, besides the corporate oligarchs they support and the capitalist system itself is attacking their local economies--please enlighten us? And what exactly is it that makes you sure they are right in believing this?
Hint: As Phineas Taylor Barnum (an infiniantly better showman than the president) advertised: See the egress 25 cents.
2
A religious cult has no objectivity the disciples are loyal for the sake of loyalty to the religion. Trumpism has all the makings of a religion and the backing of a mainstream religion at it's base. The two thing you should never argue are politics and religion and when they become one and the same, talking is a waste of time.
2
''And by that standard, the anti-Trump movement is a failure... ''
I would submit that the only standard is the one on election day. Write a column then Sir. I will be anticipating your ''slant'' on it then.
''And by that standard, the anti-Trump movement is a failure... '' I would submit that the only standard is the one on election day. Write a column then Sir. I will be anticipating your ''slant'' on it then.
Attacking Trump's vile personality doesn't matter. His supporters already know about it, and he's not up for election this year.
The right response is simply this: "Republican politicians don't care about you."
Start with how they don't care if you die to lack of medical care and proceed to how they don't care if you get shot.
Then, and this is critical, offer something better. You can't just tell people to abandon their tribe. You have to give them somewhere to go.
4
Anti-Trumpism on the left has not failed, an is gaining ground. It has filed on the right, because regular Republicans failed long before Trump. Their policies had three components that all failed: On social policy they lost all the battles years ago. On economics, they brought us the Great Recession. On foreign policy, they gave us failures of Iraq and Afghanistan. Trumpism is the only game left for the right.
2
The "main reason" Trump got elected should probably include fake news and Russian influence, no? A majority of citizens find him reprehensible. But the reason he remains in power is because we--and especially those in the republican party and the media-- refuse to take his fascist overtones, his lies, his crimes, his racism and his misogyny seriously.
5
Being anti-Trump is doomed to fail due to being too diffuse and divided. There is no way that conservative and liberal political opposition to Trump can cohere into a positive policy alternative. Unifying Trump's character and personality with his governing strategy and tactics is politically flawed.
Donald Trump is Ronald Reagan without any of the acting, governing and political experience or talent. Trump is an ignorant, immature, intemperate and insecure Reagan.
Trump is Reagan as a corrupt crony capitalist corporate plutocrat oligarch who inherited and is hiding his wealth while profiting from being from President of the United States. Focusing on Trump's inherent and innate character flaws is a political distraction from his governing actions and inactions.
4
So much in our world has been hacked, bought or stolen, why do you presume polls are immune??
1
Trump is simply the result of 50 years of Republican/conservative policies, programs and propaganda designed to return America to its "glory" years of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Mr. Brooks, what you, and the country, are getting from Trump AND, let's not forget, a Republican dominated Congress AND a Republican dominated (in more ways than one...) Supreme Court of the United States, has been supported, aided, abetted, praised and enabled and encouraged for the past 50 or so years by influential, visible, people just like you.
Now is bit late, it seems to me, to be trying to make nice. Or repent.
5
So when are you going to focus on the issues and join the Democratic Party?
3
I would like to thank the many thoughtful people writing comments to rebut the Brook's fantasy retelling of the past and the present.
Brook's analysis would preserve Republican control while perhaps changing the face in the White House.
That is not a solution. That is less dismal failure.
Republicans have understood and manipulated the 40%.
Democrats must understand and manipulate the 40% and the Edsall column starts us on that track.
Any review of history makes it clear that a Democratic congress will do far more for the 40% than any Republican congress ever will.
Child psychology is full of tricks to get children to do what is good for them. Time for Democrats to apply those tricks to the 40% - as the Republicans have long been doing.
This is an important column, which the anti-Trumpers should take very seriously. However sweepingly, it articulates the key reasons why Trump is prevailing, not failing: 1) he has delivered on many of his campaign promises, from restrictions on immigration to gutting financial and environmental regulations and Obamacare to a massive tax cut - all of which Republicans religiously supported for years; 2) he has exploited an "us vs. them" mentality that has been simmering for years, demonizing the professional "haves" to the delight of the "non-haves" among his base; 3) he has, through his outrageous tweeting and rascally behavior and violation of proper "norms," mesmerized the opposition into obsessing on his personality rather than challenging what he is actually doing. Just as he did during the campaign, he's controlling the national narrative, and thus far the opposition has been unable to come up with a compelling alternative. If the opposition can't make the midterms and the 2020 election about more than just Trump, they will lose. And so will the country.
1
Lets not do anything to drastic -- I will no the able to flip any Trumpers to become less ignorant. With 3 million more votes -- I can & need to, however, turnout 41k more votes in Penn, 21k more votes in Michigan & 12k more votes in Wisconsin. And if we can turn out the votes in Charlotte and take NC then we can remove the buffoon from office. I would prefer it this way -- utter rejection of the buffoon's US reality TV show. Idiocracy will still exist among us, but not destroy us.
2
Mr. Brooks, I think you are mostly dead on. I am a liberal Democrat who is appalled by this President and nearly everything he stands for. However, most of the comments I have read here are from people in denial.
This is about tribalism. The left is condescending; I agree with your assessment of Thomas Edsell’s conclusions. Furthermore, this President has, for the most part, governed from a fairly mainstream Republican policy perspective (save for free trade and a few other issues.) People will put up with a lot of "nonsense" as you say, but also blatant corruption and incompetence. They will do this as long as they feel their leader is basically one of them -- e.g., will protect them from what they fear are bigger threats in the world like ISIS or North Korea or pro-choicers than a President who will do almost anything to hold onto his power.
Why not? In the end if Republican voters feel Trump has gone too far all they have to do is vote him out in 2020. It's no lose for these voters: “let him do his job. If it works, great. If it doesn't, bye bye. We’re the ones who have the power to vote him out.” This is perfectly logical. In the meantime, Luigi Zingales couldn’t be more right. The more we never-Trumpers attack the man the more his die-hard followers, or even his wait-and-see followers, will dig in.
"...tens of millions of Americans rightly feel that their local economies are under attack, their communities are dissolving and their religious liberties are under threat."
Most intelligent people can agree that Trump lives in a fantasy world of "alternative facts," but statements like the one above are, in some ways, more troubling, as they come from someone who should clearly know better. While communities may be dissolving, no local economies that I know of are "under attack," and no religious liberties are "under threat." I expect better than one out of three from Mr. Brooks.
On the economy question, who exactly is "attacking" them? Is it the Chinese? Immigrants? If you can't put together a credible explanation of who is doing the attacking, then you are simply contributing to right-wing paranoia, and deflecting from the real causes of the economic stagnation (see, e.g., wage inequality, deregulation and lack of proportional representation).
On the religion question, who is doing the threatening? Is it the people who do not want to be discriminated against for their sexual orientation? Again, if you can't explain how baking a cake threatens someone's relationship with Jesus, then you shouldn't toss around these inflammatory statements.
The constant state of fear and agitation on the right is one of the defining elements of political dysfunction in the U.S. today. Shame on Mr. Brooks for fanning the flames in such a casual and frivolous way.
7
Insightful, David, as always, though I'm not sure about the observation of a desire for change. Despite the messaging, and from a change management perspective, it strikes me as resistance to change with which they have been and remain incredibly uncomfortable and ill-prepared either on their own or by leaders, private and public. They look to hold on, revert, not move forward. There is change inherent in that desire in wanting the swamp cleaned up, but to your point, that seems more to do with animosity toward those who are deemed as having left them behind.
And let's not kid ourselves, hasn't Trump simply publicized the dog whistle messaging of the GOP starting and refined since Reagan?
2
Democrats appear to disparage the religious beliefs and practices of many conservative Americans in a few important ways recently.
1. We have as a party insisted that all states grant something we call 'marriage' to same gender couples. This is not what we really mean. Marriage is for millions of people a sacrament of their church, governed by theologically-guided rules. When we say we insist that it be extended to same-sex couples (like my son and his husband), they see this as an abomination, a threat that the state will intrude on their church services.
What we really want, it seems, is a meaningful civil union statute that covers all of the rights and obligations we associate with marriage. To be consistent, we should keep this out of the churches and may sure they have no power over it. If people want a church wedding too, they can have one. And if they can't find a church that will do it, maybe they need a different church.
Right now our position seems highly disrespectful to these Americans, meaningless so.
2. Many of these Americans believe refuse to denounce what is to them, and frankly to many people, the murder of infants. As a party, we have never said there is any limit to a woman's right to end a pregnancy. That could apply right up to the date of delivery.
Absurd, of course. But that is how they see it. And we enable them by our refusal to concede that a person can attain the protection of the state while the mother still hosts him or her.
1
So we anti-Trumpists are insufferably condescending. Is it your belief, David, that the Trumpists are the opposite of us? Open-minded, respectful, and appreciative? All you have to do is watch the Fox nightly lineup to learn that Trumpists abhor Democrats and believe we are part of a massive deep state conspiracy to tear down the country. To be fair, consider a column which explores Republican attitudes toward anti-Trumpists.
5
I generally (sometimes begrudgingly) agree with Mr. Brooks' sensible writing. And I do ovwewhelmingly in this case except for one statement. There is no assault on religious freedom, and I am surprised to find Brooks using this misnomer for the bilious language of the religious right. It seems to me they do not seek the right to practice their religion so much as to hide behind it in order to curtail the freedom of others. The most strident go further and seek a theocracy. And we all know how well that is working out in Islam.
2
"For all the hype, the Mueller investigation looks less and less likely to fundamentally alter the course of the administration."
Um, are we watching the same Mueller investigation?
6
Brooks smears by elision here and suggests that Mueller's investigation is part of a partisan opposition. Given the events of the last twenty-four hours it seems somewhat unlikely that the truth, however slowly revealed, is not going to alter the course of Trump's administration. And the truth--not returning the Democrats to power--is what this investigation is after. To belittle Mueller's endeavor--and the judicial and law enforcement institutions that give him his power by extension--invalidates this entire piece, We might as well tune into Fox News.
2
As this trump tribe becomes more damaging, do we just assume that it's the Republican Party or the NRA AR15 owners the local police carrying automatic weapons legislators who suppress voter rights or the billionaire group controlling the Supreme Court and congress?
1
It must be very frustrating for the liberals to not be able to persuade the 40 percent of President Trump's supporters to still be with him. All the negative reporting over more than a year had absolutely no effect on their decisions. They see their lives improving in job creation, improved economy, higher stock market and just a better way of life for themselves and their families. Why stop a good thing.
Why would they ever betray Mr. Trump when he has achieved so much success. They voted for him because he promised he would make their lives brighter. And that he has. As long as their good fortune continue, they will support President Trump. They have a friend in the White House after so many years of feeling isolated.
1
What success? In what way have HIS policies made anyone's life better? He crows about HIS successes, but what he claims credit for is nothing more than having the sheer luck of sailing into office on the coat tails of the economic gains that were already in place during the Obama years. Look down the road a few years and what do you see? I see an unsafe environment brought about by the "triumph" of deregulation, an even stronger, greedier 1% consolidating their control over our government, a world where the US is no longer involved as a decision maker, and a further erosion of the norms of public discourse. These will be the true legacies of Trumpism.
Anti-Trumpism can prevail if you think "up-level".
Both Trump and Bernie caught the deep wave of disgust over the rot of money in politics. That disgust and the rot are still there.
Both Progressives and Trumpsters have had it with Big Money politics - and this is a wave that continues to build.
The days of the Big Donor politician are numbered - unless the 0.1% are successful in their authoritarian project, on which they've been working overtime.
The endemic corruption of money in politics and its associated income inequality are the foundational interests shared by 99% of the voters. We can use this.
What's needed is for the Trumpsters to realize that Trump may have the words, but not the character or desire or ability to reverse the corruption. Then they'll start looking around - they just need a substitute.
Also needed is for the Democrats to pull their heads out of the sand and see the DNC and the oldster Dem pols as obsolete and addicted to their Big Money donors. Dem voters need to gather their courage and become risk-taking Progressives.
As for the Progressives, they're already there, waiting.
Trump was the shock/assault force, waking us all up and cracking the wall. Now a Progressive backed by the 99% is needed to secure a non-authoritarian future.
To get past Trump, we need to think different and redefine the problem as something we can all agree on. The problem is a system that's rigged against our interests. Trump is just a symptom.
1
It seems that the GOP animal should be changed from elephant to rhinoceros, and David Brooks appears to be ready to make his metamorphosis.
The fact that you don't like what the academic analysis has shown doesn't make it wrong. That's Trumpism. As is making a toss-off, entirely unsubstantiated claim that "tens of millions of Americans rightly feel that...their religious liberties are under attack".
One thing you report is very much true, however: Trump is NOT a big departure from the Republican mainstream. That mainstream has been channelling racism, Islamophobia, homophobia, science denial and out-of-control gun ownership for decades.
3
The proclivity to allow tribal thinking to subsume critical thinking actually is a sort of "psychological inferiority" -- or more precisely, a shortage of intellectual and moral maturity.
This isn't merely one tribe set against another -- it's a tribe opposing growth, truth, values, reason... in effect, treating the best practices in being human as if it were the opposing tribe.
2
Yes!
The reason Trump won is that Bill Clinton met Attorney General Lynch on a plane so re recused herself and that left James Comey to make an inappropriately accusatory press conference announcing that no charges would be filed against Secretary Clinton and then shortly before the election he again inappropriately announced the reopening of the email server investigation. That's why she lost.
1
There is always an excuse for the racist demagogue.
It's always somehow the fault of those not racist, not stupid, not illiterate, not demagogic, committed to pluralism and tolerance.
Accountability is apparently illegal for those who are bent on wrecking this country with their bigotry and commitment to a man who, as much today as the day he descended his escalator in his ghastly gilded tower, is unfit to exercise any power, let alone that of the presidency.
Pace Brooks, it is not that 'their local economies are under attack, their communities are dissolving and their religious liberties are under threat.' Nor is it that 'Trump understood the problems of large parts of America better than anyone else.' It is that Trump understood better than anyone else in his benighted party how to appeal to the very worst in Americans.
Accept this? Yield to it? Defer to it? Sorry, I will never be available for such squalid duty. If that's 'condescension,' then I'm guilty.
5
The #1 social problem that gave rise to Trumpism is the "diversity" movement. For most Americans, "diversity" means "not you". Being told by the likes of the (enormously wealthy and successful) Clintons that they are deplorable and must get less than a fair deal for some social objective that smells a lot like patronage, makes people revolt and vote for anyone else.
Another fine example of False Equivalence and shallowness. I guess I read you in the vain hope that you will awaken. Sigh. Meanwhile, I see no proof that you or any other GOP enabler is anti-Trump. Let's see specifics about what you object to.
Oh, he was elected because of chicanery, racism, sexism, and disenfranchisement, not because the people wanted a change. Own that for openers.
6
David! Sounds like you too have begun to normalize this president. Now is not the time to cop out, as so many previously respectable conservatives have done.
It seems to me that we've dramatically overestimated the number of powerful people in our politics and public life who are fundamentally committed to the ideals of a democratic republic, and they find it easier now to rationalize the corporate fascism that has been growing bolder and more influential since the Reagan administration set out to destroy the New Deal coalition. They made a Faustian bargain in the name of power and money.
Further, Trump was elected because those who have been the victims of this emerging fascism --- workers, unions, farmers, small business owners, minorities, and others who had traditionally been the foundation of that coalition, became unmoored, exhausted from being on perpetual defense in the face of rising income inequality, the pounding propaganda of right wing corporate media consolidation, and the Democratic party's ongoing identity crisis; they rightly felt abandoned and alienated from their traditional political home, and our public education system failed to equip them for informed citizenship.
As a retired history teacher, I take some comfort that many on both sides of this story are "aging out" of this dysfunctional period, and that many of the young people emerging from the struggle appear to be up to the challenge. I hope we don't blow ourselves up before they get a chance.
3
When Brooks writes "eighty-nine percent of Republicans now have a positive impression of the man," he said it all. So why does he continue in column after column to present us with the same redundant truism? Let me edit it down further: Republicans love Trump. With that in mind, let's have another election come November.
3
Trumpism was not created by "insufferably condescending" liberals.
Trumpism was created by 40 years of the GOP and right-wing media stoking the embers of racial resentment, nativism, xenophobia, and Christian theocratic ambitions.
What's more condescending than thinking you and you alone deserve marriage rights?
What's more condescending than thinking you should get to dictate women's reproductive choices?
What's more condescending than descendants of immigrants thinking that the gates should be closed behind them and immigration curtailed and recent immigrants ejected?
Anti-Trumpism isn't a failure any more than anti-Hitlerism was a failure. Trumpism is succeeding, that's for sure, but it's not a failure the people who oppose him. It's a moral failing of the people who support him.
13
best post I have read in thousands. beautiful writing and content.
A sobering, and to me, accurate assessment of where we stand. I see plenty of danger in the fall elections.
1
I keep hearing about how we, who despise this man, just don't get it.......Sadly, we do "get it" and are upset profoundly by the idea that this truly racist, mean-spirited, ignorant and nasty old man is the voice of 40% of America.
We used to embrace dignity, integrity, and honor. Now we have a larger portion of Americans who feel that perpetual "victimization" is an acceptable excuse for laziness and finger pointing. Somebody else is responsible for our failures...
I grew up in a family where you challenge your problems and deal with solutions. This incessant finger pointing and whining is the business of those who embrace weakness more than create new options.
That kind of mentality is frankly, truly, Un-American. We fight back and we fix things.We don't create villains to hide behind when we are failing. When we elected a man who makes that his method of leadership, we have literally thrown in the towel of the "Beacon of LIGHT" that the world used to admire.
Sometimes facing the mirror is supposed to make you get upset. I suggest that we are well past that time now.
7
If folks on the left could distance themselves from the fray and reenter it from the perspectdive of the 'right', what they would find is that they are hit in the face immediately insulted greviously for simply not hating Donald Trump. His supporters are painted with the same broad and dismissive brush as he is, violently and with prejudice. They are given virtually no hearing and if they are at all, they are quickly tagged, tarred and feathered. That is how it FEELS to be a Trump supporter - and THAT is the FAILURE of the Anti Trump movement. Do Liberals REALLY believe in negotiations instead of war??? Could have fooled me. These are the people you are going to now try and convince to vote YOUR way? Even the US ARMY knows that when you want to win, you go for "Hearts and Minds" - and leave the knifes for the real enemy.
Sorry, David. Racism and xenophobia got him in the door and all-corrupting power is keeping the GOP complicit in keeping him there.
8
re: "The main reason Trump won the presidency is that tens of millions of Americans rightly feel that their local economies are under attack, their communities are dissolving and their religious liberties are under threat...."
You forgot the part where they're constantly manipulated by the Faux News & Rightwing Propaganda Noise Network (and corresponding radio, internet outlets), the potential hacking of voting systems by Russians, the definite hacking of data on Facebook and elsewhere by Russians, the manipulation and promotion of false 'news' and propaganda by the Russians -- the help from republican James Comes who selectively informed the american public about Hillary while covering up the ongoing national security investigation of Donald Trump and his associates (and criminal network)....
Yeah, you left out a lot of context there David -- no surprise at your own selective, incomplete, simplistic analysis -- again.
You are getting beyond tiresome. Too.
.
3
"Over the past year, those of us in the anti-Trump camp have churned out billions of words critiquing the president. The point of this work is to expose the harm President Trump is doing, weaken his support and prevent him from doing worse. And by that standard, the anti-Trump movement is a failure." Right. A complete and utter failure. Because all the anti-Trumpers, liberals, and NYT columnists and readers are just talking to themselves. The problem is that the Democratic party does not know how to win elections. It has been going downhill for 50 years. It should work on that rather than writing 10,000 more columns and blogs cussing out Don Trump. I personally don't think that most Republicans are in favor of Don Trump. They are just waiting for him to serve out his term and leave. But they do like the fact that he drives the left nuts.
1
Dear Mr. Brooks,
You say, "The main reason Trump won the presidency is that tens of millions of Americans rightly feel that their local economies are under attack, their communities are dissolving and their religious liberties are under threat."
Can you please explain how anyone's religious liberties are threatened in this country? If you mean conservative Christians can't impose their beliefs on others, that is under threat, but they are perfectly free to believe as they choose.
3
Mr Brooks, I can sense the happiness you feel that anti Trumpism is not succeeding but you still like to claim you are in the anti Trump camp.
That is called Mr Brooks hypocracy. I don’t mind if you are for Trump, for whatever reasons (your call) but please don’t try to take a moral stand against Trump and yet write about why anti Trumpism failed.
Stop everything you are doing, Mr. Brooks and examine the state of public opinion polling. You quote as if it is written in stone. May I ask you to reflect on how data are now collected? Are these figures the result of calling people on their home phones? If so, think about that for a minute. Cell phones? Think about that, too. Mail? Random questions on a street corner? You tell me how you can write a column and be so certain of where every American stands on Trump. Garbage.
3
From my point of view, only Trump can be Trump. All these GOP wannabes that act like Trump go down in flames. My biggest fear is the GOP strategy predicting immediate impeachment under Dem control could work.
Please......vote in November
2
"Eighty-nine percent of Republicans now have a positive impression of the man."
Yes, but that's because the percentage of people who identify as Republicans is shrinking. When Republicans stop supporting Trump, they simultaneously stop calling themselves Republicans.
He's holding the same percentage of a shrinking pool.
4
Per usual, I find myself in pretty much a 50/50 split with David's thoughts. But one sentence really struck me because I believe it shows remarkable lack of awareness on David's part: "Trump understood the problems of large parts of America better than anyone else." WHY does Trump, who has the intellectual capacity of a narcissistic child and the constancy of a wind sock in a hurricane, yet again get credit for being some sort of sociological genius??? Trump has no belief system other than worshiping at the altar of Trump. Over and over I see no mention of the real mischief makers behind this naked emperor: Steve Bannon, Stephen Miller et al. They are the true Machiavellian puppet masters. Their cancerous, dystopian vision of the world, shared with the rising far right demagogues in Europe, is the true compass for this no-nothing.
5
Your problem is insisting that Himself isn't a "real Republican" while noting that 89% of self-identified 'Pubs approve of him. Bigly.
This is your party, sir. Own it or walk.
2
This current tribalism illuminates that we are no different now as a species then the Germans under Hitler and Italians under Mussolini and now all of the European countries that are slipping backwards to authoritarianism.
The good ol' USofA is becoming a place where people are willing to throw out generations of good stuff for this? I feel more stressed out in this environment than I have at any other time in my life; including the financial meltdown.
Becoming the enemy to the world and flexing our muscles to create fear to make deals is no way to move into the future. In the end this experiment will cause harm that will make America less great just like all of the other us against them authoritarian experiments did.
Those that are letting this happen and those that are part of this Trump movement are on the wrong side of history. But, like little kids who can't stop the anger train once it leaves the station will keep chugging along.
2
David,
Is being anti-Trump aimed at changing the views of his base or motivating the "Blue base" in upcoming elections?
The difference matters.
1
It's not the economy "stupid"....it is the Tax, stupid. Unfortunately the equity/hedge/private equity community have an unfair advantage. The Trump voters feel it but it is too complicated to express so Trump is able to play (with some paid help from Cambridge Analytica) the fingerprint, nationalism card used by many tyrants to gain and drive mob think.
The Constitution is doing its work, but of course more slowly than we would like. "The truth will out" .....they just have to try everything else first.... W. Churchill
2
Many of the commenters here sure sound like they are elitists who believe pro-Trumpers are inferior, stupid, and racist. Even if it's true that Trumpers are all those things, it doesn't move the ball forward much to keep pointing it out ad infinitum. Instead, Democrats need to start preaching their own brand of change and working to win elections. I believe and hope the Dems will sweep the midterms, but they better have a great plan in place or they won't win again in 2020. I'm a Dem so don't need convincing, but if we want to pull in some of the swing voters we need, it's probably not smart politics to run around talking about how dumb anyone who doesn't agree with us is. This is particularly important in red states like Texas, where some people vote Republican not because they agree with Trump, but because they work in agriculture or oil, etc. and believe that Republicans will serve their interests better than Democrats. I believe that Democrats will serve MY interests better than Republicans, so it works both ways. Find a middle ground instead of howling and hating.
3
Thank you for understanding so well. I don't like Trump but certainly understand why my 5 brothers support him. I see and have lived both sides of the story and so far the democrats are not helping themselves by whining and criticizing. Give me some true change; gun laws (stop allowing the NRA to buy you), fair immigration laws (stop letting foreigners buy their way into our country, give dreamers citizenship but stop illegal immigration) do away with carried interest, prosecute the Wall Street big wigs for bringing down our economy, provide the poverty stricken with decent living quarters and childcare but require participation in education or work of some sort (stop JUST throwing money at them). All these things are common sense but once again there is nothing to show that either side has common sense. Obama didn't prosecute the Wall Street folks like he said he would and Trump didn't stop carried interest like he said he would. Neither did trump stop allowing foreigners to buy their way into the country like he said he would. So much more..... but all in all they are all being bought by the rich and powerful.
3
#1: No one’s religious liberties have ever been under attack. When religions don’t like separation of Church and State, State is under attack.
#2: Trump is just still campaigning, not governing — and his supporters strangely do not know the difference, or care.
#3: The reason why the Reeps have caved to this travesty is because politics is inherently stupid. It will go stupid far more quickly and easily than it can go smart. Politics and governance, sadly, are two very different things, but they feed at the same trough.
#4: Trump critics are struggling mightily against normalization. They should address root social problems instead? You mean the ones burdening the hundreds of thousands of voters who supported Obama twice and then voted for Trump? Makes my head spin.
#5: Yes, globalization has its losers. And it does feel that it is out of control, but Reep policies — particularly deregulation of everything — is poison. You’d do better, David, arguing against Reep policy poison than trying to placate the demands of white entitlement. Oh, the irony!
I would love to read one Brooks column that excoriates the obvious dangers of The Religion of Deregulation. That’s no freedom at all, David. It’s chaos.
7
I agree Trump's crassness is not a winning issue. However, what is at stake isn't just trade policy or immigration policy or even the Supreme Court. What's at stake is American democracy and the rule of law. What must be defeated isn't Trump but a mentality of "victory at any cost" that seems to have taken over the GOP and is also seeping ominously into democratic party thinking.
2
Trump and his rallies were and are a three-ring circus, who doesn't love a three-ring circus. Although, after it is over, there are mounds of trash and debris. We will be lucky to get off that easily after Trump and his three-ring circus.
Human beings are variously stupid, naive, impressionable and highly vulnerable to mindless conspiracy theories. To counter that, it makes no logical sense (although viscerally it feels good) to attack the originator, Trump. The Dems must focus on the Obama-to-Trump voters, do an assessment of the problems that these people who voted for Trump hoped he would solve, then come up with simple, rational solutions with clean, simple explanations. Use charts and visuals to show where we are headed under Trump and how the Dems plan to fix that. Institute depression-era CCC-type programs to both rebuild our infrastructure and put low-skills people to work. If you can swing a pick and use a shovel in a mine, why not on a highway repair crew. Unload the anti-Trump rhetoric and start putting forth ideas and solutions that appeal to the independents and blue-to-red voters.
1
"For all the hype, the Mueller investigation looks less and less likely to fundamentally alter the course of the administration." That statement seems a bit premature at this point since that fat lady hasn't sung yet.
1
This is depressing, like a cancer with no effective treatment. 40 per cent of our nation and almost all Republicans in Congress admire a vile, narcissistic lying bully. These voters children and grandchildren will go on to emulate this behavior, as it obviously brings “success”. Is this really what America is about? Is this how we make America great? If so we are doomed as a nation. I hope Winston Churchill’s famous words are correct when he said, “America usually does the right thing after it has exhausted all other possibilities “. And we’re becoming exhausted.
1
You said it yourself. Trump is the Republican mainstream. This is the GOP. Now the strategy for so-called "anti-trumpers" such as yourself is to be nice and listen to these people. We have listened to them. They believe lie after lie. They ignore if not embrace Trump's naked bigotry. What are we supposed to say? I hear you?
As for Christian's having their liberty taken away from them, what exactly is that liberty? The liberty to discriminate based on their own dislikes and interpretations? I'm quite sure they would balk at Muslims codifying their interpretations of the Word into law.
This let's coddle the ignorant and the fearful because they worship a serial liar, adulterer, and potential traitor is getting nauseating. We will not change their minds because they live in their own Fox created, Infowars fueled world.
"Trump and Trumpism will continue to dominate" as long as people with a forum, who claim to be against Trump, keeping telling them they have legitimate beefs when they don't.
“The main reason Trump won the presidency is that tens of millions of Americans rightly feel that their local economies are under attack, their communities are dissolving and their religious liberties are under threat. ”
Oops, you revealed your true self.
I don't agree with the main thesis!
Anti- Trumpism is energizing the fence sitters and the liberals who didn't think their vote was necessary or were too lazy or busy to vote!!
Time for you 11% of putative "anti-Trump" Republicans to do something besides sitting on your hands complaining that it's we Democrats fault.
1
I am so tired of the condescending advice that I am making a mistake by telling the truth about Trump and his supporters. Though pretending devils aren't devils may be Mr. Brooks' idea of democracy, I will continue to argue that common decency and honesty must be heard. I will not be silenced or frightened by lack of courage.
3
As President Obama correctly said: "Don't boo, vote."
3
I still can see the deliberate hysterical responses of #45 and republican party hacks
to keep this guessing game going. No matter how destructive it is.
I cannot stand for the Democratic Party who stole the election from Bernie who can stand up to anyone, anytime. The Dems blew it. Too bad for all of us. I am not a democrat, or republican. This is tough for all of us to live with. No security any more.
2
There is no failure of current and ongoing anti-Trump sentiments. Our weapon is The Vote, and our opportunity takes time, but November 2018 is fast approaching, and the blue wave is looking more like a tsunami.
The essential point of this essay is that the attacks of the anti-Trumpers have not succeeded in reducing his support. It seems to me, however, that these "attacks" amount to no more than simply telling the truth about the president. Indeed, his cult-like supporters consider it an attack to even report the things he says and tweets because they are regularly false. What then, Mr. Brooks, is the alternative to telling the truth about Trump? Surely, you do not want us to embrace Trump's "alternative facts." Rather, you seem to be suggesting that we appeal to Trump's supporters by offering solutions to their problems that are not racist, nativist, and simplistic. I hope that you are correct that such an approach can work, but I have my doubts. History shows how difficult it is to defeat demagogues who scapegoat minority groups, bully their perceived enemies, and falsely portray themselves as champions of he people. We now have one in America. That is the most important truth that we must never stop telling.
3
So many posts are taking such offense to the "Americans rightly feel..." phrase and losing perspective.
Annoying when people get hung up on one thing and ignore the point of the article, which in this case is NOT about why Trump won, but why the anti-Trump movement has been so ineffective.
Let's keep our eye on the ball and make comments that are relevant to the main ideas of the column.
Thomas Edsell’s article “The Contract with Authoritarianism” is all that’s needed to understand why the efforts of the Anti-Trumpers have had no impact on the minds of Trump voters. It’s required reading in my mind. And those who get it are those who understand the problem.
The Contract With Authoritarianism
https://nyti.ms/2GwDhcWhttps://nyti.ms/2GwDhcW
2
And, David, you might give Pres. Trump some credit sometimes for good things he has done. That might help.
1
Like what, exactly?
Maybe we just shouldn't care about the people who are too Republican, too tax cut happy, too prejudiced or sexist or racist to even understand why Trump's tweet are offensive and unfair to so many people. How about the 60% just go out and vote !!
43% cannot win an election in which large numbers of people vote .. and I think we have ample evidence now for poor, brown, LGBQT, as well as standard center to left voters to go to the polls and vote out Congress and then Trump. Rather than being a counterweight to possible radical Democratic ideas, it turns out that Republican ideas are really radical and that our Rep congressman will support anything from tax cuts to the wealthy, to SALT tax decreases, to letting DACA people be deported, to stealing a supreme court justice seat for an underqualified company man, to approving clearly incompetent and/or mission hostile cabinet and agency directors, to letting trump get away with far too much (who knows, maybe he would improve if he had to or if he wasn't guaranteed freedom from anything from public outcry to possible criminal charges)
President Donald Trump’s approval ratings dipped to new historic lows in a 50-state approval tracker poll conducted over the month of March.
A Morning Consult poll found Trump’s approval among registered voters now stands at just 41 percent, compared to a 54 percent disapproval rating.
1
One way I decide if an opinion writer should be worth reading is whether they distort or cherry pick from their references.
Brooks is a good example here. Edsall's pieces is highly informative and interesting, and Brooks makes it sound like the elite academics are merely insulting conservatives. Rubbish. I've even heard one of the academics discuss these findings at length on the radio and he was anything but dismissive of conservative voters: In fact to me he seemed very supportive of their feelings/concerns.
Also, the way Brooks calls Trump voters seeking transformative change. Well, yeah, back to the good old days. I don't think that's 'transformative' it is simply reactionary. And part of it was a racist reaction against Obama.
2
Their "religious liberties" are threatened ? Really ? Drive through most states and there's is a church every 100 feet. Its not their religious liberties that are being threatened, It's their religious bigotry against those who aren't "like them" that is being exposed and rightly legislated against.
6
The religious liberties under threat are simply the right to refuse to follow the law when it conflicts with one's superstitious wrong-headed ideas like the right to discriminate against gays or the right to refuse to prescribe abortificants. Rest assured it always involves impeding the rights of others and never, ever involves the right to practice religion.
'Just calling to ask if we can carry out weekly errands later today because I have to go to the doctor. Nothing serious just high blood pressure, continues my acquaintance, sounding sheepish and apologetic'.
Telling this American, a die-hard Republican, that we should postpone, that we need him, that his wife and Labrador, the cat here need him, and that nobody is going to starve in this household does not serve as a deterrent.
While some of us can still afford to pay for the water bill and life essentials, we can leave our religious views to the safety of our souls.
Brooks has been warning us along that Trump is symptomatic of a Culture War, the growing pains of a young Nation with an affinity for violence on the screen, keeping the price of popcorn down and abusing 'Freedom'. Freedom to help those who ask, our farmers in trouble, our States, The Heartland of our Country, and educate our children, while having them teach us something new.
'The American Spring March' to take place. We can do it, if we care. The Nation to unite and say 'No' to being controlled by poor lost Trump and this Government, one up in the air and out-of-control, while Chaos takes the lead, and a show of Courage, Ardor, Nobility, Direction and Order are needed Now; The 'Can-Do' it Policy for the sake of You, Thee and All in The Land of The once Free.
"A Kick in The Pants" about Fascism comes to mind and we have seen a preview here. Let us keep moving and leave Trump & Co. behind.
1
The number one "social problem" that motivates me to support Trump is the continued influence of people who ignore obvious truths, and oppose Trump because he shines a spotlight on these truths.
What are some of these obvious truths? One is that low-skilled, hard-to-assimilate immigrants and mass illegal immigration make us weaker as a nation in a world that places a premium on knowledge based work.
A related one is that border security should be a higher priority than trying to spread democracy in the stone-aged Middle East.
Another truth that anti-Trumpers seem particularly rabid about denying is that members of different racial groups commit crime at different rates. To the extent that a particular racial group has a mass incarceration problem, that same group has a problem with committing more crime. It's just a fact.
Another truth, a less offensive one perhaps, is that free markets contribute to freer, wealthier, and more just societies than ones obsessed with government redistribution and identity politics.
Now, along comes Trump. He not only states these truths, but he governs in line with them too. The result? A near drop off in the stagnation and malaise that afflicted us throughout the low-growth Obama years, and a society that's materially better off and more confident.
Why do so many deny these obvious truths? Because they're not as smart or as elite as they think they are. Most are middle-brow conformists, and so of course Trump offends them.
1
Many of these comments prove Mr. Brooks's point. If Democrats think that they can win at the polls by characterizing the "right" as delusional, hysterical, and maniacal, well, how did that work for Democrats in 2016?
1
Mr. Brooks, did you read Frank Bruni's column today, which accompanies yours? Assuming you've done so by now, can you possibly, realistically still believe what you wrote today? Can you really sit there and say, "attacks" by "Democratic anti-Trumpers" have "only served to entrench Trumpism on the right," knowing that many Republicans appear to be blind to what's going with their leader, right in front of their eyes? Why do you blame Democrats when the blame, rightly, belongs squarely on those who have long supported Trump or have converted in recent months?
1
The only way to make credible Brooks' statement that religious liberties are under assault in America is to include within the definition of religious liberty the right to engage in discrimination against racial and ethnic minorities, gays and transgender people, even women.
Religious liberty in America is not under assault by any rational or legal standard, or any set of credible facts, but the hard right who consider themselves part of the religious lobby against anything progressive, liberal, or fair has tried to make Americans believe that with anecdotes about bakers who won't bake for gay weddings.
Quit trying to justify a movement that revels in its prejudices and then seeks approval from the law to support giving effect to them.
2
Trump has more power than ever? It seems a little premature to judge the success of anti-Trumpism. In this paper and others, it has been well-documented that anti-Trumpism seems to be mobilizing tremendous enthusiasm outside the core constituency and GOP loyalists.
3
David Brooks fails to mention the repeated failures of candidates in red states and districts, which had previously voted overwhelmingly for Trump, and whom Trump actively campaigned for. I think that in order for Mr. Brooks argument to be intellectually coherent, he needs to address this fact. Looking at the numbers of voters who clearly switched sides in those elections does not equal continuing and unwavering support.
2
Dvid:
It is interesting to note that first move from Democrats to republicans came when President Johnson signed the Civil Rights bill - suddenly all the democrats in the south became repulicans and that has been the base of the Republican party. That is also supported by the falwell-Roberts Christian evangelical movement - from Hmanintarian tolerant Christianity to fundamentalist anti-tolerant Chrstamly that keeps findng out new Christian doctrines to make reactionary (they are not conserving Christian teachings but radical, almost Jihadist approach to Christianity) Christians into Republicans. So is that the new Republican party? A new flag-waving, racist (military power to dominate the people they don't like invoking the name of God an and money-grabbing rich fiscal trants like Mercers and Kochs?
3
I was with Mr. Brooks until the penultimate paragraph: "Focus instead on the social problems that gave rise to Trumpism." Which problems, David, and how? There should be material for a few more columns in answers to those questions.
Trump's supporters are mainly people who recoil from what is perceived as politically correct agitprop that has become coincident with "liberalism". The notion - not dispelled by Obama's terms - that certain segments of the population are preferred to others.
1
David, how do I say this nicely...this isn’t a game. This is about our nation’s last line of defense to protect us from a self serving criminal in the White House. That last line is the Law Dogs and I hope they can prove our constitution works.
Being change-averse and prioritizing security over novelty is not a case of psychological inferiority. It's a regular personality type.
Trump supporters did not vote for someone who understands their pain and will be their champion against the coastal/liberal/condescending hoards/wall street...they were conned, duped, lied to and otherwise manipulated. They voted for someone who represents the very business interests that caused their economic pain, someone whose immoral acts are exactly the one they claim to fear. That's the argument you need to make.
If they refuse to see it, there's little you can do to convince people living under such delusions. The rest of the country, and the world, can't afford too wait until they wake up.
5
Put me in the camp of readers who sometimes read David Brooks with admiration for his intelligence and insight and other times shake my head in dismay. Right now, after just having read this Brooks op-ed on behalf of the minority within a minority that supported Trump, I see David Brooks as a smart guy who just can't bring himself to examine the ugly racist roots and sense of privilege that Trump's supporters brought to the 2016 election and the days that followed it.
5
Mr. Brooks, I sometimes agree with you, sometimes disagree but always appreciate your columns. This time I have to disagree with your statement of "Their religious liberties under attack". Surely, you don't buy into that myth? No one is prohibited from practicing their religion here. And "liberty" does not mean stomping on the rights of others such as the LGBT community.
8
David, the reason Trump won the election may be that he had help from a foreign country. Trump is a terrible president but his base loves him precisely for that. You cannot argue against stupidity (yes, I am condescending)
6
Point taken. Politicians need to offer an 'alternative' vision to Trump, not just restating how 'bad' Trump is over and over.
2
Butter emails.
David Brooks—during the election you demonized Clinton and you normalized Trump.
4
Those whom the Gods would destroy they first make mad.
2
I like David Brooks and appreciate his thoughts. Always read him. However, as has been stated previously here, there is no danger to religious liberty in the offing. The only possible threat to it is for Muslims, and that is coming from Christians.
Many fundamentalist Christians have conflated the idea of America with the idea of their religion, and it is both dangerous and supremely wrong.
As my late father-in-law used to say, “If you ever have to choose between the Christians and the Lions, take the Lions.”
4
In some ways, Brooks analysis oversimplifies things, or fails to scratch the surface on some assumptions.
For example:
"Trump supporters voted for the man precisely because they wanted transformational change"
While it may be true that some people voted for Trump because they wanted transformational change, to "drain the swamp" and bring a non-politician who supposedly speaks his mind to Washington to upset the status quo, think for a minute about *why* they wanted that.
For many, I suspect it's because they wanted change in Washington and elsewhere so that *their* way of life could continue unchanged. Trump promised them he would bring back their old jobs, and take steps to keep all those pesky newcomers from changing the landscape around them.
So, while these voters may have been thirsty for change, it was only for change to *someone else* so that they and their way of life could continue unchanged, or be restored to how it was in years, decades past.
As far as all the ways that Brooks described "anti-Trumpism" as failing, one only need look to all the recent local and state elections to realize that there is a massive pushback to Trump and his policies. So while some may be doubling down, some candidates may be becoming more Trump-like, the majority of voters are rejecting that extreme nationalism, bigotry, hypocracy and harmful policies that are the hallmark of Trump and his cronies and wanna-be's.
2
"Trump supporters voted for the man precisely because they wanted transformational change." Nope. They voted for Trump because of their visceral aversion to the transformational changes Obama was implementing.
8
The Republicans know that, to turn their backs on him means to turn their backs on the future of their party. And, we can't have that, now, can we?
2
David, Donald may have a 40-ish percent approval rating BUT....SIXTY percent of us, DISAPPROVE!
He may have the Republicans support, but not the support of Independents and Democrats, etc.!
No matter, how you spin it, sir, fact is that Donald is destroying conservatism.
5
I'm not sure why it's a surprise to Mr. Brooks that Republicans support the President. The GOP has been race-baiting, lying about their policies and their probable implications for decades. They have been happily violating institutional and social norms with no pushback from their voters - in fact, with their enthusiastic support.
Democracy is hard to keep. In the absence of an informed electorate (and not one purposely misinformed, as Fox viewers are), we will get the government we deserve, and the elites (corporations and the very wealthy) desire.
The election of an obvious fraud as President may have a good effect - it's encouraged me and many like me to get off the sidelines and work to increase the franchise, confront lies and work to create a more civil society.
2
From the movie, The American President (1995)
Andrew Shepherd: Whatever your particular problem is, I assure you Bob Rumson is not the least bit interested in solving it. He's interested in two things and two things only: making you afraid of it and telling you who's to blame for it. That, ladies and gentlemen, is how you win elections.
Sure is. And if you don't have a problem that Trump can make you afraid of, he invents one: rapist immigrants, disrespect for the flag, religious persecution, healthcare abuse, fake news, the free press is your enemy. Pick the victimization of your choice and he'll tell you why you should be afraid of it and whom to blame for it. (Anyone and everyone but him.)
Another quote from the same movie.
Andrew Shepherd: I can tell you without hesitation: Being President of the country is entirely about character.
Right again, and this presidency is entirely about bad character and bad characters. Those who don't care about bad character in favor of getting their problems solved usually end up with only the bad character and no problems solved and often even more problems that we should all be genuinely afraid of, the demise of our democracy, the end of the rule of law, and nuclear war.
The one thing I agree with in this article is that so far the billions of words have not appeared to have had an effect yet, but they still must never stop being said. It's the cumulative effect that counts sometimes.
2
This is correct enough to just say, "You're right, David." Don't quibble over the exceptions you might take to one point or another. The opposition needs leadership that says 'come together in opposing the direction of the country.' Tune out the drone of 'Trump is a bad guy' and turn out to push back on the anti-American agenda that is threatening our way of life.
Mr. Brooks, don't blame this on Democratic anti-trumpers. Any entrenchment that occurs on the right is their own delusion, hysteria, and mania...blame it on the right for allowing dog whistles, misinformation, and myth to drum up anti-left hysteria and allow it to fester for so long. It is the faustian bargain of the GOP coming home to roost and the left are the victims. The left's attacks speak the truth and are necessary, and I think they must happen and will be effective. Do not normalize; trump is not normal and he is the fault of the complicit GOP and the Democratic "centrists" who still think that a grand bargain is possible.
361
We need a more insightful analysis than "We are right and they are wrong".
10
I would like to "recommend" this post a few dozen times. Mr. Brooks, it sounds like you and I don't read the same newspaper, even though you write a column for it.
8
Mr. Brooks’s assessment is totally depressing and, I fear, totally accurate.
1
They may be right in seeing their communities as under assault. But they picked the wrong scapegoats to blame. The problem is with the billionaire class, which is to say the people Trump is carrying water for. If the Trumpies agreed with that, they'd be on the left, and Democrats would welcome them with open arms.
But no, they've got to pick on the brown people and the gays, and give the billionaires a pass. We can't let that stand.
2
"As late as 2015, Republican voters overwhelmingly supported free trade. Now they overwhelmingly oppose it. The shift didn’t happen because of some mass reappraisal of the evidence" I disagree. Particularly with regard to China trade, over the last several years, more and more Americans recognize that a hollowed-out manufacturing economy is a disaster, and led directly to the opioid problem. They now see trade with China as a bad deal, and are speaking up about it and supporting Trump's pushback.
The country is sliding into the abyss and about half the people believe is the right thing now, while the other half watch in horror. The major issue in this rebellion by millions supporting someone like trump is the loss of hope and belief that things will not get better for them. They see taking out Confederate statues as a sign of things gone wrong. There was a civil war fought for economic reasons and the side benefit was the emancipation of people living in slavery. It is always true that the victor gets to write the story that shows his side in a good light. This half of people see the eradication of prayer in schools and the pledge of allegiance as more examples of their marginalization. We need candidates for public office that are willing to work for economic equality for urban and rural people. Candidates with ideas on how to revitalize rust belt cities decaying for decades. We need candidates to reestablish people's trust in the government and its public officers. Corruption and greed are rampant and it only makes Americans distrust anyone, from either party, in government. Maybe term limits is the answer to the greed and power grabbing. But we all need to step back at this time of national chaos and look for solutions. We need to get involved in our civic duties and make government officials more accountable. Now, they see their public service as a pass to power, luxury, and excess.
1
The large part of America that David says Trump understands so well have had Republican legislators, local, state and federal, for years ~ who have done nothing, zip, nada, to help those people improve their lives. Democrats understand the reality of their situation and tell the truth; the Rs simply obfuscate, lie and flame the tensions with stories of 'other-ism'; someone else created your problems. There's truth and reality out there ~ if you pay attention and work to find it.
4
Does Brooks conveniently forget the Republican convention and Trump's speech - an extravaganza of fear and hate. How can he still defend these "misunderstood" Trump supporters? Brooks remains a Republican apologist, through and through. He is part of the problem, and has contributed to the abominal situation we are in.
5
on the mark mr brooks! never more so....now, how to explain your (in the wider sense) failure to see this from the first?...you can't say that no one knew that no one told you (never mind that you lot are supposed to be the "tellers"), check the comments on your own pieces, and the rest of your op eddies, the warning is there, again and again...you didn't have to wait for the italians to tell you to lay off the personal attack, the ad hominum, that has been the sum of your rage-fueled and, so, reason-blind tantrum...
cogent development of critical evaluation of policy on, as you say, "trade, immigration, entitlement reform, spending, foreign policy, race relations..." would have been better, refuting trump rather than merely trying to "hinder" or "dislodge" him, (he's "unhinderable" and certainly
"undislodgeable" as anyone in new york who's been paying attention over the last half century knows).
so, "basta" (more italian advice) lose the petulance, accept the responsibility, (yes we did lose because our leadership and its press boosters were past smug in condescending to voters and
dismissing trump) and get busy
..."Focus instead on the social problems that gave rise to Trumpism."
sad isn't it, that, "That is the advice we anti-Trumpers still need to learn"...how far past duh? is that?
"Trump understood the problems of large parts of America better than anyone else. "
Trump found a way to make millions of people BELIEVE that he understood the problems of large parts of America better than anyone else.
There, I fixed it for you.
6
"The main reason Trump won the presidency is that tens of millions of Americans RIGHTLY [my capitalization-RHE] feel that . . . their religious liberties are under threat."
From who, Mr. Brooks?
The only threat I see to the religious "liberties" of tens of millions of Americans is that for once, they don't get to indulge in their hatreds, prejudices, ignorance and fear, and label that "Christianity," and they're actually being called upon to act like real Christians: Practicing the Golden Rule, loving thy neighbor, judging not, etc. To say nothing of having to actually read and understand the Declaration of Independence ("inalienable rights . . . life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness), and the Constitution.
To the contrary of their paranoia (and your glib and unfounded assertions, Mr. Brooks. "Rightly" feel threatened religiously? I double dare you to actually make a solid, critically reasoned argument to support yourself. Seriously, Mr. Brooks.), millions more non-Christians, including myself, would LOVE to live in a truly Christian country.
We just can't seem to find that country. It certainly doesn't seem to lie between Canada and Mexico.
2
Thank you once again David Brooks for your valuable insight!
I'm so glad you warned your readers during the campaign what a grifter and con-artist this candidate was.......
Oh, wait a minute- you didn't!
You defended him then and now you continue to defend the clueless working class who voted for him.
4
David Brooks: don’t conflate never-trumpers with Democrats. trump seized your party because you have nothing to offer. Recall Romney lost. And please stop with the ‘condensation’ trope.
3
Sorry David, you lost me at “those of us in the anti-Trump camp...”
This "Tribal orthodoxy" resembles a Cult following...
and just as dangerous.
1
So 40% of Americans love loud mouthed over-confident leaders, big talking showmen, who are short on facts and long on promises. The only thing that's surprising is that it's ONLY 40%. If anything you do ensures that it stays at 40% then you're doing very well, as the natural tendency is for this kind of support to feed on itself and grow - so you're running to stand still, which is pretty good given what you're up against.
One thing Americans will not tolerate is leaders who lie and break the law. Opposition should focus on just 1 or 2 cases of this and blow them up out of proportion and ignore everything else that he does that is reprehensible. Don't get distracted with every new tweet, doing that you're just like a dog chasing after every rabbit that pops its head out of its hole: you'll never catch your prey.
1
"Voters are willing to put up with a lot of nonsense..." Nonsense?? Try high crimes and misdemeaners, Mr. Brooks...
2
Mr. Brooks, you finally got it right.
In the 1990s Republicans and Democrats granted trade favors to China. China then played us for a fool. This is the main reason for Trumpism. It's not "tribalism." It's that the people correctly identified that both parties served the interests of global capitalism, not the American people's interests.
1
You say, '...focus on the social problems..' Yes, you are right.
Democrats need to have simple graphs (for the simple, lazy citizens they're trying to win over as voters). Show how money, income, property and power have concentrated. Show what the last tax cut did for the wealthy, including Trump. Show how workers' wages have been in decline, relatively, since Reagan. Simple. Keep it simple, like Trump. So many of us are quite terrible citizens and unlikely to change soon.
I'm not 'anti-Trump' as much as 'pro-America', 'pro-equality' and 'pro-environment'. This madman of a President is the worst we could possibly come up with. Our bad.
Yes, our bad. Again, I remind us that the undemocratic electoral college gave us Bush and Trump, although Gore and Clinton beat them by millions of votes. Ah, and we're just not up to changing that. Too hard. Don't care. So, with the help of Russians and Ukrainians and the right-wing dirty tricksters, we have the Republican that cuts his own taxes and raises the deficit to a trillion dollars. The Republicans.
So, speak clear and simple. America is dumb. Dumb, dumb. Workers voting for a billionaire. Lazy, anti-Americans with no real sense or shame at what they've done to us and this sacred world.
1
There was a poll that asked Republicans where they fit into the economic success percentile of the country. Something like 42% think they are in the top 1%. Stupid is, stupid does. Look at Kansas, look everywhere where Republicans run everything and ask where is the positive outcome? Mississippi, Nope. Alabama, Nope. Shall I go on? Mr. Brooks, the Republican party is doomed because it lost its integrity, and it's supporters have lost their principles, and that will show itself this fall in terms outcomes. From Alabama to Pennsylvania, you will see the beginning of the end. And rightfully so.
“The main reason Trump won the presidency is that tens of millions of Americans rightly feel that their local economies are under attack, their communities are dissolving and their religious liberties are under threat”
Tens of millions feel that local economies are under attack because they have been indoctrinated to “feel” that and are exploited. That’s what Russia, and Cambridge Analytica recognized as America’s vulnerability: our feelings. They had ample help from FOX News, Sinclair, the National Enquirer all of which spread RT and Russian propaganda, at times verbatim.
“Communities are dissolving” What communities? Does Brooks mean their privileges, white male privileges are dissolving?
“Religious liberties under threat”Really? Does Brooks mean white male supremacist religious privileges? Consider how hypocritical it is for religious groups to seek to establish their beliefs and trample of the liberties of all women.
David Brooks is creating a narrative that spells defeat for Trump opponents and salvation for the GOP. Distraction, complication misdirection are the tools of propagandists. Is Brooks using these methods to support the GOP and Trump?
2
It is very hard to argue with a person who has only one souce news or in the case of the right Fox propaganda. This puts America on a path to self destruction.
2
"Voters are willing to put up with a lot of nonsense for a president they think is basically on their side." 60% of voters are not willing to put up with this bad behavior. A significant per cent of this group seek premature impeachment. The others are aghast at his sexual predatory habits, ignorance of American history and democratic traditions, finding good people among the neo-Nazis and white supremists, and disrespect for the rule of law. Evidence of their disfavor can be seen in their marches and special election votes. All said, I agree ad hominem arguments will not defeat 45. Focus on both the social problems that gave rise to 45 and the problems needlessly created by 45. Bring democracy back to America again.
1
Trump is a demagogue. He appeals to bigotry, hatred, fear and self interest. He NEVER enhances efforts of communities to achieve freedom and liberty where concern for one another is collaboratively pursued. The financially elite buy politicians and a political party to do their bidding to reduce tax liabilities while the budget of the largest military in the history of humanity has been even further bloated leaving by the roadside the environment and health care for the many as the deficit is ignored preparing the way for radical cuts in Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid. Racism and fanning the flames of the antiabortionists offers cover. Christ sought to help the "least of us" but there is no support for Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security, safe streets and stable communities.Trump is a clever psychopath who exploits bigotry but also betrays friends and family for his self indulgence as he discards women and fans bigotry. How is that support for Christian values? His game plan is quite simple. Like Hitler, Trump blames the hated 'other' for our ills and then denounces and bans them. We must speak truth. Expose Trump's duplicity, demagoguery as a clear and present danger to democracy. The most startling current political reality is that Michael Avenatti, a porn star's attorney, is at the forefront of confronting Trump and his cynical, dishonest even criminal exploitation of women. Can we leave our defense of democracy to him? How bizarre and depraved have we become?
1
David - you can be a "Never Trumper" until you are blue in the face. If you vote Republican it doesn't matter in the least! The ONLY way to be "anti Trump" is to vote Democratic in November 2018! Let me hear you say it, David, "You are going to vote for a Democrat in November." Otherwise, you are as bad as the rest of the Republicans who call this man our President. You can't have it both ways. You are either against Trump or you are part of the problem. Churning out "billions of words" is only your vain attempt to south your own conscience for voting for this madman. Mr. Brooks... time to put your pen down.
1
This is another example of what I call "Brooksing It."
Raising an interesting and timely issue, and getting the analysis so backwards, due to inherent bias and wishful thinking, that is leaves one scratching one's head asking, "Is it me?...No, no its him." (A la' Martin Short in the old SNL skits.)
Example; David writes, "The main reason Trump won the presidency is that tens of millions of Americans rightly feel that their local economies are under attack, their communities are dissolving and their religious liberties are under threat."
Rubbish. Trump is a moron. He is a liar (proven over again). He had no strategy. No policy. He ascended based on the inherent racism of the USA. It really is that simple. He offered no concrete policy, no action (save the wall ... failed there). But he has inflamed racial division, and resentment politics. Nothing he has done has or will help the middle class. He lied to voters - as he's lied to financiers, bankers, shareholders, and builders (and wives) over his entire, born-into-riches life.
That this elite pretends to "stand up for" the average joe is one of the greatest political con jobs in a century.
2
ELITISM FOR ALL
Two words that can never be written next to each other in this order: “Trump understood.” He does not understand; he reacts. He does not consider; he grabs. And so he grabs at understanding but is never interested in the actual understanding.
Trump supporters do not want to be condescended to. This is understandable. But the equation runs in both directions. If you do not want to be condescended to, do not do things worthy of condescension. If you believe that Barack Obama is a secret Muslim, that is a racist belief worthy of disdain. If you believe that George W. Bush secretly orchestrated 9-11, that is conspiracy theory worthy of disdain. If you believe that the entire justice department is a deep state out to bring down one man, Donald Trump, rather than that one man—a proven liar, cheater, fraudster, bankrupter, and thief—is a worthy target of investigation, that is a comic book view of reality worthy of disdain. If you believe that reality is fake news and fake news is reality, that is a six-year-old emotion worthy of disdain. If you believe that ignorance for all is better than elitism for all, that is a danger to the country worthy of disdain.
Quit giving elitism a bad name. Another word for it is self-improvement. It is available to everyone. Even a Trump supporter. All you have to do is reach for it.
That's how you Make America Great Again.
6
The only strategy that works with bullies is, “ignore the bully.” Let’s go “Trump-free.” Stop writing about him. Stop speaking about him. But report him to the legislative and judicial branches of government. And stay true to the principles of democracy to defend our common human dignity.
1
Why do you say thu, with the GOP publicly braced to lose both chambers of Congress, and mostly because of public revulsion to Trump's words, deeds, and persona? So what if his so called base is willing to follow their Captain Ahab? They needed millions of additional and ambivalent voters to put him at the helm, and those voters want their ship back, and they will be glad to let him and his base go chase their whale to the muddy bottom of the sea. Unlike the Pequod, this ship won't sink.
1
"an epic attempt to offend 40 percent of our fellow citizens by reducing them to psychological inferiors."
What explains it then?
Imagine you are flying first class in a plane and everything is great, but the people in coach are jammed in together and there's no service and the bathrooms haven't been cleaned. The pilot can no longer fly the plane, and the passengers have to select either a pilot from first class or a 5-year old from coach to fly the plane. They have a vote and the 5-year old wins.
What do you think about the people who voted for the 5-year old? I get that Trump isn't a 5-year old, but the most powerful country on earth isn't a plane either.
2
How are the Trumpist's religious liberties under attack? If you mean taking prayer out of schools, forcing kids of all religions to pray to a Christian god violates their religious liberties.
1
Wow, to transition from being reviled by Trump to developing a desperate, parasitic relationship. How the GOP members have fallen.
Who is it that believes "rightly so" that their religious liberties are under threat? The majority of Trump supporters, self-identified Christians? (who in actuality, are very un Christ-like people if they support Trump and his views). In saying "rightly so," you're giving validity to what are simply "perceived" threats to THEIR idea of religious liberties (their concept of Christianity being based on intolerance and exclusion). The real folks who are under this threat are any other religions or non believers BUT the Christians. Fear, intolerance, and lack of education have made many people shoot themselves in the foot, supporting a government that obviously cares more for the rich than individuals suffering or need of decent wages. For all their hatred of liberals, time and time again it is the liberal democrats that actually created and support legislation to actually make a difference in the everyday lives of these people. Unfortunately Trump supporters have chosen ideologies like nationalistic xenophobia and racism to be more important than meaningful substantive improvement of their own personal situations. (i.e. supporting a wall with Mexico when in actuality, what positive change would that make to their wages or quality of life in any near future?) It's all based on perceptions, not fact. So much like Nazi Germany it's terrifying.
3
Brooks is a wolf in sheep's clothing despite his self -labeling as 'Anti-Trump.' And his byline is 'Waco', a hotbed of Trumpism.
1
45 is a liar at such an amazing rate that to this day I do not understand how he is still president. Everyday someone shows us that what he said is a bold face lie. Most of the time it is easy to know he is lying. How is this Okay in any way shape or form.
2
Yes, make a better case, now that we have the history of Trump trying to take away healthcare, give giant tax breaks to the rich, emasculate the EPA, and NOAA, cripple the economy with a trade war, and if I'm guessing right, start another stupid war. It should be easy to make the case, not just against Trump, but the Republican party. The new slogan might be, "Bait and Switch, the Party of the Rich." If not, the jury is back with the verdict: we are now too stupid to run a real Democracy.
2
David Brooks you r partly to blame for our trumpian demise.
Along with ? Other misguided republicans and other voters with a grudge against nonwhite and white social justice warriors.
Many trumpets wont even be voting again. Many progressives will vote .
Unless trumpian clown posies cause martial law and WW3 and a real economic depression.
How exactly do you turn the tide against Trump when the vast majority of his supporters deliberately voted against their own self-interests?: Women of the #MeToo movement voted for a man who has admittedly sexually assaulted and harassed; Latinos voted for a man who labelled them rapists and drug dealers; Poor people voted for a billionaire who has put hundreds of Americans out of work by bankrupting his companies that employed them; Jewish people voted for a man who failed to denounce white supremacists who demonstratively loathe them; Muslims voted for a man threatening to deport and bar their entry; and Black people voted for a man who motivated supporters at a rally to physically attack a Black woman exercising her right to free speech. On top of all this, they voted a man with absolutely zero political experience into the highest political office in the land.
Then, as if it couldn't get more absurd, most of these Trump supporters fully defend their decision. This is the new definition of insanity.
1
Voters are willing to put up with a lot of nonsense for a president they think is basically on their side.
David, can you really characterize what Trump is doing as "nonsense?" Trump
is not foolish. He is dangerous, a psychopath who,according to you, has the
following of 40% of Americans. Our sanity,
as liberals and maybe old time Republicans, rests in our inability to fathom
or believe what you are saying. 40%???
1
Its as easy as limiting immigration. Do that, and you are back in the game
The inevitability of Trump? I disagree. Trump will be defeated and his base will have opportunities, and be encouraged, to engage in constructive dialogue. His base will have their day in court as will their president. The republican party and their financial supporters will also have the opportunity to defend themselves. This is how a society based on the rule of law works. And if we as a society do not take this opportunity to allow our system to fix itself we are all, as Rex Tillerson so succinctly put it, "morons".
1
"Religious liberties under threat" you mean gay marriage? What a joke, anybody who thinks the religious movement backing Trump doesn't see the bigger storm coming against their hypocrisy is full of it. Trump die-hards hate the moochers WHICH is why a far-left message doesn't get it done against Trump.
Agree that we need to solve our social problems. But that is not enough. Have you ever read Peck’s People of the Lie? If I recall it correctly, it states that there are a few people who are intrinsically evil. When one confronts a person who is intrinsically evil, one must respond differently, be engaged differently, etc. I think Trump is intrinsically evil. I don’t know why supporters don’t see that. I have friends who voted for Trump. I don’t understand how many of his statements and actions weren’t disqualifying. They were objectively evil. (Recall mockery of disabled person). It is difficult to name a person as evil, but Trump is evil. He cares about no one but himself. We have to fight that — as well as propose effective policies. We need Paul Ryan and Mitch McConnell to say: Enough. And, we need you to continue to say: Mr. President, you are lying and hurting people — everywhere. Enough!!!
1
I have always found David Brook's articles to be somewhat deceptive and devious to support his right-wing biases. This article again firms my feelings.
2
Trump won by creating fear, hatred, and more fear. Seems simple to me. He is preying on the simple amygdalas in simple brains. It is how tyrants operate. Blaming people who don't look like you for your shortcomings and failures is a long human tradition.
1
Excellent article.
Adding my bottom line:
42% of us are predisposed to more authoritarian/tribal/fearful/narrowly directed thinking than the other 58% of us. This is the psychological physics of our human nature.
I am NOT saying this 42% as a whole is less smart, less accomplished, less nice, less helpful, less likeable individually than the 58%. Nor am I saying that this 42% does not have some important valid concerns and points.
What I am saying is that they will abandon rationality or twist their thoughts to satisfy their ideology. Worse they will gravitate to authoritarian principles, solutions, and effects more than the 58%.
I know this is dangerous to say because it can be misinterpreted as demonizing that 42% as people - but I am not: the fact is that 42% in 1930s - many of which WERE VERY GOOD PEOPLE - installed Hitler with their vote.
And this is my point: we've allowed the 42% too much leverage at our polls; we all don;t vote or vote seriously. They vote more - and they vote seriously. If the 58% doesn't get woke and vote en masse and vote intellectually honestly, rationally, and non-ideologically we are sunk.
That 42% - mostly unintentionally/unknowingly - but still - run this Nation into a Plutocratic/Oligarchical abyss.
Progressives and Conservatives unite - vote GOP out - form 2 good honest rational principled Parties later. It is what we need to do to save the promise of our great Nation.
1
Mr. Brooks, you are solo right!
The deplorable ignorance of post-Reagan conservatism - that is the social problem that gave rise to Trump. You helped make it, David - why don't YOU focus on it?
1
40% - hmm - do the math.................
You've disproved your: "us in the anti-Trump camp" bait n switch gambit over and over. e.g . In January you told us .....most come away from a WH meeting with "The Tweeter in Chief" ..... pleasantly surprised. It was the week of the _________ countries 'comment'. Your "flexible" views make you the Gumby of the op-ed world. But thats where you Neo-Cons have put yourselves.
Somebody on the left has finally got it. You have to offer the people you govern something positive like jobs, a life, the possibility to get ahead, instead of calling a vast swath of American's heartland uneducated losers
Mr. Brooks, you wrote, “That is the advice we anti-Trumpers still need to learn.”
Sir, you are not an “anti-Trumper” as you claim but rather, with apolologies to Hazel Motes, a member of the “Church of Trump without Trump.”
Yeah, we all should just leave him alone...
When tenured academics sneer at people who crave security ... well, it's good for a laugh.
David, please refer the piece by your colleague, Charles Blow, on how Fox News lies to the American public to support the Republican agenda of stealing this country blind. Trump is a symptom, greedy republicans are the disease.
You can very well be talking about the early stages of Hitler's rise. Would you be so non chalant using the same framework?
I make up basketball teams to help me go to sleep. Last night it was my all Rich, Dick, Rick, Richard team. I needed a point guard. Suddenly I had one in Rich Lowry. Then I read this piece and realized it was Kyle Lowery I was thinking of.. My deepest apologies to Kyle. The Rich Lowry's of the world are part of the reason I have trouble sleeping.
2
A decent column in my opinion. Dems do not need to move more to the left to challenge Trump, but more to the middle. Dems need to take a lesson from Lamb in Pennsylvania. Dems need to mellow on abortion rights and on gun control.
Reproductive rights aren't something you "mellow " on. Lamb is personally opposed to abortion but believes it is a right.
If it is "Insufferably condescending" to vigorously oppose race-baiting, authoritarianism, rampant corruption and contempt for truth and the rule of law, guilty as charged.
1
Trump won because millions of people knew him as a stud from reality TV, and could express their reactionary racism from 8 years of Obama. And as Roseanne said, "he talked about jobs. And shaking things up." That he did. I felt the same hopelessness about him until yesterday, with the raid of Cohen's offices, home and hotel room. As with Watergate, it's not the crime, it's the coverup.
1
i love a metaphor, Mr. Brooks, but Washington's army won after Valley Forge. Courage!
It took a few years, but at least the author of this article is attempting to understand the President's appeal. And most of the people who read this will continue to fret & complain until he's reelected. Some of you will never get it. Despite your "superior" intellect. Maybe you're not as smart as you fancy yourselves.
1
We understand. He's making the world safe for white millionaires and racists.
I have said it many times before, I say it again: You can fool ALL the people Some of the time , but not ALL the people ALL the time.
Sadly, as with Hitler and Mussolini, we are now in phase one above, and for the foreseeable future, it is deception that will continue to sway the GOP and a third of the US voters.
We all pray and hope, this phase will end before disaster buries the US.
40% of the population is still a minority. Most disturbing to me is that his base is probably made up of about 99% white people. Look at the faces at his rallies. Red state working class white people may love him, but this is not the way America looks anymore and it never will again. Eventually the scandals that surround him and his mediocre intellect will doom him (or all of us).
I read your columns, Mr Brooks, on a regular basis throughout the campaign season and You didn’t get it then and you don’t get it now.
Out here in flyover country, people watch Fox News and listen to conservative talk radio with religious fervor. It’s not entertainment, it’s not rhetoric but it’s all the honest to God truth. I know plenty of people who still believe Hillary ran immoral business dealings from a pizza joint, that the Clintons ordered Vince Foster murdered, that there is a homosexual agenda to try to turn our children gay. I know people who have a near arsenal in their basements, stocking up on guns before Hillary made buying guns illegal, people who still firmly believe that Obama is an African born Muslim and his wife is really a man.
The paranoia is deep. There is a perception that in Trump, they have found a saviour who will rescue them from the “liberal agenda” that they believe will soon overwhelm them and all that they hold dear if they don’t fight back.
The Republicans for years stoked this fire. How are you surprised now that it’s burning up and destroying everything in its path.
874
Isn't it terribly sad that so many voters 1. believe the bunk fed to them (people in my own NY family as well) 2. cant see beyond nationalistic ideologies that have little affect on their personal quality if life, and instead could be supporting candidates that have been on the side that cares more about making difference in people's every day life (income, jobs, education, tax relief etc.).
37
Great comment.
Not surprising. Meself, born and raised in Indiana so I know with some authority it is a deeply racist, inward/backward state. (Irony how excellent public Universities like Purdue and Indiana are there.)
My father, father-in-law, and brother are lifelong republicans. They are, however, all educated beyond college, and men of the world. They loathe trump and what he's doing to the party. And none voted for him.
Ain't life weird.
39
Suzanne, yes...Fauxfox aint news, its church. Its televangelism. Its in spite of Trumps flaws, that he will deliver them to the promise land.
Which is a place they believe is ONLY theirs to occupy. This land is their land, not mine and theirs (unless I prove Im of them) not theirs and yours - if you disagree with them.
28
I am surprised you did not conclude this is all Obama's fault.
1
"N.R. editor Rich Lowry just had a column in Politico called “The Never Trump Delusion” arguing that Trump is not that big a departure from the Republican mainstream."
Exactly. Nice to hear a Republican admit it for once.
2
Don't forget that Mike Pence is Trump'$ best anti-Impeachment Insurance.
Tick tock. Tick tock.
It's MUELLER Time.
40% approval is not dominance. Every wannabe dictator gets his due. This one will, too. At one time, Hitler was a great man in Germany. Trump will fail and what seems to be an intractable 40% will erode.
How cynical. How banal. Brooks debases the very foundation of the republic - the rule of law.
Our economies are under attack? Try telling that to the farmers around here who are losing exports thanks to current policies. After a number of good years, now we have an administration that upsets our trading partners and ignores the issues with climate change on farms.
Religious liberties? Texas is closer to a theocracy than a democracy. If you aren't Christian, you are a Jesus-hating heathen. Either say "Merry Christmas" or we'll torch your business.
Communities are dissolving? Could it be because all of the hoopla around bathroom bills, the immigrant invasion, and illegal voting, none of which impact our daily lives, has been reinforced with zero evidence of any impact on our communities? Republicans have done more to divide this country than unite it.
1
Yes David, Trump's support seems steady at 40%. It is unfortunate that your piece can go out of date in a matter of house after the Cohen/FBI raid. Trump's level of support may not save his presidency if his attorney commited crimes on Trump's behalf. It looks bad at the moment, but it has looked bad before.
David, you keep talking about "we anti-Trumpers." Just saying it doesn't make it so. Whom are you attempting to convince? I don't think you're an anti-Trumper at all. You and your ilk made his rise possible and did nothing as the full-mooners took over your GOP. You can't have it both ways. Once again you're attempting to portray yourself as the only grown-up in the room when you are anything but.
1
Surprisingly insightful for the failing New York Times!
1
David Brooks imagines himself part of "the anti-Trump movement"? Pardon me while I retrieve my eyes, which have rolled clear across the room.
1
Ever since the 2016 election, it seems to me that we are obsessed with the question of how a complete incompetent became president of the United States. Here is a sampling of investigations in search of an explanation:
The unfair electoral college;
James Comey’s on again/off again investigation into Clinton;
The media’s attention to Trump;
Anthony Weiner’s laptop;
Clinton’s lackluster campaign;
Fake news;
Bannon/Beitbart;
The deplorables (whoever they are);
Russian interference;
Porn stars;
The internet;
Cambridge Analytica “harvesting” (why not collecting?) data from Facebook;
What’s next?
How about the simplest explanation: it’s rare for the same party to win three consecutive terms, and Trump campaigned harder and better in the swing states.
Another insufferable, and forgettable column, from our Republican apologist-in-chief.
Even at this juncture, with the President relentlessly attacking his own Justice Department and threatening again to fire the special prosecutor, it’s not those who support him who are to blame, but those who criticize him! If Democrats would just do a better job, all would be well! If Democrats would just, well, follow the advice of David Brooks.
The same David Brooks who has been cheerleading the Republican assault on democratic norms for more than two decades. The same one who loudly, repeatedly, even viciously, supported the war in Iraq and denounced dissenters. The same one.
Now he attacks the scientific evidence presented by one of his colleagues because it doesn’t fit his own political fantasies. You see, white people voted for Donald Trump not because they watch Fox News and were reacting with tribal and racial hatred toward the modern, multi-ethnic world, determined to blame “the other” for their condition, but because they had done a careful economic analysis and concluded the multi-pronged policies advocated by Trump were the correct ones — the wall, for example. Just as Germans in the 1930s were not really motivated by racial animosity toward the Jews, but by Hitler’s careful, rational economic analysis.
David Brooks personally helped to enable the anti-intellectual tribalism that has infected his beloved Republican Party. But true to form, his only cure is to blame liberals.
Trump and his people control the federal government, so we cannot fight the problems that put him in office. His voters have chosen a solution. They will stack the courts with judges who hate minorities and ignore voting rights. White America's religious rights are not under assault. Edsall is not my favorite writer, but his analysis is true. Trump's change is back to an older time when religious, racial and sexual discrimination was rampant in America. Their change is back to the bad old days. Mr. Brooks is not facing the problem. Trump is an ugly man in his heart. Those who support him have a heart issues that stem from their brains. How do you not offend a white man who does not like minority rights? How do you not offend a white Christian who does not believe in First Amendment protections for non-whites? How do you not offend a white Christian man who does not believe in LBGTQ rights? Brooks basically talked about how his position is no good for three quarters of this article and then concluded, our fault lies in offending voters who put an openly racist white man into this nation’s highest office. We are in a fight for the soul of this nation. The best ending would be to convert everyone to good, but the normal nature of fights is someone will have to be utterly and bitterly defeated and then over time, learn to adjust to the new reality. Brooks needs to choose a side and quit pretending he is a referee who can tell us how to end it without ever hurting the other side.
2
You would think that by now people would have figured out that Mr. Nottrump is not actually a viable candidate. He failed to materialize at the Republican primaries, and he won't materialize now.
1
Welll, I'm gonna do what Mr. Brooks says doesn't work. I do agree with him, however, I'm at a loss as what else to do. Reading the pres.' tweets and listening to his comments and speeches, about the only time he puts together a cogent sentence is when he is lying. Otherwise, it's mostly a scrabble of incomplete, often self contradicting jumble of words. So, by default he is calling his supporters some type of stupid, or some type of sucker, if his supporters agree with what amounts to nonsense.They have a certain blindness when it comes to the pres. Why? I believe one factor is fear of becoming less significant and/or less powerful. Now please, I do not believe his supporters are stupid people, but that this pres., on some level, does. So, that is what should be pointed out. That this pres. is calling his supporters suckers, and not the left. I wonder how many times this pres. has said to himself, "I can't believe they bought that."
The North American republic has a wonderful tradition of government. Germany was a democracy briefly when Hitler became Chancellor after having never received more than 37% of the popular vote. After dissolving (and burning) the Reichstag and holding elections, Hitler received 43.9% of the vote, approximately Trump's approval rating among US voters. After that, they decided not to have any more elections in the Fatherland for awhile.
Trump supporters are not Brown Shirts. Although they game the system, Trump and his minions still adhere to it. At least Trump is standing for something everyone can see, and rave on. if it ends in tears, well, you told us so, Never-Trumpers. Thank you for your service.
I disagree with this premise--"He has been able to strengthen his grip on power over the past year because he has governed as he campaigned."
In many ways, he is appearing increasingly weak and isolated, as demonstrated in his ongoing Twitter meltdowns.
I have to agree, except that I think it is even worse than this admits. "We have persuaded no one. Trump’s approval rating is around 40 percent, which is basically unchanged from where it’s been all along."
Trump has polling that his supporters believe, which indicates his numbers have gone up to the 50% range. Of course other polls have other opinions, but even Trump's own polls never put him this high before.
Republicans may not like the man, but they like what he has delivered. They accepted it, voted for it, and cheered.
They may not like his blunt admission of what they said only in code words, but they agree.
Worst of all for anti-Trumpers, their negative messages have not persuaded anybody that their own policies would be better than those which failed to persuade before. It is at best just more of the same, and even that not much mentioned.
Trump survived the same personal attacks before. Nobody on any side is surprised to discover these things about him.
So what is new? Nothing. Same attacks. Same lack of alternatives.
Trump is a huge opportunity for Democrats. They have utterly failed to grab that opportunity, demonstrating only how they managed to lose what could not be lost to someone who could not possibly win.
2
I second the reommendation of Luigi Zingales's article.
David Brooks’ column rings so true ... and so depressing.
1
Once again, David, you fail to admit what is obvious: Trump supporters do not respond to facts or reason. Your attempts to persuade them have failed because you are stuck in a mode of discourse they cast aside long ago. Remember, these are people who believe Barack Obama is not a U.S. citizen. They believe millions of immigrants vote illegally every election. Your attempts to dignify Trump supporters in terms of the economy apply to a certain percentage, but your refusal to acknowledge the lunacy of the far right, which has now become mainstream Republicanism, disable your arguments. As has been the case for years, you persist in idealizing a party that rotted from within long ago.
2
Nobody is responding. Everyone on all sides is still locked into exactly what they said in 2016. Who won that?
2
"The main reason Trump won..." is an example of certitudenous chutzpa which creates selected non- generalizable-aggregate "data" into analyzed, personalized,information,transmuted into posited understanding of dynamic, multidimensional processes and outcomes, in which known, currently unknown- because of gaps in relevant data and technology- and unknowables, are "goulashed." And all of this occurs within an ongoing, everpresent-reality of uncertainty. Unpredictability.Randomness. Lack of total control, notwithstanding our types of efforts; their levels and qualities.We can also choose to add complacency by many about what IS- words and deeds- which should never BE; and critically missing words and deeds which would make a much needed difference for achievable quality of life for individuals,familities, communities and other systems. For sustainable menschlich, equitable, sharing of human and nonhuman resources, basic to wellbeing for ALL of US, in our current,enabled-anchored, WE-THEY daily-violating-culture. Which increasingly challenges mutual trust.Respect. Caringness and mutual help when needed. Being personally responsible for one's words and deeds, as well as for those of others, as internal and external conditions permit.The reasons for voting for Trump may or may not be the same reasons as supporting him and his doings, undoings, and not-dones. Consider helping your readers to explore the viable options to willful blindness.Deafness. Ignorance. And silence about...!
I notice the dateline of Mr. Brooks' article is from Waco, Texas. Like the Branch Davidians who held out until a tragic ending, the "59 percent of Republicans [who] consider themselves more a supporter of Trump than of the Republican Party," these un-American acolytes enthralled by their bull in the china cabinet, are guilty of the willful destruction of the institutions of the U.S. democracy. You inflate the status of Berlusconi who is considered a clown and deflate Mr. Mueller into some kind of castrated Kabuki performer. Shame on you. Don't be so impatient, Mr. Brooks. Let the power of our institutions play themselves out. And if trump wins that battle then we all lose.
2
How to explain that Trump has unanimous Republican support while increasing the national debt beyond any Democrat, and ignoring what had been long term values of political parties.
His erraticism is seen as the act of an ubermenchen, one who transcends the norms of society, not tentatively, but with absolute certainty. Look at the films of the people of Berlin in 1940, when Western Europe had been defeated and Germany was ascendant. It was joyous and reverential to the person who led them, with any of his defects subordinated.
The stock market and low unemployment is the analog to that geo-political success. You can't fight mass euphoria with mere reason. Yet, I know of no substitute.
1
"We have not dislodged him," David Brooks writes. In a democracy, we do not try to "dislodge" an elected official, we vote him out of office or, more to the point, ensure that he doesn't get elected in the first place. Because of David's own tribalism (he's a conservative Republican) he could not bring himself to support the moderate Democrat, Hillary Clinton. Now he wants to be included in the "never Trump" camp. Sorry, if he were a "NEVER Trumper," he would have used his journalistic platform to ensure that someone who declared bankruptcy 6 times never ascended to the office of President of the United States. He did not. His was willing to risk a Trump presidency in tribal fealty to his political party.
5
The GOP rank-and-file prefers Trumpism to GOP orthodoxy. That was the clear lesson of the primaries.
Other than that, there's still no real consensus on what Trumpism is, much less what gave rise to it. Researchers, pollsters and pundits have found scattered correlations to income loss due to imports, access to national news outlets, population density, education, race and income plus some squishier phenomena like "an authoritarian impulse," the psychological analysis you cite and "whatever makes Liberals cry." But no grand unifying theory has emerged. The clearest correlation is tautological: party affiliation. So, what's the program?
Assuming, as you do, the roots of Trumpism are social problems in Trump country, some point out that Trump country opposes the very programs that would help (see Paul Krugman's editorial of last week). These are programs the GOP never cared for anyway. Don't expect it to take the lead.
So, fine, government programs do not appeal. What then? Protectionism, coal industry deregulation?
And what about the dark and dangerous impulses of Trumpism (like ethno-nationalism, conspiracy theories and fee-for-service collective security)? What exactly would you suggest there?
1
Mainly, you're showing that anti-Trumpism is failing within the Republican party. Because most Republican voters favor Trump, Republican politicians have no choice but to run as Trump supporters. So far at least, it seems this does not translate into the general population. The special election results indicate that there are a large number of motivated voters who want to remove pro-Trump Republicans from office.
I do agree that Democrats need to focus their message on why their policies are, and always have been, the policies that help middle class Americans the most. If they can do that, unpopular Republicans will face historic election loses this year.
2
The answer, the only one at this point is that the sincere anti-trumpers who considered themselves Republicans have to join the resistance. You have to swallow your dislikes, you have to compromise on issues that matter to you to stop the takeover of America by the forces who believe a retreat from a multi-cultural nation where we are all heirs to the American experiment is replaced nationalistic xenophobia.
The African-Americans in Alabama did that when the supported Doug Jones, because I’m pretty sure that 98% of them aren’t pro choice, aren’t pro marriage equality.
Ultimately the failure of anti-trumpism on the right is about complicity.
6
Trump is popular with 40% of Americans; that leaves 60% of us, clear-eyed, against Trump and what he is doing. Trump is the manifestation/representation of what the Republicans have been espousing in order to win for last 50 years. Remain clear-eyed and against Trump; cool-aid is a terrible drink for adults.
5
Wrong. There are probably a LOT of people who are ambivalent about Trump personally, or mistrust him a little but might well vote for him again because, though they sort of dislike some things about him, they HATE liberals and elitists more than they dislike Trump. I don't know who I will vote for in the next elections, but I DEFINITELY understand those who will vote Trump.
Well, I don't know about "Wrong" - I was commenting on the percentages and Trump continues to hover in the high 30s and 40. The equivocal will do something or perhaps nothing. What I wonder is whether those who voted for a poke in the eye, are getting what they want?
"Rich Lowry just had a column in Politico called “The Never Trump Delusion” arguing that Trump is not that big a departure from the Republican mainstream."
For once, I agree with National Review.
2
"Trump understood the problems of large parts of America better than anyone else."
No, Trump saw what angered many mostly white Americans and, having no conscience, appealed to their basest instincts. It doesn't speak well of human beings that it worked so well, and continues to work. Trump doesn't care about understanding anything, let alone the problems of other people. The true problem is not Trump, it is our fellow Americans.
5
So when (white) voters care about their own security and safety, they have "base instincts". Presumably everyone (white) is supposed to be Albert Schweitzer or Mother Theresa...
Right. Wanting personal safety and some sort of tranquility or security in one's life is a "base instinct".....
I would argue there is plenty of tribalism on both sides. There are plenty of comments on here that prove many of those who did not vote for Trump learned almost nothing from the last election and have dug in their position, considering anyone with a different view point an enemy versus a partner to debate... Until we can stop saying "you do not agree with me, so you are my enemy" we are going to have significant, escalating issues in this country... This is the responsibility of both "sides", even though the idea of sides is dumb in the first place.
3
No you don’t get it.
Democrats oppose and despise Trump AND the GOO because they campaign on drumming up fears about things that are demonstrably false: there is no evidence that Muslim immigrants and refugees are to be feared as terrorists, the Mexican immigrants are to be feared as murderers and rapists, that have migrants are stealing our jobs, that Obama wants your guns, is imposing martial law, is Kenyan, that teenage victims of gun violence are crisis actors, that protest demonstrators are paid by George Soros, that manmade climate change is a Chinese hoax, that Putin is a decent guy and no threat to the West, that elections are rigged and millions of non-citizens are voting, that the trade agreements are shams and the Iran nuclear agreement is a giveaway of billions of dollars, etc.
2
CLB: I certainly hope I don't end up being the only one to recommend your comment.
What Trump's voters got from this president that improved their lives. Do they have a better healthcare? Do they have a better access to education? Do they really pay less taxes (unless you are rich)? Does America have a better relationship with allies? The fact is that this president is spending a huge amount of time dealing with his personal troubles, time that is subtracted from his actual task: serving the country.
Trump's supporters remain strong because they want to believe anything and any word coming out from his mouth and that "anything" is for them just a solid truth. The fanaticism and radicalism have no questions to ask and Trump knows this. That's why he is still at the WH.
2
Armando: And how does your post not apply equally well to Obama supporters?
Trump's success with that 40% is easy to define: resentment and fear of 'the other'. This is the perfect formula for fascism, but the majority of the GOP has chosen to ride with this disgusting tide of sewage rather than speak up for the ideals of our democracy. We will all suffer the consequences.
4
Trump 's 40% approval rating may be unchanged but neither he nor the Republican Party can win elections with 40% of the vote. To defeat Trump and his ilk, his opponents have to get their voters to the polls on election days.
2
The Republicans' argument to vote for them is that the Democrats will impeach Trump if they take over Congress. That argument has some substance but at its base is a red herring. The Democrats may win the House and could therefore impeach Trump, but they would have to take over the Senate with a majority large enough to convict and remove him. That is highly improbable. So the argument, while a good campaign cry, is empty. Furthermore, I disagree with Mr. Brooks' analysis that people voted for Trump because they wanted change. However, he negates that argument with the statement that "The main reason Trump won the presidency is that tens of millions of Americans rightly feel that their local economies are under attack, their communities are dissolving and their religious liberties are under threat." His voters wanted change from the most recent previous administration and situation, but what they really wanted is no change from a stagnant state in which they had advantages over others and that the "others" did not get what was rightly the province of the old majority.
3
Perhaps a reason for the Trump support in the country is that he makes forthright statements and sometimes acts. I don't agree with much of what he stands for but do wonder whether, in the pre-Trump presidential era, many were utterly fed up with both parties doing so very little for so long. Trump seemed to represent real change which, I guess, is what we got.
1
Sometimes human societies make catastrophic mistakes. Sometimes they suffer or even die (for a time, anyway) because of them. See: Germany, 1930's.
We have, as a society, made a catastrophic, extinction-level political mistake (many reasons apply, but maybe the greatest cause is 30 years of right-wing media assaults on truth).
The questions are 1. how much and how long we will suffer from its effects, and 2. whether it kills us (both politically and even literally) before it can be rectified.
2
Brooks constant whining about how we don't respect Trump supporters is getting beyond tiresome. When is he going to write a column taking Trump supporters to task for not respecting the rest of the us?
4
On one hand, you’re right, the 30-40% will be with him no matter what, which is oh so scary, ignoring the incalculable frauds, lies, corruptions, etc. On the other hand, after the midterms, with a Democratic Congress, the damage will be finally stemmed.
And actually, with a little luck, the empty vehicle with no belief system that Trump is, could even be swayed back to some sensible policies. As long as he gets credit for “wins,” he doesn’t care whose they were originally.
Democrats are winning, even in staunchly Republican territory, Mueller’s investigation is getting closer to the President, and the truth about the gang of thieves around Trump is emerging. If a trade war starts with China, inflation will become a problem and interest rates will go up, further hitting Americans in the wallet. Trump will collapse under the house of cards that is already starting to cave in all around him. No one is more anti-Trump than Trump himself. Keep the faith!
Trump is a moral failure, Mr. Brooks…Period. No good can come from this person and even more tragically, the people you describe who have abandoned life-long mores to support him. Opponents of this man need to campaign as if there has been no government for the last year and a half; for in fact, there hasn’t been. People who constantly blame others for their own failure to thrive economically or socially need to stop weaponizing politics and religion to destroy a perceived enemy.
...Americans rightly feel that their local economies are under attack, their communities are dissolving and their religious liberties are under threat.
Who is attacking our economies? And what are the threats to our religious liberties?
I will agree that our communities are not in good health, but that's mostly because we, as Americans, tend to be narcissistic, self-absorbed, self-interested, and obsessed with individualism.
This piece runs 856 words. Only 30 of them are devoted to the advice. Here they are: "Don’t focus on personality or the man.... That will just make Trump the people’s hero against the Washington caste. Focus instead on the social problems that gave rise to Trumpism."
This is what I and the political activists I've been working with for well over a year have been doing. This is what Emerge, a program I'm fortunate to participate in, teaches. This is why the political upsets over the past year (Danica Roem being the examplar) have worked. And this is why I continue to say what I've been saying for at least a year: 45's the distraction from the real damage going on. Don't get distracted.
And, for that reason, I've just about stopped reading the opinion page of the Times--the columnists here are some of the worst offenders. (Disclaimer: someone I respect sent me this column; I would have turned the virtual page on it otherwise.)
40% of Americans are living in self-created little prisons of fear...armed with automatic guns, putting up security cameras and yelling obscenities at their neighbors in an effort to make them be as scared and fearful of each other...for nothing. this is the most prosperous country, the safest...but people allow themselves to be psychologically torn apart. thank you, Fox news. thank you, NRA. thank you for renting the fabric of America. #AWG America was great.
You put your finger on it David, the inane habit of Democrats (and now anti-Trumpists) to attack the person rather than their policies and policy ideas. It happened with Dan Quayle, with George W. Bush and his grades at Yale and now with Trump with you name it. W was elected twice that way, but his Social Security privatization effort didn't go anywhere fast.
Republicans on the other hand tend to attack policies whatever the issue is. When they tried ad hominem attacks with Bill Clinton and Obama they got nothing.
1
Brooks takes on the smog elites. Ahem. Brooks made a career of promoting a moderate GOP that hadn't existed for decades outside his own head. Gushing over the likes of former Rep Deb Pryce while hiding the fact she voted roughly 98% in lockstep with DeLay, Newt et al. Smearing Edsall is beneath any columnist, but especially repugnant from one whose credibility in analyzing a GOP he's so often covered up for is less than zero.
1
Forty percent may be a minority but it is nonetheless an extremely potent number. Consider that number is a solid base from which you need only 11% more to win an election. It means that we are indeed a seriously divided country with the prospect of many more years lying ahead of gridlock and stalemate. You cannot run a successful democracy when one side imperiously imposes it’s will upon another side in matters where deeply held moral values and convictions are concerned. Only a super majority of citizens can achieve what is known as consensus of the governed. This is Politics 101. Our biggest task as citizens is how to devise a democracy that works for 21st-century America. The same old same old just ain’t going to cut it.
Mr. Brooks,
Never Trump republicans are failing because they are Trump apologists at heart. They have failed to show moral courage ... else they would defiantly oppose Trump regardless of the price they need to pay.
Exhibit 1: Republican lawmakers have voiced occasional opinions against Trump but voted mostly along partyline. In so doing, they have reinforced Trump base's feeling that they have no conviction and are typical Washington insiders worried about their own survival.
Even the republicans who have decided not to run in 2018 elections have failed to convey the threat Trump poses on national security and economy,
Exhibit 2: Conservative journalists are in the same boat. After Florida shooting, you wrote an Op-Ed about "Respect First". May be you should have written, "Firearm Regulation First and Then Debate on Respect".
Most of republicans were worried about appointment of Bolton, but your colleague, Bret Stephens wrote that Trump was right in selecting Bolton based on their shared disdain for United Nations.
Trump in White House is dangerous; it calls for courageous actions and sacrifice which yet to be seen from republican Anti-Trumpers.
1
Trump plays on people’s fears. No matter what his policies seem to address, Trump dog whistles deep-seated fears of Americans, which is the sum total of his appeal. This is out of the time honored autocratic playbook; just ask Victor Orban. It works particularly well when people are vaguely uneasy about the present and future. Regardless of class or education anyone can be influenced by fear. Trump is the Twilight Zone “Monster on Maple Street” who revels in getting Americans to attack each other to reach his goal.
1
I take comfort in the knowledge that Trumpism, taken to its natural conclusion, will harm the very people who so staunchly support it. Madness, in the name of hurting "the other." View the movie "V", for Vendetta to get the idea.
"Part of the problem is that anti-Trumpism has a tendency to be insufferably condescending."
This is such a tiring argument. As if you would treat their arguments equally, forgetting that it has been made up by the right wing propaganda, and achieved mutual understanding?
I have always treated political arguments by how far are they from "reality posts". In other words, if you are firmly set in reality, and able to change your argument based on rational argument, you can navigate the political jungle much easier. Reality, factual data and verifiable argument should be the only reference point in any debate. Personal feelings is something to consider, but to the point to understand why other side lies.
We have gone so far apart that clearly one side is now all about feelings, nothing about reality. An alternative reality has been manufactured to satisfy the feelings. But how you can build the country based on feelings, hatred, divisions, or longing to the past. How you can build economic system based on fantasy of feeding the rich with wealth, but apparently conservatives are set to do just that. Rational argument no longer penetrates their alternative world, condescending and ridicule is just unavoidable.
2
How are people's religious liberties under threat? Other than that, I liked the piece.
1
He may not have lost support, but he hasn't picked up a single voter either.
The GOP made a deal with the devil and the payment has come due. It's going to be beautiful to watch this charlatan bring down the party.
1
I think most of us can picture, in our mind's eye, the people Brooks denounces weekly as the shameful anti-Trumpers, with their intolerance and condescending ways.
But I know he isn't thinking of the force which so narrowly but powerfully annihilated Roy Moore: African American Women.
Most Americans oppose his policies, fear his impact on the country, at least as much as we dislike his ugly anger, lies, and filthy immorality. Each of us has a history, a cause or two, all of us are motivated, outraged, and irritated differently and we all look different. Our commonality is that we care about the country and believe in supporting a common good, instead of the greediest.
We aren't who Brooks thinks we are, and we don't express ourselves the way he thinks we do.
1
Mr. Brooks misses the point. We all know that telling the 40% Trump base that Trump is unfit to be President will not change their minds one bit. What we are doing is telling the 10% folks in the gray area who voted for Obama then switched to Trump that Trump is unfit to be President. For this we need to emphasize Trump's bigotry, recklessness, mendacity, dishonesty and ignorance of the law..at every opportunity. It is working...
1
"Trump understood the problems of large parts of America better than anyone else."
To say that Trump understood the problems faced by many Americans seems to imply he had and has empathy for them. To the contrary, we see over and over his eagerness to exploit the very people he professes to love. He simply took and continues to take advantage of them. His supposed caring for the American public has more resemblance to an abusive domestic situation. In this kind of relationship the one being abused has difficulty seeing how unfair it is and makes excuses for the abuser.
He is neither leader nor statesman. His motives are entirely selfish.
1
Mr. Brooks, for someone who claims to be an "anti-Trumper," you do a very spirited job of defending him. To wit:
"The main reason Trump won the presidency is that tens of millions of Americans rightly feel that their local economies are under attack, their communities are dissolving and their religious liberties are under threat. Trump understood the problems of large parts of America better than anyone else. He has been able to strengthen his grip on power over the past year because he has governed as he campaigned."
Local economies are not "under attack." They dried up long ago, with the departure of the steel and coal industries. Trump will never bring back those jobs.
Communities are "dissolving" because young people are fleeing their small towns for college and job opportunities elsewhere--namely, big cities. Trump can't do anything about that, either.
Religious liberties are not "under threat." This is one of the biggest myths floated by the evangelical and Pentecostal Christian communities. Unless you are being crucified, beheaded, or thrown to the lions, you are not being "persecuted." If you are referring to the so-called "right" to discriminate against LGBTQ people because you don't like how they have sex--that's not "religious liberties." That's bigotry--a most un-Christian belief system.
Trump is NOT "governing." He's being a schoolyard bully.
The bottom line, Mr. Brooks--you're not helping the situation. You're encouraging Trump and his enablers.
2
The reason Trump won is because tens of millions of people did not vote.
2
Why are Trump supporters are demonstrably morally inferior to most other people?
Those of us who do not believe in Satan on earth, look for psychological and sociological explanations for Republicans' immorality and hypocrisy. Surely this feels as condescending to Republicans as a psychiatric examination must feel to a malignant narcissist.
The only other explanation for Republicans' pervasive dishonesty would be a genetic predisposition to immorality, but eugenics is an ideology of the white right that anti-Trumpers are reject for both scientific and ethical reasons.
Anti-Trumpism always will fail to convert Trump supporters because Trump supporters somehow are hardwired to reject the values and beliefs of decent Americans.
American is in the throes of an existential civil war between real Americans and the white supremacist traitors.
Either pluralistic constitutional democracy or white supremacist authoritarianism will prevail and vanquish the other. It is the Stars and Stripes versus the Confederate Battle Flag.
None of the combatants are trading sides or surrendering; it is a fight to the political death.
2
Hello, David Brooks! Many thanks for all your insightful and timely NYT columns and PBS commentaries. As for Donald Trump understanding "the problems of large parts of America," I suggest that he understands the problems -- and the people with the problems -- in the same way a hustler understands (spots, snares) an easy mark. Without impugning Trump's base, it seems that many have let themselves become easy marks and have even morphed into lemmings. The lemmings may drag the rest of us over the cliff. Perhaps they'll even destroy the cliff in their mad rush. Cheers.
2
Democracy American Style is won on generating hate & fear. It is an anti-popularity contest. There has to be enough "throw him out" & "lock them up" for Democrats to win. Democrats better capitalize on hate for Trump, especially among women, and fear of losing affordable health insurance for working class family. And if the trade war persists, fear in the agriculture regions cannot be ignored.
3
Trumpism is how we have a revolution without really having a revolution. All right-wing revolutions are pretty much like this.
The basic question of politics is "Who gets what?" America can no longer get from overseas enough to keep enough people happy. Those spoils from WW2 are gone. So the question is: how do we redistribute among ourselves?
The simple answer is that the people who have benefited the most, who often have obscenely more than they need, should give most of it back to ease the pain of those less fortunate.
But the rich are not about to do that. So, how do things get redistributed among the not-rich? This is what we are fighting about today.
So why doesn't this simple, obvious analysis get more traction? Well, there is a chunk of the not-rich who are comfortable enough with how things are to hope that some less stark analysis can be found. The problem is, there isn't one, but that, because of their own interests, a whole bunch of people, particularly pundits, just can't admit it.
Civilization requires generosity. Anything less is sham and struggle.
At some point, after the thugs have completely taken over, rich people will cry, "We could have avoided this if we had only given more." But by then it will be too late.
1
We have faced this before. There was considerable opposition to FDR by the elite of that time. In fact the 22nd Amendment was a reaction to his 4 terms in office. It was a way to insure that no future president would hold sway for more than two terms, particularly someone who was offensive as FDR, as he was viewed by many at that time.
The funny thing is that FDR is now viewed by many as almost a saint. Could it be that in some future time that Trump. . . . .? Nah! Never happen. I think. . . .
1
Focussing on the problems that gave rise to this president means focussing on the republican party itself, something I've not seen any of any conservative never trumpers do. Today's conservative movement is the problem starting with low tax trickle down economics, which has demonstrably failed a majority of us, and proceeding to an uncompromising partisan ideology that shuts out participation by anyone not of the same mind. Never trumper political pundits are looking in the wrong place if they are truly concerned about this president.
3
Never-trump is not a homogenous group. For example, The Truman Project has some stand-up guys.
Then there are people like yourself, Mr Brooks, who are reasonably moderate, relatively speaking. Kind of a throwback of the old GOP a la President Ford
Finally, people McConnell, Ryan et al simply cave and try to advance their own agenda no matter what
1
Huh. What "we" white man? You own Trump. You might find him a bit gauche for your refined tastes, but you contributed in a rather major way to his ascendency. You are not part of any group trying to loose him and his Republican Congress from the reins of power before they destroy this nation. Just man up and admit it, please.
2
The sad thing is that Trump is by far the best politician out there. While I did not vote for Trump I would most likely do so today. I did not vote for Hillary Clinton either opting instead for a third party candidate which is what Americans should have done.
Trump wants to pull out of Syria but the political establishment does not want to. After sinking over 10 trillion dollars in the middle east Trump's position should be a no-brainer. But apparently it isn't. The political establishment needs to retire, their positions are inacceptable, absurd and radical. Trump is right, everybody else is wrong. Sometimes choices are simple.
This is one example. The fundamental problem of the political establishment is that they are fixated on one path that is not very clearly not working well for many in this country. And the example of sinking over 10 trillion dollars in the middle east with nothing to show for is just one very extreme and clear example for that. Yet they are unable to change!
People want change. Obama promised change. Trump is delivering it. He is truly the best politician out there by a far margin because he is the only one promising change and doing it.