"How could that happen?"
November 9, 2016 10:02 PM Subscribe
Half of America is asking, "How could Trump be elected president?" But Salena Zito "drove over 70,000 miles" through the US heartland getting to know Trump's voters. And they're not who you think they are.
Taking Trump Seriously, Not Literally: “I am blown away!” said one worker, an African American man who asked for anonymity because he wasn’t authorized to speak to the press. “The man I just saw there talking to people is nothing like what I’ve seen, day in and day out, in the news.”
Why America Can't Make Up Its Mind Days Before the Election: "These are people disconnected from New York’s cosmopolitan pace or Washington’s political elites. They value small-town connections to family, community and livelihoods; they rarely consider moving, despite a lack of opportunity.
Driving along this highway from the rolling hills of the Appalachian Mountains in Clinton, Pa., to the base of the Rocky Mountains in Cheyenne, Wyo. (and following a spur south before stopping near Denver), it is possible to capture a national mood. Few of these people ardently support either Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump. Many said they won’t vote this time. Almost everyone seems let down by this election and the candidates with their scandal-tainted backgrounds and negative campaigns."
The Death of Elitism:: "To them, the system is genuinely rigged, and the divide between the Ivy League educated and the state or trade school educated, between the haves and the have-nots, has become so deep that there is no bridge long or sturdy enough to connect them."
Listening to What Americans Said on Election Day:: “He’s a liar and a moron, but they all are.The question I keep asking myself is, ‘Would he destroy the country?’ If the answer is no, at the end of the day, I’ll vote for him because she’s proved that she’s no better. The Democrats are no better. The whole system sucks—and at least he’s a change. A big damn change.”
Listen closely and it’s clear the guy is no dummy. He mentioned the names of daytime anchors on MSNBC, CNN, and FOX News. He quoted columnists for the New York Times and Politico. He knew that Trump promised to rewrite trade deals, fight gun control, cut taxes for the wealthy, and ban Muslim immigrants. There’s a lot not to like, he said, but …
He pointed at me with a gnarled finger. “Trump might shake things up in your city.”
Taking Trump Seriously, Not Literally: “I am blown away!” said one worker, an African American man who asked for anonymity because he wasn’t authorized to speak to the press. “The man I just saw there talking to people is nothing like what I’ve seen, day in and day out, in the news.”
Why America Can't Make Up Its Mind Days Before the Election: "These are people disconnected from New York’s cosmopolitan pace or Washington’s political elites. They value small-town connections to family, community and livelihoods; they rarely consider moving, despite a lack of opportunity.
Driving along this highway from the rolling hills of the Appalachian Mountains in Clinton, Pa., to the base of the Rocky Mountains in Cheyenne, Wyo. (and following a spur south before stopping near Denver), it is possible to capture a national mood. Few of these people ardently support either Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump. Many said they won’t vote this time. Almost everyone seems let down by this election and the candidates with their scandal-tainted backgrounds and negative campaigns."
The Death of Elitism:: "To them, the system is genuinely rigged, and the divide between the Ivy League educated and the state or trade school educated, between the haves and the have-nots, has become so deep that there is no bridge long or sturdy enough to connect them."
Listening to What Americans Said on Election Day:: “He’s a liar and a moron, but they all are.The question I keep asking myself is, ‘Would he destroy the country?’ If the answer is no, at the end of the day, I’ll vote for him because she’s proved that she’s no better. The Democrats are no better. The whole system sucks—and at least he’s a change. A big damn change.”
Listen closely and it’s clear the guy is no dummy. He mentioned the names of daytime anchors on MSNBC, CNN, and FOX News. He quoted columnists for the New York Times and Politico. He knew that Trump promised to rewrite trade deals, fight gun control, cut taxes for the wealthy, and ban Muslim immigrants. There’s a lot not to like, he said, but …
He pointed at me with a gnarled finger. “Trump might shake things up in your city.”
This post was deleted for the following reason: We're going to be on the one-election-thread thing for a while yet, and this is maybe not the right sort of framing to support it. -- restless_nomad
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...less than he thinks. The cities will more or less ignore Trump.
posted by aramaic at 10:09 PM on November 9, 2016