In an earlier post I expressed my feelings about a second Donald Trump presidency. I had prayed that Kamala Harris would win. That her joyous and optimistic message would win out over the darkness and fear presented by Donald Trump. I continue to believe that Donald Trump is a deeply flawed individual whose moral compass has gone astray. But the same cannot be true for the 75 million Americans who voted for him. And it is these Americans who are telling their government something that they should be willing to hear.
The vast majority of people who voted for Trump are not racist xenophobes, conspiracy theorists, or misogynists. They are not the “basket of deplorables” that Hillary Clinton called them in 2016. Although those impulses will always be the misguided motivations for some, tens of millions of people can never be so crudely categorized. And if Democrats enjoy losing again, and again, they are free to think such nonsense going forward.
So what happened?
I believe that during a tumultuous time, a time of tremendous change, fear can win out over hope. Our fears can guide us and cause us to discount the character flaws of the populists who promise us deliverance from the gathering storms. American society is undergoing profound economic changes, that is leaving a great many of its citizens behind. Changes that are decades in the making and which the electorate felt were not being addressed by the ruling elite of either party:
- Income and wage inequality not seen since the gilded age of the 1920s.
- Real wage growth that has stagnated for decades.
- Inflation which saw its highest rate in 40 years in 2021.
- The decline of unions, eliminating a powerful advocate for the working class.
- Mechanization and AI that is increasingly poised to impact middle and low income jobs.
- Keys to the American Dream such as affordable housing, and education fading away for the working class whose wages stagnate while the price of both outpace inflation.
- Daily bills that are impacted by soaring food and gas prices.
In the meantime painful questions are being asked about the impact of free trade and globalization. I believe both are powerful vehicles for lifting many nations out of poverty but these noble goals cannot come at the expense of the working class in America or other rich nations. Offshoring must be countered with adequate unemployment benefits and workforce retraining programs providing all citizens a pathway to prosperity in an ever-changing world economy. We need comprehensive solutions that lift all our boats.
It was these economic concerns that I believe were the principal issues of this election. And it is into this economic maelstrom that both candidates ventured forth.
Kamala Harris offered tweaks such as raising the minimum wage to making it easier to unionize and taking on corporate price gouging. Small measures that provided little solace to the working class who saw a future where their children were less better off than themselves. For such people this election was largely a question of respect.
Trump on the other hand offered wholescale changes to the system: protectionism through tariffs along with mass deportations. To hear it as Donald Trump told it the pain in the American economy could be attributed to foreign influences, which can only be relieved by punishing their imports, or deporting their immigrants. His is a dystopian vision of America. A vision of mass deportation camps and crushing trade barriers. A vision of America retreating inward, instead of looking outward. But when fear is pervasive such dystopian visions can form a mirage.
Forget that universal 10-20 percent tariffs end up being universal import taxes passed onto the American consumer exacerbating inflation that will be felt most acutely by the working class. Forget that families that have lived in the United States for decades may be torn apart through round-ups and deportations. Yes flex your industrial might to build the wall and stem the tide but for those who have established productive lives in America you must be willing to show your other great resource: your compassion.
But compassion was missing from the Trump ticket for this election.
For the shrinking middle class and growing upper class such pressures are not nearly as acute. They continue to take home a growing share of the GDP. They cannot understand why anyone would vote for Trump because what they saw as a vote for an amoral man, the majority saw as a vote against an amoral system.
And the end result was a sea change. A peaceful uprising that democracies allow for. An uprising that occurred at the ballot box. I believed such a change was inevitable given the trends itemized above. I had just hoped that they would come along with compassionate leadership which could guide America through the turbulent waters.
But when the compassionate are offering only tweaks, while the electorate is demanding much more the outcome should have been no surprise to me. It does not matter if Trump is deeply flawed. He was giving the American public the disruptive change that they wanted. My hope now is that America gets the uprising it wants, without sacrificing the compassion that it was founded upon. That will only happen if the people can resist the worst of Trump’s predilections.
As one example, a week ago today my nation of Canada observed a moment of silence during Remembrance Day ceremonies. It was a time to reflect on the enormous sacrifice our veterans and fallen heroes have made to our nation. I believe the vast majority of our neighbors to the south understand the reverence for such a date where it is called Veterans Day.
But one American does not.
Trump disparaged service members as “suckers” and “losers”. Statements that were confirmed by his long time Chief of Staff, John Kelly, a decorated Marine Corps. general who served in uniform for more than 40 years. Statements, that I had thought, would have uniquely disqualified Trump, in the eyes of the American electorate to hold their highest office. I thought wrong.
There will be some that dispute whether Trump made the statements at all. They need to step out of the echo chamber constructed by his sycophants. I place my faith in General Kelly that he remembered the statements correctly before reporting such obscenities to an internationally respected news organization.
This is the character of the man who will lead your country through your uprising America. You have chosen a man whose only sense of duty is to himself. I pray that your aspirations are not hijacked from the outset. I pray that your working-class are delivered the champions that they need, to counter the demagogue that they have voted for. I pray that whatever you may gain in the next four years America, may not come at the expense of your compassion or your sense of justice and equality. For it is on these principles that your greatness was founded, and I pray that you never lose any part of this.
I pray that you never lose any part of your soul.
A Love Story 