Donald Trump knows what he is saying when he utters racist, sexist, xenophobic phrases.
I also assume he believes what he says, based on various books and reporting.
Trump doesn’t merely say disgusting things to appeal to some voters. He says what he considers to be Truths about other nations, people, genders, religions, and more. There’s plenty of evidence that Trump embraces conspiracy theories not out of convenience but out of genuine conviction.
If anything, Trump tones down his hatreds. He couches his beliefs in coded language. He hints at prejudices. He blames “some people” for saying what he then expresses as a question. He attributes his views to unknown others, suggesting “they say” and assuming few will ask, “Who are the ‘they’ you keep mentioning?”
Views he holds, Trump generally mask behind these tricks.
Not that he doesn’t slip up. He has often exposed his racial animosities in blunt language. Then he spins around and claims to be the least racist person on earth.
Trump mastered the dog whistle and gaslighting many years ago. He deploys these weapons in all their destructive and divisive glory, damaging everyone associated with him.
An opportunistic chameleon in public, a Democrat and generous donor to Democrats for many year, I don’t believe Donald Trump was ever committed to that party… or the Republicans. He is committed to himself.
What you say in public matters, no matter who you are, a billionaire developer or a retail cashier. In today’s world, anyone’s appalling words or behaviors might be captured by a smartphone and shared with everyone. But, a mere 15 years ago, what most of us said wasn’t recorded and archived for later use.
In that not-so-distant past, celebrities and politicians (often aspiring celebrities of a sort) were recorded, however. And Trump said a lot. He loved media attention and his words were archived for the last 40 years, at least.
Indeed, Trump was giving to Democrats and donating to civil rights groups during the 1980s and 90s. He was also saying plenty of racist and sexist things during those same years.
Video and audio records of his prejudices didn’t matter. Networks aired his words, but a large number of voters didn’t care.
He accused Barack Obama of being an Islamic foreigner, a Manchurian Candidate planted to destroy the United States. He frequently made lewd references to female reporters. He mocked a disabled reporter. He insulted a war hero John McCain.
Nothing he said seemed to disqualify Donald Trump.
He narrowly won the Republican primary in 2016 because every other GOP candidate assumed he or she would be the last “real” choice for voters. The division let Trump eke out the win. Once nominated, he lorded over a strange convention featuring few major Republican establishment figures.
Rejected by the establishment, Trump lashed out at their manhood, their ethnicities, their families. He said terrible things about the men and women who would eventually shield him from impeachment.
Lindsey Graham summed up Trump as a “race-baiting xenophobic bigot.”
Trump has never earnestly apologized for any of his appalling words, to my knowledge. I could be wrong. He seems to live by the mantra, “Never say you’re sorry.” I fear he cannot admit errors, much less recon with his prejudices.
Why does anyone follow a man who uses bigotry, sexism, racism, et cetera, for political gain?
Trump knows, instinctively, he speaks for a large number of our fellow citizens. They agree with him, even if they’d never admit it to pollsters or reporters. Trump sees himself as the defender of this group, this white working-class oppressed by the elites.
At least a third of our citizens nod when Trump alludes to race and crime. They nod when he suggests the South was honorable during the Civil War.
The media loved covering Trump. They still love covering him, at least for the sake of ratings and book sales. I recently read there are 150 books about the Trump presidency in just two years. That’s stunning. Good luck finding two dozen books on the Carter years.
All those books and media reports suggest a single, unifying truth: Trump is what he says.
The media never takes away his platform. Nobody seems willing to turn off the Trump media circus.
I realize the president of the United States is news, no matter the person. Still, I wonder if Trump would slink away if he didn’t have cameras and microphones pointed at him.
Trump’s victory was likely a result of Democrats nominating Hillary Clinton, though we will never know for sure.
He really didn’t hide who he was. He still won.
I worry the next two years will be horrible. He could try to say and do what is popular, to ensure his own re-election. Or, he could be exactly who he has said he is. He’s deluded enough to believe he represents an American majority.
Let us hope his desire for popularity leads him to play to the public opinion polls.