Why can’t people see that Trump wants to be an authoritarian?

[Anonymous]

I think a lot of it is because of unchecked immigration. I think that makes a lot of Americans angry and sad. And because Congress does not have the political will to fix it they need a moderately authoritarian leader to do so. It all stinks but to me the finger points right back to Congress for not doing their jobs properly.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think a lot of it is because of unchecked immigration. I think that makes a lot of Americans angry and sad. And because Congress does not have the political will to fix it they need a moderately authoritarian leader to do so. It all stinks but to me the finger points right back to Congress for not doing their jobs properly.

I disagree. It is because of economic inequality that has caused angry and sad Americans to blame immigrants instead of the oligarchs and Congress. Congress is elected to represent the people but they really represent the rich. Immigration is what the rich is having you focus on instead of the them (see Murdoch et al).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think a lot of it is because of unchecked immigration. I think that makes a lot of Americans angry and sad. And because Congress does not have the political will to fix it they need a moderately authoritarian leader to do so. It all stinks but to me the finger points right back to Congress for not doing their jobs properly.

Why should people get a free pass for believing the false narratives about the border “crisis?”

What reality-based and measurable effects has this issue had on society?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think a lot of it is because of unchecked immigration. I think that makes a lot of Americans angry and sad. And because Congress does not have the political will to fix it they need a moderately authoritarian leader to do so. It all stinks but to me the finger points right back to Congress for not doing their jobs properly.

Why should people get a free pass for believing the false narratives about the border “crisis?”

What reality-based and measurable effects has this issue had on society?

I am talking about feelings and you are talking about facts. The question the OP posed was why Americans might want an authoritarian leader. I attempted to explain why. You can try to present facts all you want but it really won’t change people’s feelings. And I agree that wealth inequality is a big part of that but I don’t think it explains Trump‘s popularity with the public.

[Anonymous]

You realize that a lot of the Trump supporters are Latino and oppose illegal immigration, correct? If you really want to understand why people vote for Trump, then you have to start by listening and asking questions instead of putting forth your narrative and insulting the other person immediately. I did not vote for Trump and I find him an odious human being who is doing many things to enrich himself and his family that I find apparent and possibly illegal. That said, I have really tried to understand why people support him and I think a lot of it is the immigration issue.

[Anonymous]

Abhorrent, not apparent. The new spell correct changes it after you see it come up correctly. Very annoying.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think a lot of it is because of unchecked immigration. I think that makes a lot of Americans angry and sad. And because Congress does not have the political will to fix it they need a moderately authoritarian leader to do so. It all stinks but to me the finger points right back to Congress for not doing their jobs properly.

That's rich...Congress was getting ready to pass an immigration bill spearheaded by conservative Republican James Lankford when Trump told House Republicans to withdraw their support - because Biden signing an immigration bill would have hurt Trump's chances in the election.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think a lot of it is because of unchecked immigration. I think that makes a lot of Americans angry and sad. And because Congress does not have the political will to fix it they need a moderately authoritarian leader to do so. It all stinks but to me the finger points right back to Congress for not doing their jobs properly.

There isn't and wasn't unchecked immigration. More right wing lies to make people angry. Classic authoritarianism to gaslight and blame "the other"

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Slowly taking over media that doesn’t praise him, total control of DOJ, scapegoating nonwhites and promoting Christian nationalism, monuments to himself, building a propaganda machine, lying to citizens that economy is A+++ etc etc. When will people open their eyes and see that this narcissistic, misogynistic, racist, demented pedo “emperor” has no clothes and he DOES NOT CARE ABOUT ANYONE BUT HIMSELF?

NP. I think they see it. But they found life under Biden intolerable for whatever reason, and they welcomed this. I don’t understand it, but I also think one of the major issues in politics right now is the inability of people to not understand their political opponents. I don’t need to understand it.

We voted for Trump because Biden-Harris caused prices to skyrocket and opened the border to massive illegal immigration. If you look at election results around the world, the two things voters in all countries see to dislike the most are inflation and out-of-control immigration. The Democrats brought both things to this country, and they were shocked when they lost. That tells you how out of touch they are. They live in an ideological bubble. All they did was tell me how bad Trump was, while all I could see was how bad they were and how they were failing to address voters concerns.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You realize that a lot of the Trump supporters are Latino and oppose illegal immigration, correct? If you really want to understand why people vote for Trump, then you have to start by listening and asking questions instead of putting forth your narrative and insulting the other person immediately. I did not vote for Trump and I find him an odious human being who is doing many things to enrich himself and his family that I find apparent and possibly illegal. That said, I have really tried to understand why people support him and I think a lot of it is the immigration issue.

and those same Latinos are now being rounded up by ICE, legality or not be damned. If they thought MAGA didn't care about skin color, that is a them problem.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Slowly taking over media that doesn’t praise him, total control of DOJ, scapegoating nonwhites and promoting Christian nationalism, monuments to himself, building a propaganda machine, lying to citizens that economy is A+++ etc etc. When will people open their eyes and see that this narcissistic, misogynistic, racist, demented pedo “emperor” has no clothes and he DOES NOT CARE ABOUT ANYONE BUT HIMSELF?

NP. I think they see it. But they found life under Biden intolerable for whatever reason, and they welcomed this. I don’t understand it, but I also think one of the major issues in politics right now is the inability of people to not understand their political opponents. I don’t need to understand it.

We voted for Trump because Biden-Harris caused prices to skyrocket and opened the border to massive illegal immigration. If you look at election results around the world, the two things voters in all countries see to dislike the most are inflation and out-of-control immigration. The Democrats brought both things to this country, and they were shocked when they lost. That tells you how out of touch they are. They live in an ideological bubble. All they did was tell me how bad Trump was, while all I could see was how bad they were and how they were failing to address voters concerns.

Prices skyrocketed because of COVID and Trump's disasterous handling of the supply chains and economy. How do we know this? Inflation was bad EvERYWHERE post covid, but the US under Biden navigated it the best and created an economy that was "the envy of the world'

the "massive" immigration is another right wing hoax. How do we know? If there were soooooo many illegal immigrants in the country, then ICE wouldn't be spending its time rolling up legal greencard holders and actual US citizens.

People believing lies does not excuse the coming authoritarianism.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You realize that a lot of the Trump supporters are Latino and oppose illegal immigration, correct? If you really want to understand why people vote for Trump, then you have to start by listening and asking questions instead of putting forth your narrative and insulting the other person immediately. I did not vote for Trump and I find him an odious human being who is doing many things to enrich himself and his family that I find apparent and possibly illegal. That said, I have really tried to understand why people support him and I think a lot of it is the immigration issue.

Some Latinos WERE supporters of Trump.

Recent polls (as of late 2025) show **President Trump's approval among Latinos has significantly declined** since his historic 2024 gains, when he won ~46-48% of the Latino vote (highest for a Republican).

Current data indicates majority disapproval, driven by concerns over the economy, immigration policies, and cost of living:

- **Pew Research (Oct-Nov 2025)**: ~70% of Latinos disapprove of Trump's job performance; 78% say his policies harm Hispanics.
- **CNN analysis (Dec 2025)**: Support eroding across Latino subgroups, with many viewing policies as worsening conditions.
- Other surveys (e.g., Equis, AP-NORC): Approval often in the low-to-mid 30s% or lower.

- https://www.pewresearch.org/race-and-ethnicity/2025/11/24/how-latinos-assess-trump-and-his-impact-on-u-s-hispanics/
- https://www.cnn.com/2025/12/07/politics/latino-swing-voters-trump
- https://www.weareequis.us/research (Equis Research polls on Latinos)

[Anonymous]

I think people admire that Trump is making change when we’ve have past Dem Presidents telling us we can’t have x, y, z thing (ie lower healthcare costs, bodily freedom of choice, lower cost of higher ed) bc of a, b, c reason (ie that changes the status quo, the GOP would
Never let us, etc etc).

Now, Trump’s choice of X, Y, Z thing to focus on are pretty much all terrible changes. But they are dramatic changes nonetheless.

I am so hoping for a new crop of Dems to emerge willing to use his authoritarian style to do good in this world instead of Trump’s endless self-enrichment and grandiose gestures.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You realize that a lot of the Trump supporters are Latino and oppose illegal immigration, correct? If you really want to understand why people vote for Trump, then you have to start by listening and asking questions instead of putting forth your narrative and insulting the other person immediately. I did not vote for Trump and I find him an odious human being who is doing many things to enrich himself and his family that I find apparent and possibly illegal. That said, I have really tried to understand why people support him and I think a lot of it is the immigration issue.

Tell us why his satisfaction plummeted among latino voters who voted for him?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think people admire that Trump is making change when we’ve have past Dem Presidents telling us we can’t have x, y, z thing (ie lower healthcare costs, bodily freedom of choice, lower cost of higher ed) bc of a, b, c reason (ie that changes the status quo, the GOP would
Never let us, etc etc).

Now, Trump’s choice of X, Y, Z thing to focus on are pretty much all terrible changes. But they are dramatic changes nonetheless.

I am so hoping for a new crop of Dems to emerge willing to use his authoritarian style to do good in this world instead of Trump’s endless self-enrichment and grandiose gestures.

Heck, I'll settle for a new crop of Dems who are less focused on pandering to extreme views and take more moderate approaches like Clinton and Obama did.