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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Trump was put over the top by fed up people in, among other places, PA, MI, and WI. It might be a good idea to learn about their experiences, especially like their decades-long descent into very unpleasant circumstances. Trump offered them both a roll of the dice on something different and a chance to give the middle finger to those who prospered and were indifferent to their suffering. None of this assures he can help them, but that's where it's at.[/quote]
I know a lot about these people (even worked among them and am from there), and this is an over-simplification.  There are many people in these states who have also faced economic devastation and voted for Hillary.  The margins in these states were razor thin.  Increasingly, to me the only narrative that continues to stick is the racial resentment one.  Exit polls suggest that terrorism and immigration were the two most important issues to Trump voters, not economics.  Trump's policies on these issues is xenophobic at their core, designed to keep "others" out.  At the same time, the fewer the immigrants and minorities in a county the more likely it was to vote for Trump.  This is suggestive that their fear of "others" is more ideological than based on real damages they've faced from immigrants.

I don't know.  We can dance around in circles and try to find ways to justify the votes of Trump voters, or we can recognize them for what they are.  I don't wholly dismiss people who hold these resentments, though.  We *all* harbor racial biases, including me (ethnic minority with mixed-race children).  It has been wholly ineffective for liberals to dismiss all Trump supporters as irredeemable racists.  That being said, I don't really know how you counteract a leader who plays on people's basest fears and resentments.[/quote]

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