Wannabe Dictator
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@Mik said in Wannabe Dictator:
No, I think most supporters simply prefer him to the other part candidate.
I think that’s looking at him from your own perspective and not necessarily the majority. To me, it feels like 35% of the Republicans are solid Trump loyalists. If you showed indisputable video of Trump killing Mother Theresa, half would believe it to be a media conspiracy and the other half would try to explain why Theresa had it coming.
Then there’s another 35% that are open to Trump, but aren’t blind loyalists. They range from those that want to believe Trump but harbor doubts to those that don’t like Trump at all but feel the alternative is worse. That’s where you fall. But the first 35% does exist, and it’s just as big of a bloc as yours…
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I've said it before, but I've never seen the level of enthusiasm there was for Trump during the 2016 election, and this was in Massachusetts, FFS. When they had a little rally for him in the middle of town the number of pickup trucks driving by blaring their horns and carry MAGA flags was really noticeable.
Those folk don't just think he's better than the other guy. The woman who kept his sign up on the lawn after the election, but erased Pence's name wasn't just saying 'Meh, he's ok...'.
I was only joking
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Another case in point. Fuckhead Kelly
, "I am pleased to inform you that I have just named General/Secretary John F Kelly as White House Chief of Staff. He is a Great American … and a Great Leader. John has also done a spectacular job at Homeland Security. He has been a true star of my Administration."
@bachophile said in Wannabe Dictator:
Another case in point. Fuckhead Kelly
, "I am pleased to inform you that I have just named General/Secretary John F Kelly as White House Chief of Staff. He is a Great American … and a Great Leader. John has also done a spectacular job at Homeland Security. He has been a true star of my Administration."
Gen. Kelly in a interview just a few days ago.
“A person that thinks those who defend their country in uniform, or are shot down or seriously wounded in combat, or spend years being tortured as POWs are all ‘suckers’ because ‘there is nothing in it for them.’ A person that did not want to be seen in the presence of military amputees because ‘it doesn’t look good for me.’ A person who demonstrated open contempt for a Gold Star family – for all Gold Star families – on TV during the 2016 campaign, and rants that our most precious heroes who gave their lives in America’s defense are ‘losers’ and wouldn’t visit their graves in France.
“A person who is not truthful regarding his position on the protection of unborn life, on women, on minorities, on evangelical Christians, on Jews, on working men and women,” Kelly continued. “A person that has no idea what America stands for and has no idea what America is all about. A person who cavalierly suggests that a selfless warrior who has served his country for 40 years in peacetime and war should lose his life for treason – in expectation that someone will take action. A person who admires autocrats and murderous dictators. A person that has nothing but contempt for our democratic institutions, our Constitution, and the rule of law.
“There is nothing more that can be said,” Kelly concluded. “God help us.”
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There is a pattern among senior officers who worked either directly with Trump or close to him. To a man, they pretty much despise him not only as a leader but as a person as well.
Elbows up!
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There is a pattern among senior officers who worked either directly with Trump or close to him. To a man, they pretty much despise him not only as a leader but as a person as well.
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I've said it before, but I've never seen the level of enthusiasm there was for Trump during the 2016 election, and this was in Massachusetts, FFS. When they had a little rally for him in the middle of town the number of pickup trucks driving by blaring their horns and carry MAGA flags was really noticeable.
Those folk don't just think he's better than the other guy. The woman who kept his sign up on the lawn after the election, but erased Pence's name wasn't just saying 'Meh, he's ok...'.
@Doctor-Phibes said in Wannabe Dictator:
I've said it before, but I've never seen the level of enthusiasm there was for Trump during the 2016 election, and this was in Massachusetts, FFS. When they had a little rally for him in the middle of town the number of pickup trucks driving by blaring their horns and carry MAGA flags was really noticeable.
Before Trump (and even now) there is the "silent majority" per se... These are the conservatives, the traditionalists, the folks in the city, the folks in the country, folks like me to be honest, folks that have seen for years, even decades, a media that runs to a left-leaning beat. The movies, the shows, the magazines, the newspapers, the headlines, the celebrities... aka the loudest voices constantly blaring left-leaning policies. I think inherently, a liberal mindset is much louder and more protest-y than the conservative mindset, which is quieter and doesn't capture the headlines.
You take all that... and the silent boiling annoyance that you're not represented in what you see and hear, and in 2016 you get someone who makes you feel... heard. He represents the anti-woke, anti-liberal, uber-patriotic, unfiltered ideas that you've discussed at the kitchen table for so many years. So Trump captures this unrepresented energy and wins in 2016. It's why all the polls were wrong about Hillary winning. The silent majority lived up to its name, but the votes proved what the reality was behind the headlines.
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@Doctor-Phibes said in Wannabe Dictator:
I've said it before, but I've never seen the level of enthusiasm there was for Trump during the 2016 election, and this was in Massachusetts, FFS. When they had a little rally for him in the middle of town the number of pickup trucks driving by blaring their horns and carry MAGA flags was really noticeable.
Before Trump (and even now) there is the "silent majority" per se... These are the conservatives, the traditionalists, the folks in the city, the folks in the country, folks like me to be honest, folks that have seen for years, even decades, a media that runs to a left-leaning beat. The movies, the shows, the magazines, the newspapers, the headlines, the celebrities... aka the loudest voices constantly blaring left-leaning policies. I think inherently, a liberal mindset is much louder and more protest-y than the conservative mindset, which is quieter and doesn't capture the headlines.
You take all that... and the silent boiling annoyance that you're not represented in what you see and hear, and in 2016 you get someone who makes you feel... heard. He represents the anti-woke, anti-liberal, uber-patriotic, unfiltered ideas that you've discussed at the kitchen table for so many years. So Trump captures this unrepresented energy and wins in 2016. It's why all the polls were wrong about Hillary winning. The silent majority lived up to its name, but the votes proved what the reality was behind the headlines.
@89th said in Wannabe Dictator:
It's why all the polls were wrong about Hillary winning. The silent majority lived up to its name, but the votes proved what the reality was behind the headlines.
I have to disagree, a bit, on this.
Hillary won the popular vote, and the polls were right. Trump won where he had to win to secure the Electoral College.
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According to Trump he won the 2016 popular vote, as well. It was just that there was 'tremendous cheating'.
He's also won the Trump family's 'the sexiest man alive' competition for 30 years straight, and has a golf handicap of -50.
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And weighs 215
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@Doctor-Phibes said in Wannabe Dictator:
I've said it before, but I've never seen the level of enthusiasm there was for Trump during the 2016 election, and this was in Massachusetts, FFS. When they had a little rally for him in the middle of town the number of pickup trucks driving by blaring their horns and carry MAGA flags was really noticeable.
Before Trump (and even now) there is the "silent majority" per se... These are the conservatives, the traditionalists, the folks in the city, the folks in the country, folks like me to be honest, folks that have seen for years, even decades, a media that runs to a left-leaning beat. The movies, the shows, the magazines, the newspapers, the headlines, the celebrities... aka the loudest voices constantly blaring left-leaning policies. I think inherently, a liberal mindset is much louder and more protest-y than the conservative mindset, which is quieter and doesn't capture the headlines.
You take all that... and the silent boiling annoyance that you're not represented in what you see and hear, and in 2016 you get someone who makes you feel... heard. He represents the anti-woke, anti-liberal, uber-patriotic, unfiltered ideas that you've discussed at the kitchen table for so many years. So Trump captures this unrepresented energy and wins in 2016. It's why all the polls were wrong about Hillary winning. The silent majority lived up to its name, but the votes proved what the reality was behind the headlines.
@89th said in Wannabe Dictator:
uber-patriotic
I agree with pretty much most of what you wrote, but I am wondering what is your definition of "uber-patriotic" means
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Great post, 89th.
I don't know if "uber-patriotic" is anything more than immense pride in what the founding fathers' put together in the evolution of mankind, and the pride at what the people had to sacrifice at the time. Put that in a good movie and smoke it. Gives me goosebumps. -
@89th said in Wannabe Dictator:
uber-patriotic
I agree with pretty much most of what you wrote, but I am wondering what is your definition of "uber-patriotic" means
@taiwan_girl said in Wannabe Dictator:
@89th said in Wannabe Dictator:
uber-patriotic
I agree with pretty much most of what you wrote, but I am wondering what is your definition of "uber-patriotic" means
Good question. Whether he is sincere about it, his platform and marketing had a USA FIRST message. That resonated with a lot of people, including me, that thought our country's attention was a bit too much on foreign affairs, foreign wars, being soft on illegal immigration, and so forth. We are certainly a world player, and world leader, but prior to Trump, there was a general approach that it's xenophobic to be so openly proud of your own country.
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Not sure about that. US has a long tradition of paying high respect to patriotism. At times even elevating that respect to exaltation. The US also has a history of eschewing nationalism or, at least the nationalism that was expressed through much of Europe in the 19th and first half of the 20th centuries.
Somehow though in the past twenty years populist nationalism has wormed its way into the tradition of patriotism. The Trump movement has picked up on that and has redefined patriotism to include those elements of populist nationalism. That is how I understand what you mean by Uber-patriotism.
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If they were really patriotic, they wouldn't use a German word to describe how patriotic they are
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If they were really patriotic, they wouldn't use a German word to describe how patriotic they are
Well, there’s that too. Never thought of that.
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Or maybe they feel as though they've been driven to be patriotic by somebody else.
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Of the ride-or-die Trump supporters, how many of them are uncomfortable with their circumstances?
- They feel okay with what they're able to provide for their families and don't feel financially threatened.
- They don't feel vilified by large numbers of liberals
- They feel free to pursue their values, interests and beliefs in public without having to put up with some asshole judging them for it.
And yet everyone's so perplexed and baffled by Trump's popularity.
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Yep. Punching down and the glee therein for the mainstream virtuous set, has never been more obvious than in the Trump era. It’s because there’s an “existential threat”, so they’re cornered into being sneering assholes. They really don’t want to be. Never mind the drool, they just have rabies.
