Then voters would have rejected Trump.⁸
But at some point, we must confront the reality that people support Trump despite the rationalizations we create for ourselves. Because the truth is that Trump represents something that a large portion of the American public wants.
He represents a white nationalist movement that has been growing in this country for decades. He represents a desire for authoritarianism and a rejection of democracy. He represents a willingness to overlook corruption and immorality in the pursuit of power and dominance.
And until we are willing to confront these uncomfortable truths, we will continue to delude ourselves with stories about why people support Trump. We will continue to search for easy answers and convenient explanations that allow us to avoid the difficult work of grappling with the dark underbelly of our society.
So let’s stop blaming Kamala Harris for not doing Joe Rogan’s podcast. Let’s stop coming up with excuses for why people support Trump. Let’s start facing the reality of what our country has become, and work towards building a better future for all Americans.
Then male swing-voters in [Michigan, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, whatever] would have rejected Trump.
But none of these rationalizations will be any more true than the arguments that what voters really cared about was crime, or Biden’s age.