The Enemy of My Enemy
Why America Wants Authoritarians
Donald Trump and the Republican Party will control the United States government for at least the next two years and perhaps much longer. The anti-Trump coalition is reeling. What happened?
From my perspective as someone who lived in the Maryland district represented by Jamie Raskin until last year, when I moved to the Tennessee district represented by Tim Burchett (a Congressman ideologically aligned with but not as charismatic as Matt Gaetz and Marjorie Taylor Greene), the answer lies in three perceptions held by my new neighbors and, I suspect, the majority of American voters.
I Hate the Government
The GOP’s decades-long attacks on “the Feds” have fully permeated the American psyche. So many people I speak with here in East Tennessee say, “I just hate the government,” that it’s clear they don’t fully understand what government is or how it works.
They do not see the government as an institution representing (or even one that should represent) all citizens. They believe that the Federal Government is an “other” that exists only to make their lives harder and to take their money.
When I ask about protecting the environment, ensuring businesses don’t take advantage of consumers, or even supporting a strong military, my fellow Americans see “the Feds” as an obstacle to achieving these goals.
From their perspective, the federal government is a failed institution that exists only to hurt them, and “Trump Will Fix It” was the perfect message.
It’s “Their” Fault
This should come as no surprise, but my neighbors believe that whatever problems they face are someone else’s fault. In addition to the Feds, they are ready and eager to find someone else to blame for whatever aspect of their lives hasn’t met their expectations.
Restaurants in my town have to shorten their hours, not because they don’t have customers, but because they can’t find enough employees. Everyone I speak with at the local brewery or dog park is gainfully employed, but if they don’t like their jobs, wish they made more money, or didn’t get that promotion, it’s because of illegal immigrants.
When they complain about the cost of gasoline, eggs, or milk, it’s the Democrats’ fault. They can’t explain how the Democrats caused higher prices, but they are certain that’s the cause. Worse, many of them believe Trump's messaging that Democrats “are very bad people who hate our country” and that Democrats are intentionally raising prices to harm folks like them.
Most of the people I speak with are good folk who are quick to explain that they don’t hate anyone but do not hold back when talking about how much they hate “what the Democrats and the illegals have done to our country.” It doesn’t take much prodding to get them to admit that what they really mean is “what the Democrats and illegals have done to me.”
Get Them Before They Get Me
Upon further prodding, my neighbors will admit that they are actually doing quite well, and Democrats and illegal immigrants haven’t actually impacted their lives in tangible ways. But they firmly believe it’s just a matter of time.
Because they truly believe that Democrats hate Americans like them (white, middle-class, Christian), they are certain that they will be next in the Democratic effort to destroy America. Even though many of them really don’t like Donald Trump and recognize that he lacks the qualities one would prefer in a President, they will tolerate him — and vote for him — because he is the only chance they have to stop Democrats, illegals, gays, and trans people from taking away everything they have. Before it’s too late.
I know this all sounds strange. I didn’t really believe it, either. But this is what my neighbors in East Tennessee think. This is why they voted for Donald Trump and the GOP.
For more than forty years, the Republican Party, with the support of people like Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck, and Alex Jones, and institutions like FOX News, have been lying to Americans to convince them that Democrats and the Federal Government are their enemies.
That messaging worked. Too many Americans believe it.
Donald Trump has capitalized on those lies, added to and amplified them, and the American people were primed to follow his lead.
So now the GOP is in charge. Who will they vilify next? And what will Americans expect them to do about it?
The next two to four years will be very interesting, indeed.