Basket of Redeemables?

calendar userTimothy Schell

How did these constituencies get cobbled together?

Evangelicals
Gun Enthusiasts
Rural Citizens
Polluters
White Nationalists

The commander has demonstrated weak strategic thinking, antagonistic diplomacy and thin negotiating skills.  Instead, we have a feral focus on short term targets: a Moslem ban, zero tolerance at the border, canceled aid to the Palestinians and the Northern Triangle (El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala), murderous dictator embraces, and public mistreatment of friends.

Evangelicals?  There are two main ploys in play:
  • Judicial Politization: Along with the manipulations of the Senate Majority Leader, two SCOTUS judges have been appointed, along with numerous like-minded lower court judges. The ultimate prize, of course, is overriding Roe versus Wade and putting the government in charge of very difficult personal and emotional decisions.

  • Vocal support for Israel and a slow moving “Peace Plan” which will probably convert the “West Bank” into Judea and Samaria and fulfill bible prophecies. Palestine: gone and the 2.6 million Palestinians living there become citizens of the “nation state of the Jewish people” or an outcome less democratic?
Gun Enthusiasts?  Easy!
  • Revere James Madison’s 2nd Amendment ratified in 1791.

  • Stoke fears that “they” are coming for the guns. Be vigilant lest the government abuse its powers.

Although most citizens think gun laws should be tightened, there are voters who feel any personal government restriction like mandatory background checks, closing the “boyfriend loophole”, etc. is enough to vote MAGA.
Rural Citizens? Feeling left out!
  • It is human nature that most don’t like change. Small towns and far flung rural outposts are changing. Young people are leaving, jobs have changed, opportunities have dried up.  MAGA thinking has blamed this situation on immigrants who take jobs like pulling apart chickens all day long, bending over in the hot sun snipping and bagging lettuce, or getting up at 4:00 A.M. to milk the cows.

  • The “elites” are sending jobs to Mexico or China.
Polluters? Who needs regulations? Let the market figure it out.
  • Go ahead dump that mining effluent into the rivers!

  • Pristine wilderness? Who needs it? It’s just a bunch of dumb animals and plants.


  • Don’t worry about climate change – think about those coal-miner, and oil patch jobs. They can’t be replaced by clean energy jobs.

White Nationalists?
I have to admit there is some unfathomable thinking here. I don’t understand how a person with such strong opinions can feel so weak to think that the “other” has the power to control things – whoever the “other” is. “Others” seem to be anyone who is Muslim, Hindu, Sikh etc., speaks with an accent and especially with non-pink pigmentation.

MAGA rhetoric has tapped this segment of the population as a pool of voters: vilifying large groups of people, most of whom are unable to protest.

In 2016 almost 63 million people voted MAGA – I think a similar total can be expected for 2020 assuming the incumbent participates.

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