Trump did what Republicans have long bemoaned. He played on class resentment. He told his voters America’s economy is a fixed pie; if “elites” get more, then they get less. He cultivated excuses for white, rural social decay and economic stagnation on behalf of voters who would surely reject such rationalizations for African American poverty.
Remember, a good deal of the opposition to Trump on the right went to his character and the noxious hatreds he was stirring up in the populace. Objecting to his appeals does not make one culturally insensitive; it makes one a decent person.
The way Trump won the race — with zero respect for the truth, with contempt for nonwhite voters, with assaults on our democracy — the #NeverTrump forces fear will now be the rule, not the exception, in presidential politics. That he won (it worked!) is no cause for recriminations against the #NeverTrump forces. It actually proves their point: Public figures who behave this way tear the fabric of our country and undermine democratic values. And Trump has done just that — because it was the only way he knew to get the approval of the Trumpkins. He was certain they were not above vile tactics; he was right. Congratulations, Trumpkins: You never go wrong underestimating the American people.
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