Washington Post – Page 24

Donald Trump continues to enjoy unwavering support from his base, despite the ways he has harmed them. As the Trump administration continues to swing its wrecking ball over the U.S., Trump’s supporters persist in their conviction that he is Making America Great Again. Though some Trump voters are beginning to experience buyer’s remorse, Trump’s base remains unwavering in its support, seemingly oblivious to the harm the Trump administration has done them.

Trump’s tariffs, he claimed, would help bring manufacturing jobs back to the U.S. In reality, the tariffs are raising costs for many manufacturers and sending them out of the U.S. The tariffs on steel, for example, are reported to have increased annual costs for GM up to $1 billion. General Motors and Ford both announced the closure of several plants in the U.S., as well as layoffs for thousands of employees. Many of those who are losing their jobs fall into Trump’s base, yet not only do they continue their unwavering support, they blame the manufacturers, not Trump.

Farmers, too, many of whom make up Trump’s base, have been hurt by Trump’s tariffs. Yet, as one farmer in Iowa, a Trump supporter, said, “We can overlook some things. We need to see the end result.”

Trump’s attempts to obliterate Obamacare, had they been successful, would have been a direct hit to a large number of Americans who make up Trump’s base – rural voters without college degrees. Though many previously uninsured rural Trump supporters gained health care under Obamacare, they voted for Trump on the faith that he would replace Obamacare with something better. Even as Trump continues to push a plan that would leave almost 18 million Americans without health care, Trump’s base insists that he’s going to change health care for the better.

Trump’s coziness with anti-freedom dictators such as North Korea’s Kim Jong-un, and his questionable relationship with Russia’s Vladimir Putin, both leaders that Trump’s base once hated and distrusted, have rung no alarm bells among the base. Despite Trump’s chumminess with them, and the risk of compromising U.S. security as a result, Trump’s base have unwavering support of their leader, and insist that he knows what he’s doing, and that it’s for the good – not the undoing – of America.

Donald Trump’s Government shutdown, the longest in U.S. history, wrecked the finances of many federal employees, some of whom make up Trump’s base. Though the shutdown did cause Trump to lose some ground with those who voted for him, now that Trump has ended it and re-opened the government, the diehard Trump supporters seem to have returned to the belief that the whole thing will be for the good of America.

According to Newt Gingrich,”The fact is, the president’s base is with the president…If he goes to them and says, ‘I got this done for the wall. I got this done to protect America. I’m doing these good things you believe in,’ the base is going to say, ‘fine.’ ”

“I could stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot somebody, and I wouldn’t lose any voters, OK? It’s, like, incredible.”

Does the unwavering support of Trump’s base, and their inability to be presented with facts, a result of the Dunning-Kruger effect (in which they are not only misinformed, but unable to recognize that they are misinformed)? Or are they so full of fear of all of the possible threats to their world as a result of Trump’s fear-mongering, that they’re ready to latch on to him as the One who will protect them? Or does Trump’s base offering unwavering support because they see the Trump-induced harm to them as a worthy sacrifice for the ultimate goal of Making America Great Again?

‘Everyone is in shock’: Ohio community reacts to GM plant closure |
Washington Post [2018-11-30]

How Donald Trump’s base is hurting from his trade wars but sticking with their man | The Telegraph [2018-11-04]

When reminded about the undeniable fact of Donald Trump’s Lying, Trump’s supporters often deflect with “what-aboutism” (What about Hilary? What about other presidents?). They’ll remark that every politician tells lies, as if that excuses any politician for telling lies. But there are marked differences in the lying done by other politicians over the years, and Donald Trump’s lying.

First, Donald Trump’s lying occurs on a daily basis, and it occurs frequently, publicly, and unapologetically. This is documented by fact checkers, including The Washington Post, which, as of December 2018, had recorded an average of 15 lies or misleading statements per day in 2018. On one particular day, Donald Trump’s lying brought the day’s total to 125. As of January 13, 2019, Trump’s documented public lies or misleading statements totaled more than 7,000 since the start of his presidency, according to The Washington Post.

Second, Donald Trump’s lying and exaggerations continue even in the face of contradiction. If direct contradiction doesn’t cause him to dig in even more to steadfastly support one of his own falsehoods, Trump moves on to another topic. Or, he’ll simply deny ever telling the lie, despite video documentation that shows otherwise. Take, for example, the Stormy Daniels saga. Trump is recorded on various occasions contradicting the accounts he gave on earlier occasions.

According to The Atlantic, here are some of the most frequent and notable instances of Donald Trump’s lying, all easily proven false: The separation wall at the U.S.-Mexico border is already being built (false); the Obama administration also separated children from their parents at the U.S.-Mexico border (false); Trump’s tax cut bill was the largest tax cut in history (Ronald Reagan’s tax cut bill, among others, was larger); other countries owe the United States large sums of money for NATO (false); the Democrats stirred up a “migrant caravan” by offering them health care and food benefits paid for by U.S. taxpayers (false).

Though we have to acknowledge that fact-checking is much easier, faster, and more efficient than it was, say, had we wanted to verify a politician’s story 100 years ago. Nevertheless, reality points to the fact that most people, politicians or otherwise, do not blatantly, publicly, and unashamedly lie with as much frequency as does Donald Trump.

Nevertheless, Trump’s base continues, no matter what, to support him and make excuses for his lies. Is it because he tells them with such confidence? Is it because his base justifies Trump’s Donald Trump’s lying with the belief that others now and in the past have told as many lies as Trump has (and maybe technology is the only reason we’ve been able to fact-check Trump and not others)?

Or perhaps, in some twisted way, Trump’s supporters admire him for his ability to get away with so many lies. “People want to believe that something is the biggest and the greatest and the most spectacular,” said Trump in his book, The Art of the Deal. “I call it truthful hyperbole. It’s an innocent form of exaggeration—and a very effective form of promotion.”

If we want to believe something – believe in something – we look for evidence that supports what we believe, and we disregard what doesn’t line up. Trump’s supporters filter out anything that doesn’t support their idea of Trump as a shrewd, savvy businessman who has their backs. Indeed, Donald Trump’s lying not only appears not to have hurt how his base perceives him, it may actually help.

Cavuto: Is Trump giving the media very real ammunition? | Fox News
[2018-05-03]

Jake Tapper debunks Trump’s ‘wall of lies’ | CNN [2019-01-08]

Category: Washington Post

The Unwavering Support of Trump’s Base Despite the Harm

What’s Unique about Donald Trump’s Lying?