The GOP Didn’t Start the Fire
Hillary Clinton’s recent description of “over half” of Donald Trump’s supporters, or roughly 25% of Americans, as a “basket of deplorables” has had the predictable effect of causing liberal commentators to rush to her defense. Yes, say they, that while it may have been politically unwise to say this, she is, essentially, correct. To them, half of Trump’s supporters are, in fact, racist, homophobic, xenophobic, misogynist crazies who deny science, hate brown people and want America to be run by some combination of Mussolini and Hitler. Their prejudice is thus exposed. If you doubt this, then you must not be on Facebook.
The second predictable result of her comments is that the label “deplorable” is now a badge of honor.
The third result, I hope, is that Republicans will realize that the Trump movement is not primarily a rejection of the GOP, stop the self-destruction, and instead focus their ire where it belongs – on the progressives who hate them.
There is no doubt that some supporters of “The Donald” hold views that are rejected by the majority of Americans, just as there are Marxist radicals and other crazies who support Hillary.
Clinton’s “over half” assertion is not limited merely to wing-nuts, however. It instead covers a huge portion of our population and reflects a deeply held belief among leftist elites that many Americans hold views unacceptable in modern society.
Attaching “ism” and “phobic” to ideas they don’t like is a leftist pastime; if you disagree with them, expect to be demonized. How many have heard a version of, “I can’t believe you are a Republican, you are so nice!” But Americans know where their hearts lie, and they know they are not evil or crazy. Millions came out early and enthusiastically for Donald Trump as a champion in the fight against this prejudice. By bluntly exposing the leftist disdain for traditional Americans, Clinton has driven many more into the Trump camp.
The Trump Movement is a like a fire raging through American politics. It is burning through the established political order, including the Republican Party. But Republicans are wrong to think they lit this fire. When we attack ourselves and demonize the “Republican Establishment” we are only hurting our cause while focusing our anger in the wrong direction. Yes, Republicans could have done more to halt the march of progressivism. But the march was unrelenting, and many did the best they could given the oppressive environment in which they worked, including a progressive media establishment ready to pounce and destroy them should they utter a politically incorrect word. If we want change, which clearly we do, then we should lighten up on our guys and work to change that environment.
Progressivism is an unrelenting, never-ceasing, seemingly irresistible force of oppression and over-intrusive government that has been foisted on a generally conservative, limited government nation, supported by a creeping strategy of political correctness, complete with banned-speech, trigger-warnings, and microaggressions. Political movements will always disagree on the facts, debate policies and differ on philosophies. But for decades now the left has gone beyond disagreement and gradually defined much of what their opponents believe as socially and politically unacceptable, evil and even crazy. Black is white and up is down in this new world, and we are pressured to agree with things we know are false, lest we be branded “deplorable.” Trump is a backlash against that sort of politics.
If, for example, you recognize that the United States has an ineffective immigration policy, that this policy fails to halt a massive, illegal, migration into the United States that has negative social, economic and security consequences while duping immigrants into taking on second-class citizen status, you are not merely incorrect, you are a racist. If you believe that an unborn child deserves some protection, or that women considering, or having, and abortion, do as well, then you are “anti-woman.” If you believe in the constitutional concept of federalism and “states’ rights,” then you might as well be a member of the KKK. If you acknowledge that our national retirement program, Social Security, is unsustainable, hugely expensive, poorly designed and has the potential to blow up our economy, then you “hate seniors.” If you know that the “77 cents on the dollar” pay equity gap between men and women is a fiction, then you are a misogynist. If you doubt that “climate change” is all that the liberals say it is, or that socialism will fix it, you are “anti-science” and a “denier.” If you support the 2nd Amendment, then you are complicit in other people’s murders. If you believe that government welfare programs often harm those they intend to help, are hugely expensive and wasteful, then you “hate the poor.” If you believe that we need to be careful before accepting tens of thousands of un-vetted refugees from a region overrun with radical Jihadists bent on the destruction of the United States, then you are an “Islamophobe.” If you think that marriage is between a man and woman, then you are a “hater” and must be publically shamed, professionally ruined and intimidated into silence. The list goes on and on. Speech codes on campus, intimidation against dissenters, prosecutions aimed at shutting down those who disagree with liberal orthodoxy, riots built on lies, attacks on religious freedom, and even the recent Democrat proposal to amend the 1st Amendment in order to silence opponents, are designed to make dissenting opinions socially unacceptable and to silence those who resist the progressive’s march.
There is an old adage that while Conservatives think Liberals are wrong, Liberals think Conservatives are evil. Over the last several decades the left has succeeded, across a huge swath of the population, to promote this idea. Invigorated, they now aggressively push to suppress the expression of any idea that they think fits into this “evil” category. Political suppression, however, invariably builds resentment among the people, and creates societal pressure that at some point will explode. Americans do not take kindly to being told to shut up.
With his bombast, his sweeping generalizations and his populist rhetoric Trump represents a big middle finger to elitist progressivism. His supporters, both true believers and their #neverhillary fellow travelers, are sick of being told they are evil, racist, misogynistic haters, and they are clearly not going to take it anymore. Political correctness has reached its pinnacle, so despite his faults, millions feel that if it takes Trump to burn it down, so be it.
America is fed-up. Trump is the result. We, the GOP, did not start this fire. We shall see how far it burns.
