The Election’s Troubling Message: Even if Trump Loses, America’s Political Civil War Isn’t Over

 

 

"With the high death toll—far worse than most other industrialized democracies—Trump’s failure as the nation’s chief executive seemed obvious.

Yet not to his fans. And this is where the tale gets worrisome. Trump’s lethal incompetence caused tens of thousands of deaths, and millions of Americans did not care about that. They still rallied to their man. They attended or watched campaign events where Trump placed his own supporters (and others) at risk. Following the lead of their dear leader, they disregarded the science, dismissing the concerns and statements of public health experts. They denied reality; they defied rationality. They placed their trust in Trump above all else. As numerous commentators have noted, they acted like members of a cult.

Trump calculated that he could only triumph as the champion of one side in a bitterly fought cultural clash. That’s a highly cynical and low-minded strategy. And it has come close to working. (TBD.) Millions cheered him on. Criticism of Trump in the media only reaffirmed his standing within this tribe as their savior. His brutality, his cruelty—banning Muslims, separating immigrant children from their parents, gassing protesters—they relished it. His many hypocrisies, his steady stream of false statements, his bear-hug of murderous dictators, his inexplicable alliance with a foreign leader who attacked the United States, his shady, if not illegal, finances and conflicts of interest, his hush money payments to a porn star—none of that matters. Let alone his handling of the pandemic. For these people, Trump could do no wrong. He was not a candidate, not a president. He was a cause. Their cause."

read article by David Corn​

The Election’s Troubling Message: Even if Trump Loses, America’s Political Civil War Isn’t Over – Mother Jones