Many Americans blame President Obama for everything that has gone wrong in the country and see Donald Trump as the anti-Obama who can right the American ship. While Obama has made his share of mistakes, he is mercilessly blamed for conditions beyond his control, or criticized for situations that are blatantly false. However, the citizens condemning Obama may have no idea how the government works, the politics behind certain situations, or the real state of the economy. For example, a Rasmussen poll less than two months prior to the 2014 elections revealed that only 63 percent of voters were aware which parties controlled the Senate and the House. Furthermore, a month before the 2014 election, with the economy a critical concern, 27% of Americans thought the unemployment rate was 9% and nearly 20% were convinced it was 12%, when the correct number was 5.9%. As another sign of voter obliviousness, a Public Policy Poll in 2013 revealed that nearly a third of Republicans in Louisiana blamed President Obama for the federal government’s inept handling of Hurricane Katrina. Of course, Obama was not president until three years after Katrina’s devastation, with Bush occupying the White House at the time of the hurricane. There are countless other illustrations that show citizens to be uninformed about political facts or simply disregarding them if contrary to their beliefs.
Even though the unemployment rate is now 4.9 percent, a major issue is the tepid recovery from the last recession and the lack of decent blue collar jobs. This is one of the prime reasons uneducated white men are backing Donald Trump who has promised to return these jobs to America. Unfortunately, they are not coming back no matter what Donald Trump says or does. Actually, there are plenty of good jobs available right now but they require higher education and the ability to work with computers and new technology. Education is the key to getting a job, as computers and robots will be doing most of the repetitive factory work. Recently, it has also been noted that mortality rates are elevated for poor, uneducated white men in America, with alcoholism, drug abuse and suicide the main causes. Lack of work and self-esteem may be considered underlying factors.
Donald Trump’s campaign for president has been able to gather millions of followers who are angry and disappointed and anxious for change. While Trump’s ascendancy in the nether world of the Republican Party may have struck the establishment and political pundits as improbable, in many aspects it is a rational response to Obama’s residency in the White House. In almost every important way, Trump is the antithesis of Obama in his actions and beliefs, and a perfect candidate for those Americans who despise the president.
Obama is a sophisticated, soft-spoken intellectual whose decisions are made after careful deliberation, weighing the possible ramifications. He does not act impetuously and often does not seem dynamic or enthusiastic about his actions. Though he would like to aid the downtrodden, particularly African-Americans and Latinos, he pushes equality and equal rights for all Americans. The Affordable Care Act (ACA) that provides medical coverage for millions of the uninsured is probably his signature achievement. He would like to see a living minimum wage for workers, better unemployment insurance, and stronger unions. Thus far, his two appointments to the Supreme Court have been unfailingly liberal, both of them women. The Republican dominated Senate refuses to allow him a third appointment though the death of Justice Scalia has opened a vacancy.
Reluctant to commit additional American military forces to adventures abroad, Obama does not want to entangle America in major foreign responsibilities which could get out of hand. A gradualist rather than an immediate responder to challenging situations in distant lands, he favors incremental steps to resolve problems instead of jumping in head first. Indeed, in most circumstances he would rather cajole than threaten, using the nation’s economic power if possible instead of its military forces to bring about the desired results. Many citizens who perceive America as the strongest nation in the world are unhappy with a president who does not project power and tries to convert adversaries through debating points to get his way. They want a president who will readily employ bombs and soldiers when America or Americans are disrespected or pushed around.
The Donald is their man. In so many ways, Trump is the polar opposite of Obama and an excellent pick for citizens who are hostile to the president. Personality-wise, Trump is passionate and outgoing about his actions and choices and prone to make them on the spur of the moment, unconcerned about the consequences. Not infrequently, however, he has to backtrack on his off the cuff statements. His staff may remind him that what he has said may alienate voters and that he should take back or reverse his assertions. These changes of direction with claims that he is flexible do not seem to affect his support or induce citizens to abandon him. Indeed, the name-calling, insults, and shouting by Trump seem to gain him more adherents who admire him for “telling it like it is,” unlike the usual politicians. And his backers dismiss his upholding of Planned Parenthood or his previous acceptance of abortion, and his “evolving” position on same-sex marriage.
On race Trump is again the negation of Obama. Trump is most assuredly the candidate of poor and lower middle-class white men, and white supremacists, all of whom loath the president. Republican propaganda and sound bites have demonized Obama and his proposals that helped the lower and middle-classes, and uneducated white men believe these messages. Now along comes Trump who promises to repeal the ACA and devise a better plan in its stead. And throughout his rallies Trump also exudes vibes that appeal to white racists, using code words and phrases with double meanings. And white men like his veneer of power and self-confidence, promising to restore America’s greatness and to fix the economy (which is particularly broken for uneducated poor white men). Trump also backs right-to-work laws which is killing the union movement and making it more difficult for poor whites to obtain jobs that provide reasonable pay and benefits.
Immigration is another area where Obama and Trump are hostile opposites. His comments that he would build a ten-foot wall at the border to keep Mexicans out and having Mexico pay for it was totally inappropriate and impossible to achieve, but his constituents loved it. (Actually, a wall would keep Mexicans in America as more are now leaving than coming in, though Trump did not bother with the facts.) His enthusiasts also cheered at his descriptions of Mexican immigrants as rapists and drug dealers though statistics show there are lower crime rates among immigrants than the population at large. In addition, his pledge to keep all Muslims out of the country gained him more support from his core constituents who want America for Americans and to maintain it as a white, Christian nation. Obama on the other hand favors prudent reform with legalization and a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants after they pay their taxes and await their turns.
One has to feel understanding and compassion for these poor, uneducated white men who see no future for themselves, many of whom turn to drugs and alcohol for solace. The answer for them and their children is not Trump, but education. Otherwise, the poverty and anger will be passed on from generation to generation as blue collar jobs become even scarcer. Obama is not to blame for their situations and Trump is not the agent who will make things better.
Resurrecting Democracy
www.robertlevinebooks.com
Caricature by DonkeyHotey via Flickr
Political junkie, Vietnam vet, neurologist- three books on aging and dementia. Book on health care reform in 2009- Shock Therapy for the American Health Care System. Book on the need for a centrist third party- Resurrecting Democracy- A Citizen’s Call for a Centrist Third Party published in 2011. Aging Wisely, published in August 2014 by Rowman and Littlefield. Latest book- The Uninformed Voter published May 2020