Trump Doesn’t Scare Me
But some of his followers do
The Trump supporters I know fall into three broad categories:
- People affiliated in some way with the military — either ROTC, reserves, active duty, or retired personnel — who appreciate Trump’s promise of a more restrained foreign policy. Many have bitter feelings about Hillary Clinton’s vote for the Iraq war and her role in the Libya debacle. They often have similar feelings about Biden’s Iraq war vote.
- Mothers and grandmothers of military-age children and grandchildren who fear yet another decades-long war.
- Religious conservatives who oppose abortion and see Trump as their best choice for ending the practice.
None of these Trump supporters have ever mentioned the border wall, immigration, or racial issues. While they do tend to be single-issue voters, they are, on the whole, kind, reasonable, and restrained individuals.
None of them will be marching in the street, beating up political opponents, or advocating coups.
While it is common to label their chosen candidate a fascist — and he does have a pronounced authoritarian streak in his personality — Trump is also a pragmatic businessman who looks to maximize his return on his position. Perhaps this trait explains why he has tried to wind down US wars that have lasted for decades— his comments to that effect provoke vigorous applause rally goers — reversed course on the cruel family separation policy, signed a sentencing reform act that has freed thousands of prisoners, and promoted a platinum plan for the African American community.
Avoiding war and freeing prisoners, many of whom are members of a minority group — are the opposite of those traits usually associated with fascism. For those reasons, I tended to regard the link between Trump and fascism as hyperbole.
However, until a few weeks ago, I had never seen an entire Trump rally. I found the rallies frightening, not because the attendees did anything aggressive or illegal. They did not. Rather, it was because of the high degree of adulation heaped on President Trump. Thousands of people showed up wearing MAGA hats and MAGA face masks, cheering everything their candidate said.
More unnerving was crowd’s spontaneous chants of “We love you. We love you. We love you.” This chant erupts at every rally I have viewed.
Such a strong reaction to a political figure provides legitimate grounds for concern. At an Obama rally, teen girls would sometimes shout “I love you,” and the audience would participate in a group wave, but their behavior did not begin to approach the almost frenzied reaction of Trump supporters.
Skeptics are right to fear a man who is able to elicit such strong emotional reactions in his followers, especially when these supporters live in economically declining areas and have limited prospects for a brighter future.
Overall, these rally goers do not seem violent. But they do seem vulnerable. Trump’s line on election night, 2016 still resonates — that the forgotten men and women of America shall be forgotten no more. And they have been forgotten: they are the hidden carnage of NAFTA, which did create jobs but not for the same people who lost them, the men and women who served in America’s wars that the rest of the country seems oblivious to, the people whose cherished beliefs are snarked at by the elites — think of Obama’s comments about bitter people clinging to their guns and Bibles or Hillary Clinton’s basket of deplorables comment.
When Trump travels across the country seeking their votes — or when he did a thank you tour after winning his first election — he treats his followers like they matter. When he speaks to them now, he acts like he enjoys being with them. He gives them acceptance, a sense of being the backbone of a great country.
One wonders what will happen if Trump loses.
