USA Today OP Ed Defends Poor Whites Voting For Trump
I read an article in USA Today, which I am going to post as the first comment. The gist of this op-ed, which is by a man who is a political columnist for the Cincinnati Enquirer, is that rural people in the Appalachians are solidly pro Trump, and he goes into quite a bit of elaboration as to why he thinks this is justified. The bottom line is that he says people in these types of areas feel disrespected by the "national" viewpoint that they are backwards, uneducated, bigoted, etc., and that they support Trump as the "lesser of two evils" in order to express their unhappiness with what the rest of the nation thinks of them.
I think to a large extent, it's not really possible to debate the conclusions of articles like this, all we can do is take them into account.
One day it will dawn either on these people, or their children or grandchildren, that they supported someone (Trump) who didnt care about them at all, other than as props for his self-aggrandizement at the rallies he held passing through their nearest mid sized town.
What about their true self-respect? What about supporting someone who lies every day, is an endless bully, is a known financial criminal, utterly fails as an example of Christianity, and constantly disrespects traditional American values?
A true self-examination of these voters would not be pretty.
The excerpts from wikipedia below refer to the area mentioned in the USA Today article.
I dont think it is at all a coincidence that the area is 96% white.
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The Point Pleasant Micropolitan Statistical Area , as defined by the United States Census Bureau , is an area consisting of two counties – one in West Virginia and one in Ohio – anchored by the city of Point Pleasant, West Virginia .
As of the 2000 census , the Point Pleasant MSA had a population of 57,026 (though a July 1, 2009 estimate placed the population at 56,252). [1]
As of the census [2] of 2000, there were 57,026 people, 22,647 households, and 16,155 families residing within the μSA. The racial makeup of the Point Pleasant MSA was 96.67% White , 1.70% African American , 0.32% Native American , 0.32% Asian , 0.004% Pacific Islander , 0.13% from other races , and 0.86% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.55% of the population.
The median income for a household in the μSA was $28,663, and the median income for a family was $34,446 . Males had a median income of $32,083 versus $19,952 for females. The per capita income for the μSA was $14,994.
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Democratic debate: Going home to the heart of Ohio's Trump country
Columnist Jason Williams returned to his hometown of Gallipolis, Ohio, in the heart of Trump country. Here's why it was such a challenging assignment.
GALLIPOLIS, Ohio – I've been a journalist for 21 years. I've never struggled to write something as much as I have this column.
The assignment: Go back to the place where I grew up, here in the middle of Ohio's Appalachian region across the river from West Virginia, talk to family and friends and my hometown people and offer a perspective on the heart of Trump country that few others in the news media can.
Trump won 76% of the vote in Gallia County three years ago, his largest margin among Southeast Ohio counties. His sweeping success across Ohio's Appalachian region — he won 30 of the state's 32 such counties — played a big part in sending him to the White House.
This poverty-stricken area, nestled amid the picturesque Appalachian foothills about 150 miles east of Cincinnati, continues to stand firm behind Trump. And rural Ohio very well could play a part in reelecting him, barring impeachment.
That is, unless the Democratic candidates somehow miraculously start talking about real-world issues like jobs and safety. Tuesday night would actually be a great time for them to start appealing to everyday Americans, when the candidates debate 125 miles north of here in Westerville.
I thought this would be a fun story to do.
It wasn't.
Mocked just for being from Appalachia
Here's why: Many of my family, friends, former teachers, coaches, classmates and church congregates — and all their friends — in this county of 30,000 people are Trump supporters, and I didn't want to put them out there, by name, for the trolls to feast on.
I love my hometown and its people too much.
These folks already get made fun of enough for being from Appalachia. They're good, respectful people who are focused on taking care of their families. They want to be left alone. They don't care about stupid Twitter wars, and I don't want to be responsible for thrusting them into the vicious rhetorical crossfire between leftist activists and Trump sycophants.
I quickly came to the realization that this was going to be a challenge soon after arriving for my 2 1/2-day stay in early September. I found that a lot of folks didn't want to talk about Trump. They didn't want to put themselves out there for fear of being verbally bludgeoned on Facebook and Twitter, or in the grocery store or even at church.
And those who did want to talk, well, they seemed to speak for those who wanted to remain silent: They're tired of certain cable news networks and the leftist political class stereotyping them as a bunch of toothless, racist, backwoods rubes.
"I don't want to talk about it because you can't have an opinion unless it's their opinion," an African-American Trump supporter said about the left. "Either you believe the way they believe, or you're a racist or a homophobe. The reason I'm working is because of what Trump's done. I just want to put my hard hat on and go to work every day."
The man, who added he's a registered Democrat, talked to Enquirer photographer Albert Cesare and me for nearly an hour on his front porch on a hot evening. He said a lady at his church had given him grief for supporting "racist" Trump, but the man said he has seen no hard evidence that's true.
The man then abruptly said he wanted no part of the story, stepped inside his house and closed the front door, leaving us sitting on the porch dumbfounded.
I didn't blame him one bit.
Trump, the lesser of two evils
The truth is, these aren't a bunch of Bible-thumping hillbillies. I spoke with nearly 20 Trump supporters. Most of them didn't want to be quoted, but every single one of them said the No. 1 thing they like about Trump is he's focused on jobs. Nothing about Russia or building walls or locking anyone up.
I know it's hard for the out-of-touch political class obsessed with hating Trump and all his supporters to fathom this, but there aren't stereotypes on every street corner and dirt road here.
I put over 100 miles on my SUV driving around Gallia County, where I grew up in a middle-class home on a 100-acre farm. I walked around our little downtown of Gallipolis, population 3,500 and the county seat. I hung out for hours at Remo's Italian Hotdogs, Bob Evans, Montgomery's Barber Shop, Shake Shoppe, Courtside Bar and Grill and McDonald's — all the cool places.
I saw no MAGA-hat wearers.
I saw two Trump flags hanging from front porches, each on opposite ends of the county.
I saw one Trump bumper sticker, and it was on a luxury SUV. My colleague saw a "Trump 2020" doormat on a houseboat.
The only other time I saw or heard anything about Trump was when my dad was watching Fox News' "The Five" in the afternoon. It's something he enjoys in retirement after spending nearly 38 years working in one of the county's two coal-fired power plants along the Ohio River, raising three sons and tending to my late grandfather's farm.
Ironically, I often see more leftover Obama bumper stickers during my 15-minute commute to The Enquirer than I saw Trump signs back home.
If I go back in a year, maybe it'll be different. Or perhaps it's an indication that there's not this widespread obsession with Trump — and never has been — in the areas where he dominated at the polls. It might be hard for some to grasp this, but don't believe everything you read in the alt-reality world of social media.
Every person I talked to about Trump, generally said:
He was the lesser of two evils — and still is.
I like what he's doing on the economy.
I wish he'd stop tweeting.
Sounds like the same thing Trump supporters in Greater Cincinnati — and everywhere else in Ohio — say.
In Appalachia, people have hope again
Look, there's no deep, why-do-these-people-love-Trump-so-much meaning here. Gallia County has long been really Republican.
This is the home of the late Bob Evans, where his namesake restaurant was founded in 1948. His family's money has influenced GOP politics in Gallia County for decades. Bill Clinton in 1996 is the last Democratic presidential candidate to win the county. Before that, the county hadn't gone for a Democrat in a presidential election since 1964 (Lyndon Johnson).
Bob Evans farm in Gallia County on Friday, Sept. 13, 2019. (Photo: Albert Cesare)
Gallia County supported Republican Mike DeWine in his failed reelection bid for the U.S. Senate in 2006. Every other county in southeast and eastern Ohio went for Sherrod Brown.
It's easy to see why the economy is top of mind. Gallia County is one of the poorest counties in the state. The power plants and the region's main hospital are among the few options for good paying jobs.
Trump's policies are rooted in reality: My son was murdered by an illegal immigrant. Neither he nor Mollie Tibbetts deserved to die.
I can remember coming home a decade ago and there were four of those sleazy, check-cashing places within a 2-mile radius. All of the stores where we shopped growing up — Haskins-Tanner clothiers, Knight's Department Store, Carl's shoe store — had been shuttered.
But the residents have optimism like I haven't seen in a long time. Gallia County's unemployment rate is 5.6%, the lowest it has been since 1979. Most of the storefronts in Gallipolis again have businesses. Some residents attribute that to Trump, though the economy was showing signs of rebounding before he was elected.
Trump doesn't deserve all the credit. I've always felt like he played places like Gallipolis and Ohio's other blue-collar areas on the economy.
Things are better, yes, but it doesn't mean happy days are here again. Gallia County's workforce is a staggering 20% smaller than it was in the early 1970s, and the unemployment rate is still higher than the U.S. (3.5%) and Ohio (4.2%).
A view of Kyger Creek Power Plant near Gallipolis, Ohio, on Friday, Sept. 13, 2019. (Photo: Albert Cesare)
I covered Trump's Youngstown rally in July 2017, when he implored people not to sell their homes and promised to bring back steel mills. The crowd erupted into a deafening cheer.
It was an unrealistic promise that factories are coming back, and it has bothered me ever since. But I'm glad people have hope again.
I'll go back home several more times before the 2020 election. Maybe I'll keep you updated on whether this area breaks away from Trump or solidifies around the president as the impeachment process continues.
Or maybe I'll just leave everyone alone and go tear up some trails on my dad's Polaris.
These people may all be good people within their own circumstances, but they will mainly vote for the worst president in history. Why ? Evidently because he has made them feel better about themselves.
What about voters duty to the country, and it's principles?
Is Donald Trump truly the only politician in America that can represent the people of white Appalachia? I find that not only hard, but impossible, to believe.
Who cares. The best part of the whole article is where they site the population. Notably that the population has decreased.
There is nothing redeemable about those people. They don't deserve respect, understanding, charity, or kindness.
Set aside that banjo noise called bluegrass and I like them.
I assumed you had relatives there so ......... shrug
Dean! OMG - I just heard that Trump is building a wall around Colorado. You need to get outta there asap before you're trapped!!!! Dude, pack it up and save yourself before it's too late.
I really can't believe you said that. What do your own words make you?
We don’t want your understanding, Charity, or kindness. We demand and expect your respect. We don’t owe anyone any explanation for why we voted for or will vote for Trump. I know that in my so called poorer part of Californication that the parts that went for Trump are achieving real hope and growth and my county has the national average 3.5% unemployment rate while Californication is around 4%.
Then you would not object if that is applied to other groups
Left wingers in general...like Democrats, liberals, progressives, socialists, communists....and anyone who supports them.
Fed up with stupid people that hate others that try to better themselves.
Anyone who bitches about the elitists while supporting this President is not living in reality. They are jealous hateful vindictive people who demand government mind there own business while simultaneously demanding that they be given shit. Boo hoo hoo......where's my job?!!! Where's my health care?!!!! Where's my (fill in the blank). But they don't want to better themselves or move to get that job or train for another job.
X, X, X,.......(pj shakes her heard). I'm sorry but I can't respect anyone who would support or vote for this President because I view it as an attack against America and the spirit and values of what America represents.
If you want to support a indiscriminate cheater, liar, bully, and disloyal man that's more of a reflection of your shortcomings, not mine.
Why would I object or even care what you think or decide?
sigh.......no, I don't hate Donald Trump. The problem doesn't lie with him, it lies with his enablers.
Respect has to be earned, and you've earned a total lack of it. You hate our country and our Constitution ... not only that, but I cannot respect anyone who worships a traitor and doesn't care a bit about ethics and honesty. You've outright said that your main goal in life is to piss off liberals - that non-Christian attitude deserves zero respect. You disdain a vast number of your fellow citizens but screech like a baby when those people don't respect you.
Your royal we needs to learn civics and history and stop spreading lies, ignorance, hatred and conspiracy theories. And stop spitting on our Constitution.
Then maybe you will have earned some respect.
just wondered if you would object if I used that description for those you favor?
If you're a Trump supporter then no, I don't care what you do or say. You wouldn't be worth my effort. I would view it as just another false position [deleted]
Donald Trump propagated a false , racist conspiracy theory, birtherism ,aimed at the nation's first non white president. From that point on he was tainted beyond repair. Of course, he has only gotten much worse since.
There is not a person on this earth I would respect because they voted for Trump. I have family members that are Trump supporters that I have to love and accept because that is how I regard duty to family. Beyond that, no one. My friends , the few of them that support Trump, will not bring his name up to me. Nor do my family.
In some ways, I am sure that some of the 60 million people who voted for Trump are good people. It isnt possible for half the voting population to be bad people, it would become too obvious in many other ways.
But in relation to voting for Trump, and particularly if they continue to support him after watching 10,000 lies over the past three years, there is either something psychologically wrong with them, or they are aiding and abetting a travesty.
I have no problem whatsoever telling them off.
Funny, to me you just described Hillary to a tee, but she happens to be a woman...
Okay?
We all know and understand that in a divided nation, drivel is always directed at others to excuse one's economic shortcomings. Effective propaganda promotes it.
Voted you up for your clarification everyone else willfully ignores.
You mean your principles right? No one is allowed to have principles or standards that you don't agree with. That is what you are getting at.
There you have it. Calling them racist for them not voting the way you want them to. Forget the African American Trump voter that the article mentioned. The author would roll his eyes and grind his teeth if he saw that. You just proved his point why they won't vote for the Democrats.
Seems you missed this part of the article as well. Of course they are supposed to look past their own self interests in your world. Or is that their self interests are supposed to match yours?
You mean principles like not lying 10 or 15 times a day?, or like not bragging on a television show that you get away with sexually assaulting women?, or the principle of personal ethics that keeps someone from defrauding hundreds of people with a phony business opportunity? Or how about the principle of respecting other people so you dont push them out of the way in order to get in the front of a photo shoot? How about the principle of not saying that a rally where one side consisted of virulent racists had "good people" on both sides? How about the principle of not looking like a submissive puppy when standing next to an authoritarian dictator at a press conference? etc etc etc.
What do the Appalachians do about those principles?
I would venture to say that none of those things have any effect on their lives or livelihood, but the fact that things are better for them means something to them. They aren't diplomats, politicians, Ph.Ds or intellectuals - they are just plain ordinary people. I'll bet they don't kneel when the national anthem is played, or spit on the Stars and Stripes.
Lots of them don't support or vote for the worst possible choices, which is the Democrats
Well Buzz, if you want to vote for someone who lies to you 10,000 times, I guess thats your problem.
Why do you make that personal about me? You know I can't vote for the POTUS. It's YOUR problem, not mine.
So your claim is they should vote for the Democrats? You know the ones that berate, belittle, and not only ignore them- but make laws against their best interests and beliefs?
That makes zero sense.
Sorry, didn't have time to copy this section of the article which backs up my point.
like your comment
Let me simplify it for you.
Why would they vote against their own self interests?
The Democrats haven't done shit for them, outside of berating them.
Doesn't make any more sense than supporting a racist, homophobic, adulterating, lying, tax evading, and intellectually/educationally stunted individual. They voted their representatives in. If it is now buyers remorse, then don't help them to get reelected.
Seems you didn't read the article. They don't have buyers remorse.
Thank you for backing up the point I was making again. The point I pasted out of the article.
Why the hell should they vote for Democrats since the Democrats haven't done shit for them outside of berate them?
Name 5 Republican initiatives, in the last 25 years, that benefit the poverty class.
(Have to limit you to 25 years, or else you would just start citing Lincoln and slavery)
So being employed is a bad thing? You did read the part where their lively hoods improved when Trump took office. What did he do that Obama didn't. Outside of lowering the corporate tax rate to compete with the rest of the world; rolled back Obama's EPA EO's; and basically improved everyone's outlook on the economy.
How about you name 5 Democratic initiatives that did anything for these people? Because they obviously don't agree with you.
So, you can't name any, huh?
Come on! How hard can it be, 5 Republican laws that benefit the poverty class, I'll give you over the last 30 years if it helps.
Seems you can't name anything the Democrats have done for them? Outside of belittling them. By looking at the comments on this seed that won't stop anytime soon.
You do know the difference between a hand up and a hand out right? They aren't looking for hand outs. They want jobs, to be able to take care of themselves, and to be left alone. That is straight from the article; but the left still doesn't get it- even when it is spelled out plainly to them!
Seems the author was a little off. The Trump supporters are defending them; and the left is continuing their normal belittlement.
So you want to exclude Reagan from the conversation.
Why are you so afraid? Just say that you can't name any and that you will continue to try and deflect to the Democrats. Let's move the goalposts....AGAIN.
Name 3 Republican laws that benefit the poverty class, over the last 30 years.
Really? You need to go back over 30 years to find anything the Republicans did?
Seems you can't name anything the Democrats have done for them. What are you afraid of?
We can play this game all day.
I already said what Trump and Republicans did for them. Jobs and hope for a better present and future. Sorry, that is only two things; but it seems to be more than enough for them.
People make marginally more money than they were making at the end of 2016. Is that worth 4 or 8 years of having a total asshole lead the country?
Trump was never a staunch Republican. If Democrats and Hillary hadn't thumb their noses at these people, they would have won.
They are following Obama's lead about them all "clinging to their guns, bibles, and religion".
The Democrats have turned into elitist snobs who deride anyone that doesn't agree with them. They will even eat their own to forward their agenda. Witness their demonization of Tulsi Gabbard for, well I am not sure what for exactly, maybe being more sane than the rest of the candidates and not toeing the far leftist party line. Which seems to be if Trump is for it; then they are against it. For that she is now a Russian asset.
Too bad Gabbard won't flip sides. She just needs to become more moderate and she could run against Trump in the Republican primaries. Of course then she would a Republican Russian asset. Which is much worse than being a Democrat Russian asset./S
It would be like some folk showing up at a food competition where they submit their signature "Cut up Hot Dogs in Kraft Mac N Cheese" recipe. But when the judges reject their entry giving it bottom scores they get angry at the "coastal elite judges" and their "fancy gourmet food". They rage about how this is the food their Mama made them and that they grew up on so it should be good enough for everybody. The reality is, their food is unoriginal, processed, over-cooked, over-salted, greasy "comfort food" but they vehemently think it should win a blue ribbon.
If someone is backwards, uneducated, bigoted, xenophobic, homophobic and misogynistic, then they should expect to be disrespected. It's not about the rest of America "prejudging" anyone so no one is being "prejudiced" against them, it's merely calling balls and strikes.
And ALL of your post is your opinion and, once again, proves the point Ronin2 was making and says more about you than it does them. Party of compassion and empathy my ass.
They really, really, don't get it.
They will be screaming at the sky again when the lose fly over country, and those small towns they despise so much.
You never had their cooking? It is not mac n cheese. Do you think elites like soul food? or Mexican?
The left doesn't know these people, and they don't want to know them.
They are proving every last one of the author's points w/o caring.
While I don't consider myself an "elite", I love both soul food and Mexican food, along a wide variety of cultures foods. I had some Senegalese cuisine last week which was amazing, and I absolutely love spicy curry's. But that's not my point. My point was that just because some folk like simple greasy spoon comfort food, it doesn't necessarily mean everyone has to agree with them and give their food high scores. Hearing Donald Trump call Mexicans "rapists" was distasteful, but it was greasy spoon comfort food to his base. Most of America can't stand that kind of crap, Donald has a 57% disapproval rating, and just because there are some who champion the racist flavor of his rally's and respond vigorously to his white nationalist rhetoric doesn't mean anyone with a smidgen of self respect should fawn over him and call him the next best thing after sliced bread. Trump is a cup of freshly squeezed pustule with a rancid vomit chaser, and will be seen as such by Presidential historians for years to come.
Take some plain simple macaroni and cheese, and add to it, some crumbled bacon, some bite sized pieces of sauteed green pepper and onion, a little paprika (hot) and a little barbecue sauce, and some bite size pieces of cooked italian sausage. Now you're in business.
This is gourmet food to deporables
It's been something to watch the journey of the Democratic party from the party of Joe Sixpack the blue collar working party, to pajama boy, the effete 21st century equivalent of the 1960s country club set.
Appalachia and the people of that region have sustained themselves on coal and iron for two centuries. They fought hard for living wages and safe conditions, have suffered gunfire deaths from the private police forces of the robber barons. They stood firm and proud. And won.
Their strength was in their hands and the sweat on their brow. In time they will understand that Donald Trump can not deliver prosperity to them and never intended to.
They will survive this. They will learn and adapt.
The Murray Coal Empire has filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Finally, the people of Appalachia must understand that the future will include them if they demand it. And they will.
I must add that some of the comments here disparaging their beliefs and fears are unwarranted. And I strongly disagree with that.