As you know, I was not an overly huge fan of both our choices, and whether Trump or Harris was the winner, well, I was prepared to deal with it either way.
That said, since I happen to have both Trump and Harris supporting friends, just my observation as to why most Trump supporters went with him. Overwhelmingly, most of their opinions boil down to "he can make the economy better". Some of the more liberal ones weren't entirely sanguine on his abortion stance (though more with his more hardliner Republican allies on that, Trump has always been a "leave it to the states" middle grounder), and some weren't too thrilled with how much of a boorish douche he can be, but most told me they gagged down their bile because they want gas and food to be more affordable, and did not believe Kamala had any ability to work on that or even cared at all in that regard.
To be fair, making food and other basic necessities more affordable was the same plank both Communists and Nazis have used to win over the common man, it's not exclusively a left or right argument, but I find it not surprising they voted on those grounds. Granted, I concede they may be willingly ignorant of the whole "trade liberty for security" argument, but to be fair, making the common man's purchasing power stronger is going to be a compelling position no matter what side of the political aisle you are on. Foreign policy was a big thing the Democrats focused on, and I argue that was a mistake in preventing Trump from gaining common man support. A hungry belly and thin wallets crowd is more going to care about domestic concerns.
I also saw, to my regret, some Democrats lashing out at the Latino vote for not being overwhelming in Kamala's favor, and frankly, that's a mistake. No matter which side of the aisle you are on, cursing those you want to win over next time is not a good idea and if the Democrats want to regain ground again, I would not burn bridges.
In Kamala's favor, I'll grant her generous leeway with her concession. While it came off more defiant than resigned, she was still willing to concede with far more grace than Trump did in 2020.
From what I can see, the Democrats have a serious problem with being really out of touch with the voters who were concerned about the economy, they'd do well to be more observant next go-round. As for the Republicans, they run the risk of being too arrogant and blowing the goodwill they engendered if they don't deliver what they promise to their supporters, and if Democrats want to regain ground, I'd watch what he does like a hawk and hammer at his weak spots if I were a Democrat.
Overall, I do want to say I urge calm regardless what side of the political aisle you are on, stay calm. The world did not end in 2016, it did not end in 2020, it will not end now.
That said, since I happen to have both Trump and Harris supporting friends, just my observation as to why most Trump supporters went with him. Overwhelmingly, most of their opinions boil down to "he can make the economy better". Some of the more liberal ones weren't entirely sanguine on his abortion stance (though more with his more hardliner Republican allies on that, Trump has always been a "leave it to the states" middle grounder), and some weren't too thrilled with how much of a boorish douche he can be, but most told me they gagged down their bile because they want gas and food to be more affordable, and did not believe Kamala had any ability to work on that or even cared at all in that regard.
To be fair, making food and other basic necessities more affordable was the same plank both Communists and Nazis have used to win over the common man, it's not exclusively a left or right argument, but I find it not surprising they voted on those grounds. Granted, I concede they may be willingly ignorant of the whole "trade liberty for security" argument, but to be fair, making the common man's purchasing power stronger is going to be a compelling position no matter what side of the political aisle you are on. Foreign policy was a big thing the Democrats focused on, and I argue that was a mistake in preventing Trump from gaining common man support. A hungry belly and thin wallets crowd is more going to care about domestic concerns.
I also saw, to my regret, some Democrats lashing out at the Latino vote for not being overwhelming in Kamala's favor, and frankly, that's a mistake. No matter which side of the aisle you are on, cursing those you want to win over next time is not a good idea and if the Democrats want to regain ground again, I would not burn bridges.
In Kamala's favor, I'll grant her generous leeway with her concession. While it came off more defiant than resigned, she was still willing to concede with far more grace than Trump did in 2020.
From what I can see, the Democrats have a serious problem with being really out of touch with the voters who were concerned about the economy, they'd do well to be more observant next go-round. As for the Republicans, they run the risk of being too arrogant and blowing the goodwill they engendered if they don't deliver what they promise to their supporters, and if Democrats want to regain ground, I'd watch what he does like a hawk and hammer at his weak spots if I were a Democrat.
Overall, I do want to say I urge calm regardless what side of the political aisle you are on, stay calm. The world did not end in 2016, it did not end in 2020, it will not end now.