Donald Trump is holding back rural America

[marmar]

Donald Trump is holding back rural America
Nicholas Jacobs, author of "The Rural Voter," explains that the former president's connection is all-encompassing

By CHAUNCEY DEVEGA
Senior Writer
PUBLISHED AUGUST 20, 2024 8:16AM (EDT)


(Salon) "Billionaire" Donald Trump presents himself as the populist champion of the MAGA movement and its white working class, rural base of so-called forgotten or “real” Americans. Like the other demagogues, neofascists and various authoritarians around the world who are riding a wave of “populist” rage at “the elites,” the facts and reality are much different than what their propaganda narrative suggests.

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Nicholas Jacobs is an Assistant Professor of Government at Colby College. He is co-author of the 2023 book “The Rural Voter: The Politics of Place and the Disuniting of America.” His essays and other writings have appeared in Politico, the Washington Post, and other publications.

....(snip)....

Language matters. The right-wing and the larger neofascist movement are experts at weaponizing language. For example, “working class,” “elites,” “globalists,” “real Americans,” “patriotism,” “heartland” and the big one “MAGA”. The Democrats, liberals and progressives have been totally outmatched here.

.....There are two sides to this ambiguity—both destabilizing. One is that people don’t see it as a tool for the powerful—that four decades of rhetorical support for the farmer, the worker, and the heartland has left rural Americans and the working class (who live everywhere) in a worse position than ever. But another problem in deciphering our political dictionary exists because so many of us are fixed on one definition. So, when we talk about class politics, analysts on the left are quick to point to trends in income and voting, which seemingly deny the existence of a class cleavage. But if class transcends the snapshot we have of a person’s income at any one time, the truth is we often lack the data or insight to really make sense of why class-laden rhetoric makes sense to a lot of people. We are more or less become hell-bent on pointing out someone’s potential contradictions like a tutor trying to correct someone’s pronunciation—“that’s not how you say it; that’s not what that means!”—rather than trying to understand why it does resonate with a certain individuals or group of people.

....(snip)....

Donald Trump and JD Vance with their fake right-wing populist appeals are experts, like other fake populist authoritarians, at mining peoples' pain and suffering while actually doing little to improve it and in many examples making it worse. How do you reconcile this?

.....What if we just explored those correlates as a part of a person’s story of how the world treats them and not just another data point to fit our own politically convenient story? How might living in a community rampant with doctor shortages, hospital closures, and underfunded clinics shape one’s views of the healthcare industry? Do they really have your back? Perhaps more importantly: if, as we just discussed, rural community health is so fragile after a decade of pills pouring into your community, what is one likely to think of pharmaceutical companies who are behind the vaccine development? The idea that these corporations place profit above health is not just a cocktail hour talking point gleaned from some book review – it is deeply ingrained in the community’s memory. We can acknowledge people’s reasons even if we don’t share them. ...........(more)

https://www.salon.com/2024/08/20/donald-is-holding-back-rural-america/

[The Third Doctor]

1. Rural America has been holding itself back

Decades before Trump. Many vote against their own best interests then blame others when they get screwed. I live in a rural area.

[pat_k]

2. And statistics on the economy completely fail to capture . . .

. . . what people just getting by -- and not getting by -- month-to-month experience.

We absolutely need to do a better job of addressing the specific challenges of rural America. And we need to take care when touting all the progress, because a significant percentage are losing ground within those larger statistics.

Inflation in rents, cost of healthcare, cost of car insurance, cost of food, gas, and other monthly expenses, have wiped out any hope a lot of people have for keeping their head above water. Economic news like "increased income is outpacing inflation" is simply not a reality for way too many people, including those who are just starting on the path to building a life.

Yes, Democrats are trying to address this and speak to all Americans, but somehow I think we need to do a better job of communicating the wins while recognizing that about a quarter of Americans have zero or negative net worth. And recognizing and addressing the unique challenges faced in rural areas.