‘There are a lot of bitter people here, I’m one of them’: rust belt voters on why they backed Trump again despite his broken promises
‘There are a lot of bitter people here, I’m one of them’: rust belt voters on why they backed Trump again despite his broken promises
Many in Youngstown, Ohio, believe the president-elect will tackle the town’s decline this time. Others are worried about his character flaws. Their concerns help explain how he returned to power – and how his second term might play out
The last time Donald Trump was president, he travelled to Youngstown, Ohio, among the most depressed of America’s rust belt cities, and promised voters the impossible.
The high-paying steel, railroad and car industry jobs that once made Youngstown a hard-living, hard-drinking blue-collar boom town were coming back, he said. “Don’t move. Don’t sell your house,” he crowed to a rapturous crowd in 2017. “We’re going to fill up those factories – or rip ”em down and build brand new ones”.
None of that happened. Indeed, within 18 months, General Motors (GM) announced that it was suspending operations at its one remaining manufacturing plant outside Youngstown, throwing 5,000 jobs into jeopardy in a community with little else to cling to. Trump’s reaction was to say the closure didn’t matter, because the jobs would be replaced “in, like, two minutes”.
That, too, did not happen. People moved away, marriages broke down, depression soared and, locals say, a handful of people took their own lives.
“The Democrats and the Republicans are all a den of crooks. Only one side lies about being crooks, and one doesn’t. If you’re going to be a crook, I’d rather know it than be lied to.”
And this idiot's vote is dozens of times more powerful than that of any voter in any major city in the country.
That guy is 200% certified dumb fuck
democrat leadership will see this and think “damn! they are on to us we have to lie and scheme even harder at the expense of human dignity next time!”
Where this fucking idiot was wrong was in thinking that Amerikkka has ever or will ever care about the common person. lol
Burn the whole country to the ground
Where does that get us other then ash?
Hey idk about you but im a morrowind player and id prefer vvardenfell to amerikka any day. I happen to think ash storms are relaxing. Which is why i modded more into my game.
When Nazi Germany burned there was a Germany after. Sometimes something's too far gone to save.
I think at some point this is just overanalyzing things. People vote for the same team they always have. It is like asking a football fan why they root for their team. There often isn't a real answer and what they tell you is ultimately nonsensical.
Interesting idea. I watch american football but i never got into it until later. And i find it interesting that i have no teams i prefer exactly. I just like to see the different plays and stuff. I do always vote left. But ive never considered democrats my team. Just the most closely aligned i guess. I would vote 3rd party if i felt it made a difference and there was a candidate i liked that i felt could win.
Post-hoc explanations. They're super common once you start looking into people's everyday actions.
If you’re going to be a crook, I’d rather know it than be lied to.
Of all dumb reasons for voting for Trump, this one takes the cake.
They aren’t wrong. The dems keep refusing to follow through with their broken promises. People are fed up with the establishment. I wish they had a different choice than Trump, but the DNC refuses to listen to their base and keeps propping up neoliberal center right candidates who only listen to their donors.
This is not the voter’s fault, it’s 100 % Kamala and the DNC.
Almost as if the DNC prefers a candidate like Trump over an actual left of center candidate who will follow through with the economic platform of the dems.
"I might be forcibly sodomized to death in a dark closet, but at least I'll know who's doing it by their voice!"
These are people of the land. The common clay of the new West. You know… morons.
Except no one's laughing about that in this case.
Putin sure is, as is Winnie the Xi.
This is the state of the American electorate. Just a total lack of critical thinking.
It's by design and their goal is to make it worse.
Look, I know things are hard, but that's a really narrow take. At the very very least the democrats would not tear down what social services you could still claim. This is like shooting yourself in the foot, and being like "fuck that hurt, maybe it will be better next time?" Instead of "oh shit, better not shoot myself in the foot again".