I've heard Trump voters in a focus group both expect & want "chaos" & "pain." To them, a "business man" "shaking things up" is needed. They don't seem ideological and it's unclear what "problem" is fixed by chaos. This "thermostatic" feature would also seem to cloud the meaning of polls.
I'm heartbroken about USAID. Convos will few ppl open to Trump tell me they think $ sent "over there" are many and would be spent on them if we didn't "aid." That's false but shows 0-sum ideation. Same old story. "Soft power" and cost of isolation get little traction.
I don't think it will happen. They don't even think COVID happened. I just had some idiots on Facebook shouting at me about the Constitution as if they have any standing to throw the Constitution at anyone at this point. I just muted it. Even when it touches them,they will blame the left.
The average person barely understands that we have three branches of government let alone what powers they have in the constitution or what federal agencies actually do. So, I'm pessimistic.
Weird how they're perfectly happy to sacrifice as long as it means certain people are hurt, but they couldn't stay the hell home for a few weeks or wear a stupid mask in order to save others (and themselves.)
“As has traditionally been the case, the percentage of veterans varied widely among agencies, with Air Force (57 percent), Army (50), Navy (41), and other DoD components and Transportation (both 37) at the top end.”
We don’t all use walkers.
Some people begin collecting SSI checks at 62.
A lot of us are at the gym every day.
Do not underestimate the power of a large number of very pissed off older women.
We’ve had a lot of practice in the past 50+ years.
Older women are lawyers, doctors, accountants, entrepreneurs, professors, scientists, researchers, historians, archivists, military veterans up and down the chain, financial advisors, plumbers, electricians, architects, engineers, IT professionals, and more.
We have lots of resources.
Yup. Resources, brains, and spines of steel. I’m mid Gen X and dealt with a lot of crap in the first decade of my career. Women older than me dealt with much more toxic crap, for much much longer.
Absolutely! I think most of us yelling right now are over 50. We’re active, smart, have time to engage with politicians, and even know tech. And, unlike the teens working for Musk, we have experience in many different areas. 👊
Well people being shipped without representation to Guantanamo hasn’t done it yet. So I’m guessing it’s when the social security checks and Medicare payments stop. Or maybe it’ll take armed soldiers in the street.
My brain over & over: How am I expected to go to work like everything is normal? How are there people laughing at that restaurant? They are saying it with their WHOLE CHEST, and people still won't listen. How can they believe everyone is lying to them, but Trump? He knows everything about all of us.
With a combination of the right making sure blame falls on marginalized groups and normal people just getting thru this shit my hyper normalizing everything. I’m gonna say….never.
Even with all the evidence available, U.S. voted to die younger and have bad teeth by destroying Obamacare/ Medicare, and removing fluoride from drinking water.
How bad does anyone in MAGA land think things are getting? I suspect most of them believe Trump and Musk are on an ethnic-cleansing, government-gelding mission that they applaud. I just looked and Fox News is still shoving this garbage down their throats. When will the pain hit them, and how badly?
People are acting like it's a recession. The mood is dour in my workplace. When low info voters learn someone is coming back part-time because Trump may fire her fed attorney spouse, that is having an impact. A wife taking on two jobs because of Trump, less than 100 days in. 1/2
I think if they cut social security, Medicaid, and Medicare, it may get through to MAGA. Also, the massive cuts proposed to veterans’ programs. They may be pushing their luck there.
The only thing that will do it sufficiently is economic pain. Severe economic pain. DEMOCRATS MUST NOT PROVIDE ANY VOTES TO RAISE THE DEBT CEILING, PASS A BUDGET, PASS A CR.
i don't think there's a direct connection between bad things and public opinion. there's an endless capacity for normalizing the worst. it's so important for there to be signals from leaders, for power to be built, for political education, for awareness of alternatives.
i'll feel better when i see more people giving and supporting local causes that promote serious change: abortion funds, immigrant defense, trans rights, resources for prisoners, etc.
If he stocks enough loyalists in national security and law enforcement positions then popular opinion is going to cease to matter, future elections will be farce. We’ve seen this before in enough countries to know how that ends.
Musk will invent a device that is implanted in the hand or head and is used to hold your bank info. He will use his post at treasury to make it so all purchases must be made with this device.
Evangelicals will fight to be first in line to get it because it will come with a free Trump hat.
#GMB
So I go from I need to go to DC and camp out in front of buildings to the best thing right now is to wait. We know Project 2025 is deeply unpopular, and these guys are too high on their own supply (and ketamine) to back down. If it goes off, it has a chance to turn very violent very quickly…
But they keep going, blowing past every off-ramp. Ignoring the courts + ruining wallets, can’t make them more popular. waiting for them to ignore the courts gives us the chance to win over more people which is probably for the best given they want us out in the streets to mow down.
Sustained inflation and product shortages will turn the public against Musk and Trump very quickly. One thing Americans will absolutely not tolerate is a lack of shit to buy in stores. As a people, Americans feel that consumerism is our birthright
They won’t. We have to fight, argue and get in people’s faces to make them change their mind. Be incredibly disruptive. But for some stupid reason our side has chosen passivity.
An elderly woman in line behind me to vote in November loudly praised Trump, cursed Kamala and mourned the loss of her adult son to COVID during the 45 minutes we waited.
I think it’s getting there. When my 80 year old mom is texting me daily in horror (despite the fact that she barely pays attention to news and I am a junkie), that tells me things are breaking through. Older ppl are hearing the SSI and Medicare data rumors, etc.
I think a huge amount of Americans don’t know what’s going on. Even if they know “something” is going on, they don’t realize how bad it is. We need a really good media person to simplify this for non-political people. The disconnect is real.
Their spin machine is SO good. They tell me, yes it's going to be hard, but it's all worth it. A means to an end for them. They are that hateful and racist. They would rather suffer than have immigrants here.
Public opinion isn’t going to turn based on media reporting because the media is normalizing everything that is happening. Every. Thing. Without honest information available on a mass scale, the fake news will proliferate and people will not be outraged until it hits them directly. Too late.
I don’t think it’s going to turn. Sadly. Depressingly.
I think TrumpMusk supporters have bought the story they are being told about finding so much “fraud” that the Democrats are going wild because they are afraid of being found out.
The US had 250,000 excess Covid deaths and arguably Rs died at a 2 to 1 rate post vaccine and yet the 48% of Trump voters didn’t budge.
Will stay that way until Fox turns or unemployment hits 8% +
... under Dump's administration. Rs will continue to blame Democrats for anything and everything unless it happens in real time, in front of their fracking eyes. Then, they will still blame the Democrats.
Went to a peaceful demonstration at @amyklobuchar.com Senator Amy Klobuchar's Minneapolis office last week with like 20 ppl. Someone there asked me "Why aren't there 500 people here?" Personally I had no idea why not
Speaking for myself, at 61, on Social Security Disability and Medicare, as a cis het white middle-class-ish citizen, I am appalled and terrified and activated and organized and mobilized as never before. So there's that. 🤷
Comments
Worried.
Fantasies are strong. For now.
Everyone was told this was coming.
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/01/21/magazine/heritage-foundation-kevin-roberts.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare
“As has traditionally been the case, the percentage of veterans varied widely among agencies, with Air Force (57 percent), Army (50), Navy (41), and other DoD components and Transportation (both 37) at the top end.”
https://www.fedweek.com/fedweek/share-of-veterans-in-federal-workforce-remaining-stable/
Researchers & students dependent on federal funding are, too.
People who thought they’d return to summer jobs at national parks are scrambling.
Some people begin collecting SSI checks at 62.
A lot of us are at the gym every day.
Do not underestimate the power of a large number of very pissed off older women.
We’ve had a lot of practice in the past 50+ years.
We have lots of resources.
One reason why older women were such successful spies and members of the Resistance in WWII.
But even then...
Did they not expect Trump to win?
I think working women will see it first, so more polarization by gender?
Evangelicals will fight to be first in line to get it because it will come with a free Trump hat.
#GMB
Or maybe Joseph Smith actually is going to be right, nothing matters and I know absolutely nothing l.
Young people make a show of force?
Eh, they’re Antifa or “the libs.”
Old folk, maybe some visibly tottering, screaming in Parent Voice about their Social Security & Medicare?
It’s Trump, Musk, & the Republicans trying to kill Grandpa & put Grandma in a homeless shelter.
They're just going to blame Democrats.
Folks don’t understand the significance of admin privileges on the Treasury computer system.
Or why it’s both stupid & horrible for Musk’s marauders to connect it to another computer.
They don’t understand that NIH grant overhead pays for hazardous waste disposal.
Etc, etc.
I think TrumpMusk supporters have bought the story they are being told about finding so much “fraud” that the Democrats are going wild because they are afraid of being found out.
But to your Q, I think deep harms felt by nearly everyone, if properly blamed on Reps by news, civ society, & Ds, will move PO. https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/political-commentary/trump-musk-public-opinion-poll-action-1235258276/
Will stay that way until Fox turns or unemployment hits 8% +