Frankly, it warms my heart that you two aren't Trump supporters. Badge, I agree that Trump is no conservative. The reason I had that misimpression of you is yesterday you said that Trump saved Kenosha (as opposed to the National Guard the governor ordered after the vigilante shooting). While you may not be a Trump supporter, that sentiment shocks me. In my view (back to the Oatmeal), Trump caused Kenosha (not the police shooting, but the violence that followed it), first by his complete lack of empathy, and second by his tacit--and now explicit--support for vigilante "justice." And comparing a single, outspoken member of Congress (from a very safe seat, mind you) to the President as far as impact on the nation's mood seems like a big stretch. That's how my backfire effect brain processes your comments on this subject.
I am--unabashedly--liberal. That impacts my worldview, undoubtedly. I'm also a realist who understands something about how our constitutional republic is supposed to work, which means I tend to back centrists...left-leaning centrists. To be fair, more than centrists, I back people who I think are effective at governing within our constitutional system (with a left-leaning perspective). One of the saving graces of the Trump presidency (in my opinion) is how incompetent he and his adherents are. Thank goodness. But my big fear is how effectively he's turned us even more on each other, and how no matter how crazy the things he and his lieutenants say, they become part of his followers beliefs shortly thereafter--even when they are clearly projections.
A recent example, it is a matter of public record that Kellyanne Conway said, on Fox News, "The more chaos and anarchy and vandalism and violence reigns, the better it is for the very clear choice on who's best on public safety and law and order." No debate, no opinion, one of the President's closest advisors said this on TV. Clearly she feels that more chaos, etc., benefits Trump's reelection campaign. Within days (less, I think), the Trump echo machine was saying the opposite: that the Democrats want more chaos because they think it benefits them. That is quite a turn--and a classic projection.
The point isn't whom the chaos benefits, the reason either side wants to say the other side benefits from the chaos is because all the politicos know that blaming the other side for supporting violence is a way to cut into the other side's support. So the Trump supporters (I don't want to call them Republicans, though he has rallied Republican support better than other actual Republicans) say Biden wants this because they think that the undecided voter in Wisconsin that Badge knows will hear that and think: violence bad + Biden likes violence = Biden bad. So they say it, and Trump supporters believe it, despite it being a trusted Trump advisor who said chaos benefits Trump, not the other way around.
Recapping: Trump top lieutenant says chaos is good for Trump. Almost instantly, Trump supporters say that it is Biden that wants chaos. Trump supporters believe that: Biden wants violence. This kind of thing is bizarre, and consistent.
Back to the polls for a moment. One of the most incredible things in the Trump presidency is the lack of movement in polling regarding Trump's approval rating. His range is about 38-43% approval NO MATTER WHAT. For all the good and bad, he stays in that range (within margins of error). It's made me believe what Trump said--again a matter of public record, not opinion:
"I could stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot somebody, and I wouldn't lose any voters, OK? It's, like, incredible."
It is incredible. And very, very sad.
