Friday mailbag!

Here we go!

Happy Friday!

We made it!

Kamala Harris has (finally) talked to the media. Donald Trump managed to create controversy out of a visit to Arlington National Cemetery. I am now officially a college professor.

Will wonders never cease?!?!

You had LOTS of questions this week. I had answers. If I didn’t answer your question below, never fear: Tune in to the livestream I do every Friday at 1 pm eastern over at my YouTube channel. Ask your question there! I will try to answer it!

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Note: Soundtrack for this Mailbag: The new Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds album.

Q: It seems that each week the Trump camp’s insults and bombast get wilder and more crass, thinking Trump’s comments that God wants him to win and that he won California in 2020, along with his crude sexual post about Hillary Clinton and Kamala Harris. Just how low do you see comments and online posts going? Is there a bottom?

A: I think the nature of Trump means that in order to keep the attention of the country, he needs to do and say ever-more extreme things.

It’s like a drug habit. At first, you only need a little bit of your preferred drug to get high. But if you use every day, you soon need a whole lot more to achieve that high.

We are so used to Trump’s outrageousness by now that he has to keep upping the ante in order to get people talking.

There is no end to this. My strong sense is that he will continue to push limits further and further throughout the rest of the campaign. He will do this because he believes that getting attention — whether it’s for positive or negative reasons — is the whole point.

Q: Hi Chris, I sure wish you could tell me why this occurs or at least give me some perspective. Trump and his entourage make an obviously, blatantly political wreath-laying trip to Arlington National Cemetery, which any objective person sees is illegal. A cemetery employee does his job and tries to stop them. They shove him aside and continue. Despite their illegal actions and the guy only doing his job, Trump’s handlers hurl incredibly ugly, personal invectives at him. And he is so afraid of retribution that he refuses to press charges. Trump says nothing, tacitly approving of his staff’s conduct. What the hell is the world coming to that any thinking, moral, decent person would vote for a man like this to hold the most powerful political office in the world? Jeez, am I missing something here? I would REALLY appreciate some perspective. Thanks, and please keep up all your good work.

A: I mean, I agree.

I have talked to a bunch of people who are going to vote for Trump over the last few months. Almost none of them like Trump or approve of his conduct. But they believe that the policies he will pursue — particularly on the economy — will be better for them and their wallets.

They don’t condone Trump’s conduct. They simply don’t prioritize it. They prioritize keeping as much money as possible and keeping the government out of their business.

That is, of course, not the entirety of Trump voters. There are also a large chunk of people who are totally convinced that the government, writ large, is out to get Trump because they view him as a threat to their cushy lives. That includes the judiciary, the president and, yes, even employees of Arlington National Cemetery.

I would urge you to watch Fox News for a day sometime soon. The stories that are covered — and the way they are covered — is radically different than, I would guess, your preferred media outlets. And Fox has an inordinate amount of the conservative mindshare. It shapes how people see their world in a profound way.

Q: [Adam] Kinzinger made an interesting observation today on the Bulwark Pod regarding why so many former GOP "leaders" are staying quiet about Trump ..... paraphrasing "so a lot of these folks, they are making money now in private equity or as a consultant, and you can survive in that those roles with a past of being aggressive about Donald Trump, but they cannot survive with a future that is overly aggressive against the GOP/Trump - that is why they are being silent". Your thoughts Chris?