I love how this Trump voter just shrugs off January 6th at the beginning of his explanation, and then goes on to conclude that there is no difference in "fitness" between the candidates. Do tell.
"So why am I voting for Trump? Mostly for the same reasons anyone ever votes for anyone. I believe he’ll best represent my interests, and that’s really my only consideration."
In other words, I'll be just fine under Trump's hateful policies that demonize vulnerable minorities because I'm not one. So, iIm willing to look the other way and tolerate him being dumb and racist because, hey, I may earn a few extra points on my investments in the market!
You nailed it. His last sentence is completely in line with the world according to Trump....if it's good for me, I don't care about my fellow citizens and how Trump will hurt them. I'd bet a big chunk of money, the writer is a white male.
It never ceases to amaze me how these explanations by Trump voters do nothing to dissuade from the idea that they're not dumb and/or racist (or willing to tolerate both). They just wind up telling on themselves.
Remember, these people voted for Bush in 2004 when the economy was crappy and he was mismanaging two wars in which thousands of Americans died in. Trump isn’t the problem with the GOP…it’s the Republican voters!
Respectfully, please consider: (i) Using "these people" language other-izes people you disagree with, rather than attempting to understand. If you don't understand (as Chris is trying to help us do), you can't hope to fix anything. (ii) There is an *enormous* difference between the character (and policies) of Bush and Trump. It's baffling to me that anyone would equate them. And, as a practical matter, stopping Trump requires the help of people like the Cheneys - and me! - who admire and respect Reagan, Bush, et al.
Bush was way worse, and it’s not even close. Bush was prepared to steal the 2004 election (he stole the 2000 election) and we know that now because all of the legal rationale Trump presented was developed leading up to 2004.
I share your analysis, Dr. Richards, so many people, and basically all of Maga, care only about how government affects THEM directly, and usually their pocketbook. There’s no feeling of empathy or care for other people, for the planet, for the world in general, just them.
I find it really sad and it makes me wonder what happened to this country, I hope these people weren’t always like that and it’s just that now they have permission to verbalize it, but I fear they probably were… it makes me very sad. Of course, the far right “spokespersons“ like Rush Limbaugh, Donald Trump, and their elk use bigotry and their pulpit to inflame attitudes of those who are already so inclined- it takes time to build up so much . I don’t know how this country can ever be healed, but I do know that we have to stamp out Trump once and for all, and I’m praying for a ginormous victory for Kamala to get us started
Thank you for your articulate way of summarizing the viewpoint of how they can vote for Trump. I guess they’re just like he is so why shouldn’t they?
I don't like Trump and I would never vote for him. Still, I find it sad that liberals - the alleged party of enlightenment, tolerance, wisdom, and virtue - will all jump to the conclusion that this person - KNOWING NOTHING ABOUT THEM - is dumb, racist, and only cares about money. You make me sick.
Your husband is a Trumper. Is he dumb, racist, and only cares about money? You're willing to stay married to him even if he votes for Trump? According to most of the liberal posters here, that makes you a complicit racist, too. I think that's unfair and sad. People are WAY more complex than that.
People can be complex all day long, but if they go along and continue to tolerate cruel and uncaring racist, and their spouse, I’d say that the perfect word for that is complicit.
Nobody said he was dumb, racist, and only cares about money. But I sat on my sofa horrified for hours on January 6, 2021 watching Trump supporters attack the Capitol, and try and stop the peaceful transfer of power to the winner of the 2020 election. That's a deal breaker for me. So if this man/or woman can overlook that ugly day in our history which was brought on and tolerated for hours by Trump, I have no respect for them, because they have no morals. IMHO.
But we don’t know “nothing about them”. We know what they wrote. And what they wrote at the very least reveals that they are willing to tolerate a dumb and racist candidate. The most likely reason for that is money.
Okay "Dr. Chim Richalds". Now I know Anchorman is your favorite movie, which means it's fair for me to assume you are a misogynist jerk like Ron Burgundy and clearly a Trump voter.
Not exactly—that movie was satire, so you might draw the exact opposite conclusions, but that’s beside the point. The Trump voter in Chris’s post shared a lot more of their views (but not their name) to draw conclusions from. In fact, that was the whole reason for their post—they want people to understand their decision to vote for Trump. The fact that their statements lead us readers to draw entirely different conclusions than what they hoped for is a function of their poor justifications for voting for Trump, not TDS or whatever other nonsense you contrive.
You don't even want to understand their reasoning! That is very clear from your hateful response. This person is a lifelong Republican with conservative values. They are not MAGA. They didn't even like the Tea Party. They seem wary of Trump. They don't even support every Republican position. We don't know what their personal views are. But face it, there is a clear divide between Republican and Democratic ideology and neither is right nor wrong. If this person wants to overlook Trump's flaws in the hopes that Republicans will continue to appoint conservative judges, support limited government, or espouse personal responsibility, that is their right. That is democracy. You calling them a dumb racist makes you look like a prejudiced know-it-all. When my liberal urban/suburban friends come to my hometown of 500 people, they make fun of all the rednecks and that way of life out of ignorance, which really pisses me off. Likewise, it pisses me off when my redneck family make asinine statements about gays and minorities out of ignorance. As far as I'm concerned, you're all ignorant and hopelessly entrenched in your own worldviews. It's no wonder the left and right hate each other.
“If this person wants to overlook Trump's flaws in the hopes that Republicans will continue to appoint conservative judges, support limited government, or espouse personal responsibility, that is their right.”
Yes, this is exactly what gives the game away. Because they themselves are not directly harmed by Trump’s insufferable behavior and hateful policies, they’re willing to look the other way to get what they want, regardless of the harm it causes those that are more vulnerable. Get it now? Good.
Reacting to what that person says is not "attacking" them in a vacuum. They are telling us, indirectly, that issues important to many mean nothing, that news must be auto-tuned to a severe right wing bias, and no facts will change his mind.
If that's not grounds to make character judgments of this guy, I don't know what more I'd need to see.
If you don't like that--tough. Liberals aren't saints and don't pretend to be, unlike "can do no wrong/admit nothing" Republicans.
He never said they were dumb or racist, he just accurately summed up the fact that they vote for Trump because they think that his policies might help them directly and won’t hurt them, but they simply don’t care if others are hurt or the country is destroyed, as long as they’re OK, they’re willing to go along. You didn’t understand the article at all.
When I joined the military, I swore an oath to support and defend the constitution. And each time I was promoted I repeated that oath. Trump has indicated a repeating disdain for the constitution. So, he cannot take the oath of office ( without purpose of evasion or mental reservation) in good faith. Every man and woman who that oath would potentially violate it in voting for a man who disavowed the constitution. Full stop. No matter your interests or political leaning.
First-thank you for your service! And thank you for taking your oath to support and defend the constitution. I remember General Milley’s resignation speech. As you have stated, he said I did not take an oath to a man but to the constitution. Raffensperger, Kinzinger, Bowers and Vindman said the same thing. I applaud you Chris Webster. Your patriotism shines. Full stop!
Indeed. When in Massachusetts the choice for governor was Republican William Weld and Democrat John Silber (the president of Boston University), as a BU Law grad and liberal Democrat the choice was easy. I voted for Weld.
I knew Silber pretty well at UT Austin. I never considered him morally bankrupt (He opposed the death penalty, etc.), but he could and did employ his tremendous intellectual power in amazingly self-delusional ways (He supported the Vietnam War completely). It was similar to what MAGA folks do, but I have to believe that even Silber would have abandoned Trump early on. That's how extreme Trump is.
Silber used to say he was considered a "liberal" in Texas. At BU he became known as the "Shah of BU." Anyone who crossed him -- including wealthy alumni on the board of trustees -- were cut off.
Trump governed like Jeb! for the most part for the first 3 years. I actually support Trump’s surrender to the Taliban and $4 trillion in spending and Operation Warp Speed and making Fauci a household name all in 2020.
I was faced with the same choice as Daniel, didn’t really know about politics but my friend group told me Silber was a bad dude. I think it was my first election. And my Grandma used to throw tomatoes at the TV when President Reagan came on - voting for a Republican was tough and we lost a lot of tomatoes in 8 years
#1 - so character doesn’t matter. Grabbing women by the genitals, being convicted of 34 felonies in election interference, cheating on all three wives, paying off a porn star, lying constantly, taking highly classified documents - none of that matters - good to know. Guess he’d be proud to have his son grow up like that. (“But her emails!” )
Chris I hope that in the spirit of fairNess and objectivity, you will also ask your subscribers to write to you about why are people voting for Harris. Some eighty million people voted for the Democratic ticket in 2020. I bet you're not going to get anonymous letters as Harris voters are very PROUD of voting for her and her values .
Great point Dr. it’s almost like what can we do as the “media” to make what the orange shitler does normal. He isn’t normal and the people who support him are not normal either. These people are not republicans. Normal republicans would never support murdering dictators like Putin and little Kim. Normal republicans are about the rule of law and low taxes. Which is just the opposite of the cult followers of the orange one.
But you nailed it here. Yes, let's get a few posts explaining why people feel the need not only to vote against Convicted Felon Trump but FOR Kamala Harris.
Actual reasons: preserving democracy and our Constitutional system of government, making America work for EVERYONE not just the 1% and major corporations.
So your reasons for voting for Harris are because (1) Trump is going to repeal the Constitution and end elections; and (2) You believe that Harris has a plan to make America work for everyone because our current system of government only works for the top 1% and major corporations. I'm sorry, but that sounds just as ridiculous as Trump supporter part 2 that said Trump is our only hope for American world domination.
You just can't argue with MAGAs or liberals, both of whom are incredibly self-righteous, arrogant, and hopelessly biased. The small handful of other moderates and independents on here are the only ones not drinking any Kool-Aid.
This email shows precisely why I don’t engage with Trump voters. Fella tells me basically that morals don’t matter to him, and that Trump best serves his interests. Would have been much more compelling if he’d said that Trump best serves the interests of America and Americans. He, like Donald J Trump, does not look any further than the end of his nose.
Curious about his/her comments about facts. Are facts not facts? The right doesn’t appreciate fact checking, because??? I get that they don’t like it when their candidate is caught in a zillion lies, or mistruths, or misinformation, or falsehoods (pick what works for you). The Trump years certainly have planted the seed about fake news, etc. and alternative facts, but this is the primary (in my opinion) cause of our destructive divide. Facts vs. “Alternative” Facts, Truth vs. Lies, Us vs. Them; we lost the ability to have discussions about facts to form opinions that may differ and for legislators to form a basis of compromise. It was a well written opinion, for sure, but wonder how many people go that deep into the analysis? I do disagree though that the second Trump term would be more of the first. Many people involved in the first are not supporting Trump (fact) and find him to be dangerous to the country (their opinion, but since they were in the room I would give this one more weight). Many of the people Trump brought in toward the end of his administration that supported his refusal to transfer power are likely what a second term administration would look like. No guardrails. And, with half an electorate believing in their own version of facts or truth or inability to discern the difference between fact and opinion, or fact and lie, will they be disappointed with a second term when Trump does not deliver their view of what our country should be (and I do not mean this to be insulting, I am trying to understand why fact checking is a bad thing?).
David Hume wrote that we have biases and fit our reason around it. That’s the emailer’s rationale on facts. He likes the facts he likes and dislikes (and therefore discounts) the ones that don’t fit his worldview. Now this is not exclusive to Trump supporting Republicans. But the difference lies in that many Democrats are aware of the bias and fight against it in themselves. I know I do. I knew few Trumpers (and there are a lot of them in my family on both sides) who do.
Thank you. Great point. The interesting thing about “DEI” training (OMG, did I just say that?) is that it really is mostly about bias. Explicit, implicit, bias you know you have, the biases you have and are not aware of. But, awareness of a bias would mean introspection that many are not willing to acknowledge the need for, let alone actually undertake.
Thanks for linking to this. Yes, objective criteria is what’s needed to eliminate bias. It’s not easy but it has to be applied willingly by people. It helps if people are open minded about their failings, clear that they exist and are self confident enough to amend them.
Sure. I agree with you about everything else. My partner is a psychologist so I have a lot of interest in this. Even those that want to put in the work often don't have the time or money to do so. She opts to turn away people that - in all sincerity - want all their problems solved in 10 sessions. It's very hard work.
Well said. I would add that in the past three or four years Trump has been increasing his expressions of desire for and approval of violence, at many levels.
I was a Republican. Reagan and Bush, George Bush. I voted for Obama because he was historically important and offered a good view of a united America. I loved John McCain as well but I felt that Obama approached the banking crisis better (should have made some people pay though). Romney was OK and would have made a good president but when he kowtowed to Trump he lost me. When the Republicans determined that they had to make Obama fail to survive, even when he tried to make outreach and get things done, I was out. I used to love Lindsey Graham, thinking him practical but principled, but he sold himself for power. I never liked the Clintons but could not stomach Trump. When he said John McCain was not a hero because he was captured, I was disgusted. After the election, my brother kept saying "give Trump a chance". I tried to keep an open mind, but the American carnage inaugural put an end to that. Trump's refusal concede and poor and graceless transition just proved the point. The January 6th riot was a low point in American history. Joe Biden offered a vision of a re-united country and was a nice guy trying to pull the country out of the pandemic and the economic consequences; much of which was Trump's and the MAGA Republicans fault. MAGA has continued to silence all the people that were good conservative Republicans with the integrity to stand up to the cult. I miss them. We need to stop the civil war and stop the MAGA cult, who are the real RINOs. Maybe we can then be the United States again and offer a real conservative party.
I agree with 90% of what you wrote here, but I must add that Biden is much more than just "a nice guy." He has done an incredibly good job in many ways, including getting Congress to pass more major legislation than any president since LBJ.
So this almost sounds sane and balanced except it ignores little details like outright lies about legal Haitian immigrants eating pets, that tariffs are paid by foreign counties, and that in some states I could be prosecuted for exercising my free speech to explain that abortion services were legal in some states, I don’t know anything about Project 2025, and that FEMA is out of money because they gave it all to migrants…
I’m 71 years old. I remember Republican presidents from Eisenhauer (barely) on. To assert Trump is a member of that fraternity is either delusional or deliberately deceptive.
Once again we find a GOPer finding justification for voting for Trump and Chris finding justification for printing another pitiful excuse. If there were no other moral considerations -- and there are many! -- January 6th, promises of "retribution," allowing Putin to do "whatever the hell he wants" and his contempt for humanity would dissuade anyone with a moral compass to reject Trump completely. This guy, afraid to have his name used because he is afraid to be identified with his lack of moral fiber, is just one more Trump lover given an amplified megaphone by Chris. Sorry, but my moral standards reject it completely.
It seems to me that the anonymous (and I don't blame him for remaining anonymous) writer is attempting a good faith discussion. I believe his conclusion is misguided, but even if he cannot be persuaded, the discussion can certainly be useful to others, some of whom may be persuaded by a thorough discussion.
So, this is our third offering on who people vote for trump. This just sanitized and normalizes his abhorrent behavior. Are we going to get three pieces on why people vote for Harris, and advance her agenda as well? And I’m still waiting on the Trump flip flop article that Chris promised.
Chris deserves kudos for giving a platform to these pro-Trump views knowing that most of his subscribers consider the convicted felon thoroughly unfit for office. We do need to hear how such people think. (And I agree with the commenters who said that similar messages from people who are FOR Harris would be appropriate.)
That said, none of these have been anything other than shameful rationalizations, either ignoring Trump's inherent unfitnness or arguing "he's good for me so I don't care about anyone else." The result of these messages -- which, again, thank you Chris for sharing -- is that I'm convinced that if those Trump supporters aren't racists themselves they are choosing to support him for entirely selfish reasons, without regard to his impact on the rest of the country or, indeed, the world.
"This isn’t ignoring facts, or self-delusion, though I certainly have my own biases."
Actually, it's exactly that. This person is one of so many on the right who simply chooses to not believe what reputable news outlets report. A large part of this is that they've been conditioned to do this for most of their lives. His comment about believing in objective reality would be laughable if it weren't so frustrating and maddening.
And, as someone else pointed out, if he can just brush off January 6, that's all you need to know about him. Something in him is badly broken.
I keep coming back to the huge and unfair advantage that Trump took by designing and starring FOR FIFTEEN YEARS in a fantasy television series that falsely presented him as a decisive, successfu, presumably honest genius businessman, all of which is utterly false. He recruited an entire generation of viewers who formed favorable opinions of him based on complete fantasy, but now they feel that they "know" him, and they won't (maybe even can't) change their opinions.
Doesn't matter why they fell for it; I lay a lot of the blame on television programming. I don't know what kind of solution (if any) there can be for that.
I really think fairness is the issue in this election and why a lot of people are voting for President Trump - is it fair I can’t buy a house, is it fair the cost of running my business shot up 5x due to mandatory salary increases but those same people aren’t willing to pay 5x for my product and is it fair that my friend’s kid just died from fentanyl imported by some nameless cartel?
The moral relativism of this voter’s #1 argument is both telling and extremely disturbing. The self-delusion is simply stunning.
So the moral “character” of the person who will become one of, if not the most, powerful person in the world, in possession of the nuclear football and the ability to rain down destruction on our entire planet, simply doesn’t matter?!?
To say that there isn’t a “moral” choice in this election VASTLY misunderstands who Harris and Trump are: Harris is a fairly average politician and will do a fairly average job in the White House (and an “average President”, given some of the outstanding human beings that have held that title is quite high, would itself be a fairly high bar); while Trump is a 34-time convicted felon, an adjudicated rapist and purveyor of business fraud, fomented an attempted insurrection, and lies with virtually every breath and makes things up out of whole cloth, etc, etc, etc, is a singularly unsuitable person to ever be in a position of power.
While it would be easy to just say that this person confirms the level of stupidity of MAGA, I would say more to the point that they simply have chosen to ignore anything and everything that doesn’t suit their worldview and makes them feel better about their completely uninformed decision to vote for Trump.
The delusion is deep and they would be advised to seek help. I do mean that seriously: there’s something profoundly unhealthy about this level of delusion.
The anonymous writer does not appear to be either stupid or uninformed, but those qualities are not prerequisites for being wrong. He certainly is dismissive of the most important values. Short-sighted? Narcissistic? Self-involved? Selfish? Maybe.
I have a friend who has bought into the cult, and it’s hard to stay friends but we have a 50-year history that I don’t want to throw away. He is definitely not stupid. I honestly think he’s been brainwashed.
I love how this Trump voter just shrugs off January 6th at the beginning of his explanation, and then goes on to conclude that there is no difference in "fitness" between the candidates. Do tell.
"So why am I voting for Trump? Mostly for the same reasons anyone ever votes for anyone. I believe he’ll best represent my interests, and that’s really my only consideration."
In other words, I'll be just fine under Trump's hateful policies that demonize vulnerable minorities because I'm not one. So, iIm willing to look the other way and tolerate him being dumb and racist because, hey, I may earn a few extra points on my investments in the market!
You nailed it. His last sentence is completely in line with the world according to Trump....if it's good for me, I don't care about my fellow citizens and how Trump will hurt them. I'd bet a big chunk of money, the writer is a white male.
It never ceases to amaze me how these explanations by Trump voters do nothing to dissuade from the idea that they're not dumb and/or racist (or willing to tolerate both). They just wind up telling on themselves.
Bunch of damn rubes in PA today, some 60 to 100 thousand!
Wow President Trump really got it going today!! 💥
Remember, these people voted for Bush in 2004 when the economy was crappy and he was mismanaging two wars in which thousands of Americans died in. Trump isn’t the problem with the GOP…it’s the Republican voters!
Respectfully, please consider: (i) Using "these people" language other-izes people you disagree with, rather than attempting to understand. If you don't understand (as Chris is trying to help us do), you can't hope to fix anything. (ii) There is an *enormous* difference between the character (and policies) of Bush and Trump. It's baffling to me that anyone would equate them. And, as a practical matter, stopping Trump requires the help of people like the Cheneys - and me! - who admire and respect Reagan, Bush, et al.
I agree that the people who support and enable Trump are the fundamental problem, but Trump is way, way worse than Bush.
Bush was way worse, and it’s not even close. Bush was prepared to steal the 2004 election (he stole the 2000 election) and we know that now because all of the legal rationale Trump presented was developed leading up to 2004.
I share your analysis, Dr. Richards, so many people, and basically all of Maga, care only about how government affects THEM directly, and usually their pocketbook. There’s no feeling of empathy or care for other people, for the planet, for the world in general, just them.
I find it really sad and it makes me wonder what happened to this country, I hope these people weren’t always like that and it’s just that now they have permission to verbalize it, but I fear they probably were… it makes me very sad. Of course, the far right “spokespersons“ like Rush Limbaugh, Donald Trump, and their elk use bigotry and their pulpit to inflame attitudes of those who are already so inclined- it takes time to build up so much . I don’t know how this country can ever be healed, but I do know that we have to stamp out Trump once and for all, and I’m praying for a ginormous victory for Kamala to get us started
Thank you for your articulate way of summarizing the viewpoint of how they can vote for Trump. I guess they’re just like he is so why shouldn’t they?
He doesn’t remember Covid and the constant lies, revolving door, fawning over Putin, scheming to make money off the office.
He says that he is a Republican and that’s his tribe. So just don’t vote this year.
I don't like Trump and I would never vote for him. Still, I find it sad that liberals - the alleged party of enlightenment, tolerance, wisdom, and virtue - will all jump to the conclusion that this person - KNOWING NOTHING ABOUT THEM - is dumb, racist, and only cares about money. You make me sick.
How can we think any differently when he espouses trumps “values” (or lack thereof)
Your husband is a Trumper. Is he dumb, racist, and only cares about money? You're willing to stay married to him even if he votes for Trump? According to most of the liberal posters here, that makes you a complicit racist, too. I think that's unfair and sad. People are WAY more complex than that.
People can be complex all day long, but if they go along and continue to tolerate cruel and uncaring racist, and their spouse, I’d say that the perfect word for that is complicit.
Point taken…
Nobody said he was dumb, racist, and only cares about money. But I sat on my sofa horrified for hours on January 6, 2021 watching Trump supporters attack the Capitol, and try and stop the peaceful transfer of power to the winner of the 2020 election. That's a deal breaker for me. So if this man/or woman can overlook that ugly day in our history which was brought on and tolerated for hours by Trump, I have no respect for them, because they have no morals. IMHO.
But we don’t know “nothing about them”. We know what they wrote. And what they wrote at the very least reveals that they are willing to tolerate a dumb and racist candidate. The most likely reason for that is money.
Exactly- it’s written right there in black-and-white.
Okay "Dr. Chim Richalds". Now I know Anchorman is your favorite movie, which means it's fair for me to assume you are a misogynist jerk like Ron Burgundy and clearly a Trump voter.
Not exactly—that movie was satire, so you might draw the exact opposite conclusions, but that’s beside the point. The Trump voter in Chris’s post shared a lot more of their views (but not their name) to draw conclusions from. In fact, that was the whole reason for their post—they want people to understand their decision to vote for Trump. The fact that their statements lead us readers to draw entirely different conclusions than what they hoped for is a function of their poor justifications for voting for Trump, not TDS or whatever other nonsense you contrive.
You don't even want to understand their reasoning! That is very clear from your hateful response. This person is a lifelong Republican with conservative values. They are not MAGA. They didn't even like the Tea Party. They seem wary of Trump. They don't even support every Republican position. We don't know what their personal views are. But face it, there is a clear divide between Republican and Democratic ideology and neither is right nor wrong. If this person wants to overlook Trump's flaws in the hopes that Republicans will continue to appoint conservative judges, support limited government, or espouse personal responsibility, that is their right. That is democracy. You calling them a dumb racist makes you look like a prejudiced know-it-all. When my liberal urban/suburban friends come to my hometown of 500 people, they make fun of all the rednecks and that way of life out of ignorance, which really pisses me off. Likewise, it pisses me off when my redneck family make asinine statements about gays and minorities out of ignorance. As far as I'm concerned, you're all ignorant and hopelessly entrenched in your own worldviews. It's no wonder the left and right hate each other.
“If this person wants to overlook Trump's flaws in the hopes that Republicans will continue to appoint conservative judges, support limited government, or espouse personal responsibility, that is their right.”
Yes, this is exactly what gives the game away. Because they themselves are not directly harmed by Trump’s insufferable behavior and hateful policies, they’re willing to look the other way to get what they want, regardless of the harm it causes those that are more vulnerable. Get it now? Good.
Reacting to what that person says is not "attacking" them in a vacuum. They are telling us, indirectly, that issues important to many mean nothing, that news must be auto-tuned to a severe right wing bias, and no facts will change his mind.
If that's not grounds to make character judgments of this guy, I don't know what more I'd need to see.
If you don't like that--tough. Liberals aren't saints and don't pretend to be, unlike "can do no wrong/admit nothing" Republicans.
He never said they were dumb or racist, he just accurately summed up the fact that they vote for Trump because they think that his policies might help them directly and won’t hurt them, but they simply don’t care if others are hurt or the country is destroyed, as long as they’re OK, they’re willing to go along. You didn’t understand the article at all.
Well said Ryan!
Lots of folks suffering bigly from TDS! Very serious condition….
you're such an asshole, please go away.
That’s hurtful!
Yeah, almost as awful as Trump himself. A doddering old fool supported by indifferent, selfish, "good enough for me" "Americans."
Yep, this is what life is like in Trump World.
When I joined the military, I swore an oath to support and defend the constitution. And each time I was promoted I repeated that oath. Trump has indicated a repeating disdain for the constitution. So, he cannot take the oath of office ( without purpose of evasion or mental reservation) in good faith. Every man and woman who that oath would potentially violate it in voting for a man who disavowed the constitution. Full stop. No matter your interests or political leaning.
First-thank you for your service! And thank you for taking your oath to support and defend the constitution. I remember General Milley’s resignation speech. As you have stated, he said I did not take an oath to a man but to the constitution. Raffensperger, Kinzinger, Bowers and Vindman said the same thing. I applaud you Chris Webster. Your patriotism shines. Full stop!
Thank you for your service! 🫡
👍
You and me brother...
If one can completely discount January 6, what could Trump ever do that would be disqualifying?
Your question is rhetorical, right? The answer is obviously “nothing”.
Lie.
I would like to think that if there was a Democrat running who was as morally bankrupt as Trump, I would not vote for him.
Indeed. When in Massachusetts the choice for governor was Republican William Weld and Democrat John Silber (the president of Boston University), as a BU Law grad and liberal Democrat the choice was easy. I voted for Weld.
I knew Silber pretty well at UT Austin. I never considered him morally bankrupt (He opposed the death penalty, etc.), but he could and did employ his tremendous intellectual power in amazingly self-delusional ways (He supported the Vietnam War completely). It was similar to what MAGA folks do, but I have to believe that even Silber would have abandoned Trump early on. That's how extreme Trump is.
Silber used to say he was considered a "liberal" in Texas. At BU he became known as the "Shah of BU." Anyone who crossed him -- including wealthy alumni on the board of trustees -- were cut off.
Sounds just like him.
Trump governed like Jeb! for the most part for the first 3 years. I actually support Trump’s surrender to the Taliban and $4 trillion in spending and Operation Warp Speed and making Fauci a household name all in 2020.
I was faced with the same choice as Daniel, didn’t really know about politics but my friend group told me Silber was a bad dude. I think it was my first election. And my Grandma used to throw tomatoes at the TV when President Reagan came on - voting for a Republican was tough and we lost a lot of tomatoes in 8 years
#1 - so character doesn’t matter. Grabbing women by the genitals, being convicted of 34 felonies in election interference, cheating on all three wives, paying off a porn star, lying constantly, taking highly classified documents - none of that matters - good to know. Guess he’d be proud to have his son grow up like that. (“But her emails!” )
Moral people cannot vote for Donald J Trump in good conscience. He is an abomination.
Amen.
And to send his daughters and granddaughters out to get grabbed by the pussy.
Chris I hope that in the spirit of fairNess and objectivity, you will also ask your subscribers to write to you about why are people voting for Harris. Some eighty million people voted for the Democratic ticket in 2020. I bet you're not going to get anonymous letters as Harris voters are very PROUD of voting for her and her values .
Great point Dr. it’s almost like what can we do as the “media” to make what the orange shitler does normal. He isn’t normal and the people who support him are not normal either. These people are not republicans. Normal republicans would never support murdering dictators like Putin and little Kim. Normal republicans are about the rule of law and low taxes. Which is just the opposite of the cult followers of the orange one.
Sometimes you're a little over the top. :)
But you nailed it here. Yes, let's get a few posts explaining why people feel the need not only to vote against Convicted Felon Trump but FOR Kamala Harris.
We've already heard your reasons: joy, optimism, and chasing Democratic Party fever dreams. 🙄
Actual reasons: preserving democracy and our Constitutional system of government, making America work for EVERYONE not just the 1% and major corporations.
So your reasons for voting for Harris are because (1) Trump is going to repeal the Constitution and end elections; and (2) You believe that Harris has a plan to make America work for everyone because our current system of government only works for the top 1% and major corporations. I'm sorry, but that sounds just as ridiculous as Trump supporter part 2 that said Trump is our only hope for American world domination.
Wow, if you were with Jim Jones you definitely would have drunk the Kool-Aid.
Your bizarre misinterpretations of what I said says far more about you than me.
You just can't argue with MAGAs or liberals, both of whom are incredibly self-righteous, arrogant, and hopelessly biased. The small handful of other moderates and independents on here are the only ones not drinking any Kool-Aid.
Troll
That’s a great question?
Why would ANYONE after these past few years! Good grief!
This email shows precisely why I don’t engage with Trump voters. Fella tells me basically that morals don’t matter to him, and that Trump best serves his interests. Would have been much more compelling if he’d said that Trump best serves the interests of America and Americans. He, like Donald J Trump, does not look any further than the end of his nose.
True, and his presentation was exceptionally glib.
Curious about his/her comments about facts. Are facts not facts? The right doesn’t appreciate fact checking, because??? I get that they don’t like it when their candidate is caught in a zillion lies, or mistruths, or misinformation, or falsehoods (pick what works for you). The Trump years certainly have planted the seed about fake news, etc. and alternative facts, but this is the primary (in my opinion) cause of our destructive divide. Facts vs. “Alternative” Facts, Truth vs. Lies, Us vs. Them; we lost the ability to have discussions about facts to form opinions that may differ and for legislators to form a basis of compromise. It was a well written opinion, for sure, but wonder how many people go that deep into the analysis? I do disagree though that the second Trump term would be more of the first. Many people involved in the first are not supporting Trump (fact) and find him to be dangerous to the country (their opinion, but since they were in the room I would give this one more weight). Many of the people Trump brought in toward the end of his administration that supported his refusal to transfer power are likely what a second term administration would look like. No guardrails. And, with half an electorate believing in their own version of facts or truth or inability to discern the difference between fact and opinion, or fact and lie, will they be disappointed with a second term when Trump does not deliver their view of what our country should be (and I do not mean this to be insulting, I am trying to understand why fact checking is a bad thing?).
David Hume wrote that we have biases and fit our reason around it. That’s the emailer’s rationale on facts. He likes the facts he likes and dislikes (and therefore discounts) the ones that don’t fit his worldview. Now this is not exclusive to Trump supporting Republicans. But the difference lies in that many Democrats are aware of the bias and fight against it in themselves. I know I do. I knew few Trumpers (and there are a lot of them in my family on both sides) who do.
Thank you. Great point. The interesting thing about “DEI” training (OMG, did I just say that?) is that it really is mostly about bias. Explicit, implicit, bias you know you have, the biases you have and are not aware of. But, awareness of a bias would mean introspection that many are not willing to acknowledge the need for, let alone actually undertake.
75% of Americans have implicit bias with regards to race, so that's a nice anecdote about Democrats, but no....
https://www.pbs.org/newshour/nation/making-people-aware-of-their-implicit-biases-doesnt-usually-change-minds-but-heres-what-does-work
Thanks for linking to this. Yes, objective criteria is what’s needed to eliminate bias. It’s not easy but it has to be applied willingly by people. It helps if people are open minded about their failings, clear that they exist and are self confident enough to amend them.
Sure. I agree with you about everything else. My partner is a psychologist so I have a lot of interest in this. Even those that want to put in the work often don't have the time or money to do so. She opts to turn away people that - in all sincerity - want all their problems solved in 10 sessions. It's very hard work.
Well said. I would add that in the past three or four years Trump has been increasing his expressions of desire for and approval of violence, at many levels.
Kellyanne Conway said it first - “alternative facts” - She knew it then because it was the bedrock of DT’s presidency. Still is his armor.
So Trump others are not aware of or believe what is written in Project 2025 is bad for the US or will even occur??
What about Jan 6th and Trump being a traitor??
Our society's lack of honesty, integrity, and poor public education is on full display here.
I was a Republican. Reagan and Bush, George Bush. I voted for Obama because he was historically important and offered a good view of a united America. I loved John McCain as well but I felt that Obama approached the banking crisis better (should have made some people pay though). Romney was OK and would have made a good president but when he kowtowed to Trump he lost me. When the Republicans determined that they had to make Obama fail to survive, even when he tried to make outreach and get things done, I was out. I used to love Lindsey Graham, thinking him practical but principled, but he sold himself for power. I never liked the Clintons but could not stomach Trump. When he said John McCain was not a hero because he was captured, I was disgusted. After the election, my brother kept saying "give Trump a chance". I tried to keep an open mind, but the American carnage inaugural put an end to that. Trump's refusal concede and poor and graceless transition just proved the point. The January 6th riot was a low point in American history. Joe Biden offered a vision of a re-united country and was a nice guy trying to pull the country out of the pandemic and the economic consequences; much of which was Trump's and the MAGA Republicans fault. MAGA has continued to silence all the people that were good conservative Republicans with the integrity to stand up to the cult. I miss them. We need to stop the civil war and stop the MAGA cult, who are the real RINOs. Maybe we can then be the United States again and offer a real conservative party.
I agree with 90% of what you wrote here, but I must add that Biden is much more than just "a nice guy." He has done an incredibly good job in many ways, including getting Congress to pass more major legislation than any president since LBJ.
Great comments
So this almost sounds sane and balanced except it ignores little details like outright lies about legal Haitian immigrants eating pets, that tariffs are paid by foreign counties, and that in some states I could be prosecuted for exercising my free speech to explain that abortion services were legal in some states, I don’t know anything about Project 2025, and that FEMA is out of money because they gave it all to migrants…
I’m 71 years old. I remember Republican presidents from Eisenhauer (barely) on. To assert Trump is a member of that fraternity is either delusional or deliberately deceptive.
Well said.
Once again we find a GOPer finding justification for voting for Trump and Chris finding justification for printing another pitiful excuse. If there were no other moral considerations -- and there are many! -- January 6th, promises of "retribution," allowing Putin to do "whatever the hell he wants" and his contempt for humanity would dissuade anyone with a moral compass to reject Trump completely. This guy, afraid to have his name used because he is afraid to be identified with his lack of moral fiber, is just one more Trump lover given an amplified megaphone by Chris. Sorry, but my moral standards reject it completely.
It seems to me that the anonymous (and I don't blame him for remaining anonymous) writer is attempting a good faith discussion. I believe his conclusion is misguided, but even if he cannot be persuaded, the discussion can certainly be useful to others, some of whom may be persuaded by a thorough discussion.
So, this is our third offering on who people vote for trump. This just sanitized and normalizes his abhorrent behavior. Are we going to get three pieces on why people vote for Harris, and advance her agenda as well? And I’m still waiting on the Trump flip flop article that Chris promised.
Please don't hold your breath Dawn Kucera waiting for Chris's post on Trump's flip flop.
Oh, I don’t expect it. I just bring it up every now and then.
Chris deserves kudos for giving a platform to these pro-Trump views knowing that most of his subscribers consider the convicted felon thoroughly unfit for office. We do need to hear how such people think. (And I agree with the commenters who said that similar messages from people who are FOR Harris would be appropriate.)
That said, none of these have been anything other than shameful rationalizations, either ignoring Trump's inherent unfitnness or arguing "he's good for me so I don't care about anyone else." The result of these messages -- which, again, thank you Chris for sharing -- is that I'm convinced that if those Trump supporters aren't racists themselves they are choosing to support him for entirely selfish reasons, without regard to his impact on the rest of the country or, indeed, the world.
"This isn’t ignoring facts, or self-delusion, though I certainly have my own biases."
Actually, it's exactly that. This person is one of so many on the right who simply chooses to not believe what reputable news outlets report. A large part of this is that they've been conditioned to do this for most of their lives. His comment about believing in objective reality would be laughable if it weren't so frustrating and maddening.
And, as someone else pointed out, if he can just brush off January 6, that's all you need to know about him. Something in him is badly broken.
I keep coming back to the huge and unfair advantage that Trump took by designing and starring FOR FIFTEEN YEARS in a fantasy television series that falsely presented him as a decisive, successfu, presumably honest genius businessman, all of which is utterly false. He recruited an entire generation of viewers who formed favorable opinions of him based on complete fantasy, but now they feel that they "know" him, and they won't (maybe even can't) change their opinions.
What scares me is that a large number of people are so simple-minded and gullible that they fell for it
Doesn't matter why they fell for it; I lay a lot of the blame on television programming. I don't know what kind of solution (if any) there can be for that.
Yes, capitalism is so unfair!
How dare President Trump be the star of the apprentice???
I really think fairness is the issue in this election and why a lot of people are voting for President Trump - is it fair I can’t buy a house, is it fair the cost of running my business shot up 5x due to mandatory salary increases but those same people aren’t willing to pay 5x for my product and is it fair that my friend’s kid just died from fentanyl imported by some nameless cartel?
The moral relativism of this voter’s #1 argument is both telling and extremely disturbing. The self-delusion is simply stunning.
So the moral “character” of the person who will become one of, if not the most, powerful person in the world, in possession of the nuclear football and the ability to rain down destruction on our entire planet, simply doesn’t matter?!?
To say that there isn’t a “moral” choice in this election VASTLY misunderstands who Harris and Trump are: Harris is a fairly average politician and will do a fairly average job in the White House (and an “average President”, given some of the outstanding human beings that have held that title is quite high, would itself be a fairly high bar); while Trump is a 34-time convicted felon, an adjudicated rapist and purveyor of business fraud, fomented an attempted insurrection, and lies with virtually every breath and makes things up out of whole cloth, etc, etc, etc, is a singularly unsuitable person to ever be in a position of power.
While it would be easy to just say that this person confirms the level of stupidity of MAGA, I would say more to the point that they simply have chosen to ignore anything and everything that doesn’t suit their worldview and makes them feel better about their completely uninformed decision to vote for Trump.
The delusion is deep and they would be advised to seek help. I do mean that seriously: there’s something profoundly unhealthy about this level of delusion.
The anonymous writer does not appear to be either stupid or uninformed, but those qualities are not prerequisites for being wrong. He certainly is dismissive of the most important values. Short-sighted? Narcissistic? Self-involved? Selfish? Maybe.
I have a friend who has bought into the cult, and it’s hard to stay friends but we have a 50-year history that I don’t want to throw away. He is definitely not stupid. I honestly think he’s been brainwashed.
That's a rough situation. Best of luck to you.