This. The republicans have completely failed on the “affordability” narrative to the point where their own base isn’t buying it anymore. Between defunding healthcare and the real time impacts of DOGE fucking up, well gestures vaguely at everything. It’s almost impossible to pick a single unifying issue since there is so much fucked up right now. I think it’s hard to build a narrative because there’s so much discontent but there’s so many angry people that I can’t call Trump popular.

You have nailed the basic rot of our society but underestimate the work. Community has fragmented so much that reaching these people is, well difficult. There is a few major problems, first the media has done an incredible job of convincing a major portion of the population to hate their own children. I am still amazed they pulled off this alchemy, but people who identify as conservative are willing to believe that their own adult children are just lazy lairs corrupted by the liberal media instead of the basic fact that capitalism is failing young people. It’s baffling and terrifying that they’re willing to cut off family instead of examining their own circumstances. Second, furthering the community collapse is the lack of jobs in rural areas. Educated Americans go to get jobs, but jobs that require a college education only spawn in blue areas. So these folks tend to be branded traitors by the community they left behind and the new area they vote in already agrees with them. It’s a huge self selection bias. Ugh then there’s AI and social media making the disinformation even worse and I am trying to disentangle that in my own family.

TL:DR- we’re really sick and distrustful. People are trying and while you’re not wrong to criticize please give us some grace as we figure out how to out maneuver our billionaire controlled media to undo this brainwashing. Also you’re not wrong saying it will take decades.