I doubt it will be noticeable overnight, but at least some of his supporters will be pushed into a degree of impoverishment that inhibits political engagement.
this post was submitted on 08 Mar 2025
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They aren't engaged now. Anyone who really looks at politics beyond the talking points that are delivered by the right knows how insane the right is.
Lack of citizen engagement makes it easier to blame immigrants and trans women.
OK, I have read some evidence that shows how when a level of impoverishment is reached, people are too preoccupied with day to day and week to week survival to bother with voting or much of any other civil engagement.
I won't waste more time on this, I'm not interested in arguing over the definition of 'disengaged'.
Isnt that what most of his voter base already is?
The fact that they voted means they are not disengaged.
Yours might have just been an offhand comment, but as it might be a genuine question I provided a brief answer.
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People in the grave can no longer vote for Trump.
I actually disagree.
There is a tipping point when MAGA followers are forced into situations where they must rely on their neighbour and mutual aid. They'll be forced out of necessity to interact with people across the aisle who are giving them compassion.
You're already seeing republicans flipping before that point from the DOGE cuts. Also, the governor of Kentucky is already flipping after their largest purchaser by a long-shot, Canada, took all their booze off the shelves.
I think this overlooks how most MAGAs are rural.. and when you live rural you already rely on your neighbors. Most of which are also white and the exceptions are ""one of the good ones."" It's why they can demonize entire demographics and still feeling like a good person since they're good neighbors.
They're not going to stop blaming 'the others' for hardships.. They're just going increase complaints about 'the government' and how much they pay in taxes.
I grew up in Amish country/farmland and it's painful to see how stagnant my family has been over the years.
The question is, will I have reached a breaking point where I will no longer be willing to help them?
Doubt (x) seeing as he was elected twice, they won't ever learn it will always be the "other guys" politician's fault
There is a tipping point when MAGA followers are forced into situations where they must rely on their neighbour and mutual aid.
By the time we reach that point, there won't be an aisle. There won't be a government.
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Not every Trump voter is a die hard MAGA, a large amount just don't pay attention and vote republican out of habit because the media has told them for decades that Republicans are better for the economy or just because that is the party their parents voted for.
Social identity. Hardship together. This is no joke.
I just FaceTimed with a MAGA this week as they industriously cooked a weeks worth of food to freeze. This is an individual who traditionally only defrosts processed crap on baking sheets, despises leftovers, and grocery shops every 1-3 days rather than storing food.
Not this week. Now they’re all about unprocessed foods, cooking to save money, and meal planning in advance. A 180 shift from a week ago. In addition, they’re starting a pantry.
That's the rough part a lot of Americans need to swallow: MAGA is full of disenfranchised people that would otherwise organize in solidarity for the common good of the working class.
There's just been so many wedges and fences built up from the Cold War that the ruling class has been able to deflect and distract from progressive policy and maintain power.
Try the Civil War
You're talking about babies who couldn't wear a mask during COVID. They have no sense of struggle and no toleration for hardship
They also had their god emperor refusing to wear masks, and political leaders openly denying the disease.
They had support for their grievences.
They won't get that over the economy. Instead, they're getting "this is necessary" and "you'll just have to make some sacrifices for the economy".
Their God emperor was wearing a mask and taking vaccine shots behind the scenes. He then tells them the opposite.
I even have trouble believing the people that "converted back". I just think if things change for them and time passes they'll go back to being Republicans or MAGA.
100%. The people who have turned away from the Republican party have only done so out of a distaste for Trump, and maybe Elon. They are almost certainly not opposed much of what is being done, just how they are going about it, and who is doing it.
Or, they've just had their faces eaten by leopards, and are upset that they're suffering the consequences of their actions.
You don't get to be a Republican in 2016 or 2024 without being ok with burning the whole system down, with dreams of it being to your own benefit. They just don't trust the current would-be monarchs to be the ones to actually give them what they believe they're due.
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This is starting to sound a lot like the typical Russian mentality.
Russia's biggest export atm.
It's more common.
Even more so if it hurts the ones they hate even more. If they lose their job but see five children deported, they probably see it as a win.
Sounds pretty communist to me
It's the same playbook as foreign sanctions elsewhere.
The Assads, Kims, and Putins of the world can get their people to rally into a "bunker mentality" which helps prop up their regimes as a grand and noble struggle.
Trump has brought the same energy home. And history shows you can milk it for decades or generations even before something essential craxks.
To add, many Nazis were unrepentant.
And life for most Germans turned shitty really fast, with wages dropping to depression levels with a lot more work hours.
Struggle is a key part of propaganda and cult of personality, all for the "better good". And if they already are this far, they will keep going
... until THEY lose their job to the Trumpcession.
Difference is that Trump Term 1 didn't really impose a cost on them directly. And so far, the idea of hardship sounds alright.
But when they are dumped to the curb at age 66 with social security cuts, half the 401k they thought they had, and even Walmart ain't hiring...
Social identity is key to survival, so it's no surprise how resistant people are.
An old mentor of mine at UCLA did a study where they put people in an fMRI machine and monitored brain function when feeling rejected during a digital game of catch. When the other two "players" (NPCs) started only tossing between each other and excluding the participant, the part of the brain responsible for physical pain triggered.
Not being rejected from others around you is so important to human survival that evolution hardwired our brain to feel pain at the slightest hint of being rejected. Other experiments found similar, we forego an awful lot to stay in good graces with our society.
Yes, but the number of Trump supporters is dwindling.
They've been saying that since Cheeto ran for office the second time and look where we are. 🙄
This is true of USA in general though. The state is always attacking people inside and outside its "borders". But people still genuflect, sing the anthem, "defend the constitution", etc. It's not just "social identity". It's a nationalist cult.
We heading to the bad place. Im ok though, I realize in many ways I hit a sweet spot in history and location. Kinda like riding out the wave of progress into the dumpster.