Title: The Circus of Politics: Lessons from Trump’s Triumphs
Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the unnervingly entertaining realm of politics where the stakes are high, the humor is sharper than a well-honed dagger, and the absurdity can only be likened to a bad comedy skit gone viral. I’ll be your guide today on this whirlwind tour, as we dissect and entertain the themes laid out in the article you’ve just waded through—where American politics meets Irish realities, and where “progressivism” apparently has all the weight of a paper towel.
“On some great and glorious day the plain folks of the land will reach their heart’s desire at last and the White House will be adorned by a downright moron.” – H.L. Mencken
Ah, Mencken! The man had a knack for calling it as he saw it. And boy, did he see it coming. Is there a better description of the past few elections than that? Especially with the proclamation of yet another Trump candidacy looming over us like a raincloud at a picnic?
Our dear friend Musk claims it’s "Game, set and match to Trump," suggesting, no doubt, that a moron can somehow outsmart an entire political party. I mean, if that’s not the ultimate insult to the intelligentsia, I don’t know what is! It’s like watching a couple of chess grandmasters get checkmated by a toddler juggling the pieces. And what’s the takeaway? Sometimes, it seems you can drop out of Harvard and still have the political finesse of a seasoned pro… or at least the bravado.
1. Demographics is Not Destiny
Let’s talk demographics, shall we? This is a favourite pastime of many an analyst: looking at data like tea leaves in a cup, convinced they predict the future. But let’s face it—just because you’ve got a colorful pie chart doesn’t mean people aren’t going to vote for the candidate whose hair looks like it survived a tornado.
The Democrats, bless them, thought they could coast on demographic changes like they were driving a retirement home bingo game in a converted school bus. But when folks—like those who voted for Obama—switch allegiances faster than a kid in a candy store, it’s clear you didn’t read the room. Whispers of “racism” in the wake of Trump’s win, when former Obama voters joined the ranks? It’s like calling a brussel sprout a delicacy because some food critic described it as “earthy”. Newsflash: sometimes people want a good steak, not a side of guilt.
2. Successful Parties: A Coalition of Contradictions
Here’s the kicker: successful parties learn to straddle the line between liberalism and conservatism as deftly as a circus performer on a tightrope. And yet, in the good ol’ U.S. of A., the parties have decided it’s cooler to become full-on ideological raves—no one gets out alive without a tie-dye T-shirt and questionable choices in music (and policy).
Remember when we had leaders who could walk the line of fiscal conservatism to actually deliver something to the people? Now it’s all about the performance: who can shout the loudest without freaking out about the consequences? If this was a sitcom, we’d all be rooting for the wily underdog who befriends the dog, not the one trying to sell us furniture from a sketchy warehouse.
3. Media Bubbles: The Burst Heard ‘Round the World
Let’s touch on the media bubbles. There’s nothing like politics putting you in a bubble that bursts—like a bad balloon animal at a child’s party. When all you’re fed is a diet of “You’re right. You’re always right!” and you go out into the big bad world, expecting everyone to concede, reality hits harder than a two-headed coin toss. Look at poor Kamala’s ill-fated campaign ads. Once they aired, they were more theatrical than Shakespeare, complete with tragic fate!
Everyone likes to believe they’re the star of their own show, except in politics, the ratings drop faster than an overnight talk show that misses the mark. You pop that bubble, and all hell breaks loose.
4. Progressivism vs. Progress: A Woke Dilemma
Ah, the classic “progressive” conundrum! You know, it’s like putting a fancy label on a can of baked beans and expecting people to applaud. Progress is all well and good until it makes you about as popular as last week’s fish-and-chips. The clamor for progressivism, while noble, appears a tad blind to the realities facing average voters hungry for tangible change.
Worry not, dear friends; this isn’t just U.S. chaos—it’s a sensation rippling through Irish political waters too. Progressivism — what a delightful catchphrase! But if it doesn’t translate to real, dogged progress, it becomes as useful as a chocolate teapot.
5. Reframing the Future: A Real Talk
Last but certainly not least, let’s chat about the future. The glaring disparity in social trust—is it getting to the point where people relinquish their faith in institutions as readily as they give up on a diet at a buffet? And can we all just agree? The so-called dichotomies of the past are old hats—what we need is a collaboration that resembles a well-oiled machine rather than a discarded toy.
In conclusion, if we want to avoid a rerun of a post-apocalyptic sitcom ruled by chaos and questionable hairstyles, we’ve got to think bigger and better. This isn’t merely about grabbing the mic; it’s about knowing the lyrics before you bust a move on the dance floor of democracy.
Let’s keep the conversation going, because if we can’t laugh at politics, then we might just be doomed to sit by and watch the greatest show on Earth unfold, one baffling moment at a time. Remember, folks—politics is just showbiz for ugly people!
Well, there you have it—a cheeky dive into the intricate, chaotic landscape of modern politics both in America and beyond. Stay sharp, stay observant, and perhaps, just perhaps, steer clear of those political bubbles!
On some great and glorious day the plain folks of the land will reach their heart’s desire at last and the White House will be adorned by a downright moron.
-HR Mencken, On Politics: A Carnival of Buncombe
“Game, set and match to Trump”, said one of his biggest supporters, Elon Musk. If you do subscribe to the idea that Trump is, to use Mencken’s words, ‘a downright moron’ then ask yourself why the ‘smarter’ Democrat party has lost twice to him now.
1, Demographics is not destiny
This is a favourite theme of mine over the years, since the very first year of Slugger in fact. It’s a trap which is very easy to fall into if your eye is too narrowly focused on a subset of data but are not paying enough attention to what voters on the ground are telling you.
Demographic measures show us how populations shift. They help elected politicians to move policy to meet societal change. Demography is important but it cannot (and never could) predict political change.
Trump in each of his races for the White House has thrown electoral switches in most major ethnic groups (including working class whites). The transformation of Ohio from blue under Obama to solid red for Trump and most lately in the Rio Grande valley.
Democrat surrogates described Trump’s 2016 win as a victory for racists when it included people who had twice voted for Obama. Sure, good ole boys lined up for him, but they never defined his appeal. It just accelerated Dem decline in working class votes across divides.
Not only are demographics not destiny but people really resent being told how to vote based on their identity. Many will respond positively to such appeals, but not everyone will stay put if they believe their personal interests require a different political choice.
2, Successful parties operate as coalitions of liberals and conservatives
In the 20th century both Republican and Democrat Presidents played a role in developing policy to ameliorate inequality. The late C19 saw the Gilded Age give rise to rural populism in the marginalised Democrat south, and Teddy Roosevelt’s Bullmoose Republicans.
Beyond the messy foreground of who won and who lost towards the long arc of American politics laid out in Daniel Schlozman and Sam Rosenfeld called The Hollow Parties. You also see how common purpose has been subsumed in the Mindf*ck of digital politics.
Hollowness, we argue, is the condition that makes sense of contradictory tendencies. Hollow parties are parties that, for all their array of activities, demonstrate fundamental incapacities in organising democracy.
Schlozman and Rosenfeld argue that properly functioning political parties become a sort of living bridge between locality (where all of us are at our most knowable and most ordinary) and the national capital where key decisions over resources are made.
To hold enough power to press for effective government you can’t just be a party of the cities, the suburbs, degree educated or exclusively of the left as some in Ireland have tried to do. Ignoring the rural vote (as the SDLP has) just hands your opposition an easy pass.
3, When media bubbles burst, things can shift disastrously…
Dublin based Conor Fitzgerald noted the following just after that Biden debate that led to his resignation that…
…just because a particular point of view is presented back at you repeatedly by the magic mirror of the media doesn’t mean that it’s true; and that there will come a point where a concrete price has to be paid for pretending something is true that is verifiably isn’t.
How can you anchor into reality if all you ever measure is media performance and remote quantitative figures from a polling industry too many use to feed their own dreams (and, perhaps, other people’s nightmares) and a media afraid to draw obvious conclusions.
Fitzgerald again on the issue of the non reporting of Joe Biden’s mental acuity…
…a masterpiece example of how the press cover a story they don’t want to cover. The first step is if at all possible don’t report on it; if you have to, put factual reporting in the opinion pages so it can be falsely dismissed as a subjective take.
Embarrassingly, he states, this self censorship leaves the like of Joe Rogan and Infowars in a better place to narrate reality than many in the mainstream too terrified to speak the truth to the power they’d prefer to win. This is a commonplace in Northern Ireland.
4, Don’t confuse progressivism with progress
The democrats mistook being progressive for offering actual progress for the voters it assumed was a key element to its electoral base. The first is a limp adjective, the second can be a verb (what you plan to do) and a noun (evidence that what you’ve done worked).
Talk of minority rights only ignores the needs of those struggling to keep a roof above their heads. It sets individualist entitlement above the solidarity the left once worked hard to bring into action. They need evidential progress, not progressive promises.
5, Reframe around a real future
The loss of social trust between individuals and the institutions in US society took a long time to build up, as this graph from Putnam and Garrett’s epic work The Upswing shows.
Recovery, if it happens, will be slow, and periodically reversed. And possible only if we can think of it.
We need other people and other people need us. Time for all of us to get real and get serious about all our futures (economic, social and environmental) together, not just those of the wealthy.
What are the consequences of avoiding open conversations about a leader’s abilities in political discourse?
Pe and denial. The absence of a frank conversation about a leader’s capabilities can have ramifications that echo through time; it’s akin to ignoring the proverbial elephant in the room while expecting it to leave quietly.
When media fails to capture the complexities of public sentiment, people may feel alienated and unheard, leading to seismic shifts in political landscapes. The importance of grounding political discourse in reality cannot be overstressed. Disconnection from the public can result in a catastrophic understanding of voter needs and priorities.
4, Policy without Pragmatism is a Gamble
The allure of bold policies is immense, but let’s not kid ourselves—without a practical approach, they merely serve as eye candy for idealists. Politicians often sell grand visions that sound promising but crumble upon encountering the gritty realities of governance. We must ask ourselves: how do these policies translate into real-life improvements for everyday citizens?
Take housing, for instance. Grand promises of affordable housing are made, yet the mechanisms to deliver these solutions are often vague at best. Is there a clear strategy for funding? A comprehensive plan that addresses community needs? If the answers are vague, it’s only fair to question the sincerity behind those lofty goals.
5, We Need More than Just Political Rhetoric
In the era of instant communication, the overabundance of political rhetoric is overwhelming. Yet what’s often missing is the actionable follow-through on those discussions. The risk we face is that the cacophony of voices drowns out real conversations about problem-solving.
The challenge for leaders is to move beyond mere rhetoric and engage in meaningful conversations that include all stakeholders. It’s about creating environments in which diverse views can be heard and respected, so we can forge paths together, rather than fracturing into echo chambers.
The Path Forward
The state of modern politics demands that we not only engage in discussions but actively seek to translate those discussions into tangible outcomes. We have legs to stand on if we can rebuild trust and focus on actionable policies that reflect the diverse needs of our populace.
In truth, we’re all just trying to grapple with the complexities of our world and find a way forward. So let’s embrace forward-thinking, not just for the sake of being progressive, but for the sake of practical, prosperous living for all.
Let’s march beyond the noise, with clear lenses on the realities of our societies, lest we get swept away by political currents that serve only to divide rather than unite.