Lessons from a Much Closer than Expected Election

I was hoping for, and even expecting, a decisive victory for Biden and a flip of the Senate as an indictment on the past four years under Donald Trump and the blatant hypocrisy of the Senate. But that wasn’t what happened. This has been a nail biter, causing anxiety and anger across the nation. No one is happy and we still face a runoff for the Senate seats in Georgia that will determine the majority. Trump supporters are crying foul and threatening violence while Biden supporters are shaking their heads in dismay. It is clear to me that we are living in a nation divided. And not all that division is based on reality, but baseless Trump rhetoric. After listening to different voices, I realize that not many people actually like Trump as a person. Most acknowledge that he is not a decent or even moral human being. But he and his policies stand for a way of life in America that his supporters want to protect.

I must first confess that I live in a progressive bubble. I work among academics who are largely liberal. I socialize among college-educated progressives. My family members are educated, liberal, and largely Christian. Because of the algorithms built into social media platforms, my social media “friends” are largely progressives, too. I avoid conservative media like Fox News and conservative radio talk shows. The only time I really hear conservative voices is on CNN and C-Span. Even in those rare moments, I wonder how people could view the world so differently from me. My mouth falls open in dismay when I hear people repeat the baseless falsehoods by Trump as if they were the complete rational truth. We know that they, too, live in a bubble where the lies are reinforced from every direction. So, they probably look at me with the same level of dismay.

I’ve also come to realize is that Trump supporters are terrified of change. They are afraid of diversity and inclusion because it means embracing differences and sharing power. If there is too much difference, they are afraid that their values, their traditions, their jobs, their decisions, their religion, and their privilege will all be challenged. They are afraid that they will no longer be able to force their will and their ways on others. They are afraid that they will be held accountable for their discrimination against women, people of color, immigrants, people with disabilities, and LGBTQ people. They like their jobs in oil and coal because they have grown accustomed to these industries and are uncomfortable with the notion of having to learn new skills. So, they willingly deny the science behind climate change based on a combination of their religion and their ignorance of science. They feel threatened by the thought that they’re losing jobs to people from other parts of the world, so they shut down trade deals and immigration. They are afraid of the kind of democratic socialism that will actually improve their lives because they literally lack the intellectual curiosity to learn about it. They think are told to think of Cuba and Venezuela instead of Canada or Finland when they consider democratic socialism that will provide them with affordable healthcare and higher education.

Trump voters simply do not want to change. They are stuck in the comfort and simplicity of the past where sex was only male or female, where men were in charge, where marriage was only between a man and a woman, and where minorities were discriminated against so that they could have an advantage in just about every facet of American life. They are stuck in the notion that sexual harassment, unwanted pregnancies, and even rape are the responsibility of wanton females because “men are just being men”. Donald Trump represents the ability cling to this kind of past. Many of his supporters say it is about being “pro-life” but I doubt it because they have willingly and knowingly thrown away the lives of Americans by refusing to wear masks in public, by allowing babies to be separated from their parents, and by allowing millions to die because they can’t afford healthcare. So, no, it’s not about abortion and being pro-life. Any Trump supporter who tells you this is lying to themselves and to you. It’s about their emotionally driven fear of losing power and privilege afforded to straight white people. They feel threatened and were willing to stand behind a totalitarian bully who promised to defend them.

Now that we have finally thrown the fear-monger in chief out of our White House, we have work to do to first secure a majority in the Senate and second, to bring these people along both intellectually and emotionally. At the moment, they are fearful and furious and itching for a fight. But Jesus gave us the answer. Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. Let’s be good to our neighbors, especially those who supported Trump. Let’s prove by our words and actions that inclusion is better than exclusion. Let’s prove that clean water and air and clean jobs are better than pollution. Let’s prove that good public health policies and expanded healthcare benefits us all. Let’s prove that economic growth lies in the expansion of health, education, and welfare and not in denying immigration, good education, and food stamps to poor people. Let’s prove that voter suppression and intimidation have no place in the U.S. and that reasonable visions and arguments should win the vote.

It won’t be easy, but I’m convinced that we can succeed if we take the same level of energy, creativity, and funding from this election and funnel them into winning the senate and then into campaign to win the hearts and minds of half the country based on legitimate science, compassion, reason, information, and evidence. All those red states that voted overwhelmingly for Trump need to be the target of campaigns for inclusion, public health, American history, government, patriotism, and climate science.

If we don’t start winning the hearts and minds of Trump Americans, we’re likely to find ourselves in the same awful place in four short years.