The liberals in America have been in the ascendancy since the “turn on, tune in, drop out” 1960s. The Lyndon Johnson years marked the beginning of vast new entitlements, “Great Society” welfare handouts which benefitted the takers over the providers. And, of course, provided Johnson with massive numbers of new voters he and his leftist cohorts could rely on to “vote Democratic for the next two hundred years”, as he put it.

From there, we saw the rise of the academics, Hollywood entertainers, “artists”, biased mainstream news media, “oppressed” minority groups, Keynesian economists, fringe environmentalists and plaintiff trial lawyers, plumply staffing the legions of adherents to the growing “progressive” religion. The schools, pushed by the unions, taught children to be non-judgmental in the areas of morality and lifestyle, to expect trophies even when they lose, yet failed to teach them civics, accountability and personal responsibility. All these liberals helped to push this country off the rails.

Fast-forward to the inevitable result, today’s humongous problems: a $20 trillion national debt, nearly half the country receiving assorted government hand-outs, coddled university students fretting over microaggressions and retreating  to “safe spaces” to cry when faced with opposing viewpoints, a diminished America that’s lost status and respect on the world stage, and an embedded political class which expands government’s tentacles while thinking they know how to spend your money better than you do.

Into this crucible of dysfunction, enter Trump, bringing a new day and another way of thinking. The liberals mocked him, called him racist and misogynistic, and at first dismissed him. But he kept up his talk of “taking back your country”. Bringing back what works. Honoring the patriots and the job creators and the providers. Trouncing the politicians, left and right, who have sanctioned a permissive society, an intrusive government, tyrannical redistribution of wealth, and corrupt government officials.

Trump came across to the working class as pragmatic, aggressive and results-oriented. He had been a Democrat and then a Republican, inclining many minds to believe he is bipartisan.  Middle America saw Trump as being a successful winner all his life, they like a winner and they saw that losing was not an option for him. They saw Trump as a mean negotiator, a “deal-guy” who would reset foreign policy and would shove back when the world’s bullies tried to shove him. Average voters concluded Trump would appoint “originalist” conservatives as judges, who would not consider the Constitution to be a living document subject to the changing whims of judges.

From his appearances at dozens of rallies, regular voters saw Trump as accessible and someone who loves interacting and “pressing the flesh” with people. They also saw him standing up to journalists and the press, professions which are among the most despised by ordinary Americans. They also saw Trump as the “BS president”—he called “BS” on any dumb liberal or politically correct idea that came up. And Trump saw that there were tens of millions of people very angry at a self-important “over-class of entitled elites”. He understood that his crassness, name-calling and accusations were feeding the resolve of his gathering army of voters, who felt disenfranchised and who harbored serious contempt for the political establishment.

America’s breadbasket and rural voters weren’t hearing anything like this from other Republicans. The message from Trump that these voters came to believe was that he could root out socialism and statism, restore American greatness and rejuvenate the free-market.

Donald Trump won because he addressed the concerns of people who were not being listened to by either the Republican or Democratic national parties, and he promised them he would find  solutions and ways to resolve the things that were troubling them the most. In the voting booth, they believed him.

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John R. Smith

John R. Smith is chairman of BIZPAC, the Business Political Action Committee of Palm Beach County, and owner of a financial services company. He is a frequent columnist for BizPac Review.

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