I disagree that D’Souza can come back from this. Factual errors are one thing. What D’Souza did is far worse. His lies ruined the life of an innocent man. Plus, D’Souza is still a defendant in Andrews’ suit—and Andrews can really draw blood.
I’m sure of it. Charles C. Johnson of GotNews infamy was driven out of business for something similar—falsely accusing someone of driving the car that mowed down counterprotesters in Charlottesville.
Sorry, you are wrong. Those on the right have been complaining about illegal and fake votes long before Trump came on the political scene. And it was not just the insaner corners of the internet by far. Trump's abilities lie in reading the room, not in leading. He parrots back to people what they want to hear. What is really funny is that if you listen to Trump supporters talk among themselves, even MAGA hat wearing ones, they often begin by saying "I don't like Trump as a person but...." or "I think Trump is a real sleaze, but...." The fact Trump is leading few if any people. But he IS saying things people want to hear badly enough that they will set aside their usual morals to support him. If people keep seeing Trump as the cause of the problem rather than a catalyst that brings an already simmering situation to a boil then Trump will continue to win.
I think both can be true. Some of Trump's supporters hold these beliefs and attitudes and some are radicalized by Trump. I know personally both types of people.
I do have to disagree with one aspect of this article. Most of my family are rabid Trump fans. I very much am not. But, what is happening is not that they are hanging on Trump's every word or "following" him but, rather, he is affirming what they already believe. They believed the election was stolen starting on election night before Trump said a thing.
They had been complaining that the way mail in ballots were handled would allow many people to vote who were not supposed to do so or to vote twice in different states. As the mail in votes were counted, they did see the election swing. And while, various investigations were conducted, no one said exactly what those investigations actually investigated - the only information was "the election was not stolen." So they are convinced voter fraud was not adequately investigated.
Trump echoes back to them what they already believe. Were Trump to announce that he was convinced the election were not stolen, they would still believe it was.
Trump is a truly disgusting man but he does not lead. He mirrors back their own beliefs to those who are very unhappy with the country and very angry at many things. They rabidly support him because they see their own anger reflected in his behavior.
It is generally wisest to know the actual thinking and motives of those you oppose ratther than suggesting that people "parrot" someone.
But remember, Trump has been priming the "stolen election" pump since before he won the 2016 election, and even after he won that contest he whined incessantly about the millions of illegal and fake votes that boosted Hillary Clinton's national vote total beyond his -- especially those in California.
Your family were already primed and ready to call the vote rigged on election night because Trump had been getting them ready for years already. I also doubt that if Trump had reversed course and agreed that the election had been won by Biden fair and square they would have believed him. More likely they would have either believed Trump was deliberately going along with the mainstream narrative in furtherance of a greater long term plan to regain the presidency, or they would believe the Deep State (TM) had gotten to him somehow.
I do agree that stolen elections have been a part of the far-right's overarching conspiracy theory narrative long before Trump came to power, but it was pretty much limited to the insaner distant corners of the Internet before Trump came along and amplified and focused the far-right's grievances.
I disagree that D’Souza can come back from this. Factual errors are one thing. What D’Souza did is far worse. His lies ruined the life of an innocent man. Plus, D’Souza is still a defendant in Andrews’ suit—and Andrews can really draw blood.
Here's hoping...
I’m sure of it. Charles C. Johnson of GotNews infamy was driven out of business for something similar—falsely accusing someone of driving the car that mowed down counterprotesters in Charlottesville.
Sorry, you are wrong. Those on the right have been complaining about illegal and fake votes long before Trump came on the political scene. And it was not just the insaner corners of the internet by far. Trump's abilities lie in reading the room, not in leading. He parrots back to people what they want to hear. What is really funny is that if you listen to Trump supporters talk among themselves, even MAGA hat wearing ones, they often begin by saying "I don't like Trump as a person but...." or "I think Trump is a real sleaze, but...." The fact Trump is leading few if any people. But he IS saying things people want to hear badly enough that they will set aside their usual morals to support him. If people keep seeing Trump as the cause of the problem rather than a catalyst that brings an already simmering situation to a boil then Trump will continue to win.
I think both can be true. Some of Trump's supporters hold these beliefs and attitudes and some are radicalized by Trump. I know personally both types of people.
Here is a study, on a slightly different topic, which suggests that Trump has had a negative effect on racial attitudes. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41562-021-01287-2
Even though he had an effect, those attitude were already moving in that direction.
I do have to disagree with one aspect of this article. Most of my family are rabid Trump fans. I very much am not. But, what is happening is not that they are hanging on Trump's every word or "following" him but, rather, he is affirming what they already believe. They believed the election was stolen starting on election night before Trump said a thing.
They had been complaining that the way mail in ballots were handled would allow many people to vote who were not supposed to do so or to vote twice in different states. As the mail in votes were counted, they did see the election swing. And while, various investigations were conducted, no one said exactly what those investigations actually investigated - the only information was "the election was not stolen." So they are convinced voter fraud was not adequately investigated.
Trump echoes back to them what they already believe. Were Trump to announce that he was convinced the election were not stolen, they would still believe it was.
Trump is a truly disgusting man but he does not lead. He mirrors back their own beliefs to those who are very unhappy with the country and very angry at many things. They rabidly support him because they see their own anger reflected in his behavior.
It is generally wisest to know the actual thinking and motives of those you oppose ratther than suggesting that people "parrot" someone.
But remember, Trump has been priming the "stolen election" pump since before he won the 2016 election, and even after he won that contest he whined incessantly about the millions of illegal and fake votes that boosted Hillary Clinton's national vote total beyond his -- especially those in California.
Your family were already primed and ready to call the vote rigged on election night because Trump had been getting them ready for years already. I also doubt that if Trump had reversed course and agreed that the election had been won by Biden fair and square they would have believed him. More likely they would have either believed Trump was deliberately going along with the mainstream narrative in furtherance of a greater long term plan to regain the presidency, or they would believe the Deep State (TM) had gotten to him somehow.
I do agree that stolen elections have been a part of the far-right's overarching conspiracy theory narrative long before Trump came to power, but it was pretty much limited to the insaner distant corners of the Internet before Trump came along and amplified and focused the far-right's grievances.