What Do They Want?
No, I’m not talking about Black Lives Matter or ANTIFA! because their demands are pretty clear. BLM even has theirs on their website. And since ANTIFA! isn’t really a thing (outside of being a loose collection of people who hate fascists, AKA Nazis) I ain’t talking about them either. The people I am referring to are the MAGA folks. What do they want, other than total power for Dear Leader?
Let’s start with their slogan. Make America Great Again. Catchy, non-specific, and easy to remember. Perfect for Trump supporters, who aren’t interested in an idea if it can’t be chanted, abbreviated into another word, or put on a t-shirt. But what point in time are they referencing when they say “again”? For something to happen again, it must have already happened. So this should be a pretty easy thing to answer for MAGAs. And yet…
It’s a mixed bag. The one constant throughout all these interviews is that white folk, FOR SOME UNKNOWABLE REASON, seem compelled to return our country to a time before all these uppity minorities (gays, blacks, etc.) started demanding a fair shake at things. You’ll notice that most of them don’t even consider what life was like for their fellow citizens of color at the time. They only care about their white perspective based on the, let’s say incomplete history they were taught in school. And when it’s pointed out to them, they behave as all white people have been taught to respond to our collective shameful history: handwave it away.
“That was a long time ago.”
“Things are different now.”
“They didn’t know any better.”
All of these responses to the correct and accurate pointing out of America’s history with systemic racism are lies, well-rehearsed lies that white children are taught throughout their lives. Thomas Jefferson wasn’t a slave owner and pedophile rapist (he undeniably was) he was a “farmer” who “loved” Sally Hemings, a child he owned. Supernormal stuff and nothing we should think about when considering his thoughts and influence on the founding of our country.
White schoolchildren (and I say white because although black and brown students were present in some classrooms after the 1960s, their cultural perspectives and identities were not remotely considered when creating the curriculum, and therefore, the lessons were not necessarily intended to educate them on their history, only to forcibly absorb the altered white-perspective of history) are given these lies for a few reasons. One, it might be tough for a seven-year-old to understand the full ramifications of slavery and child rape as it pertains to a “Founding Father”. Two, there is a lot of secret white guilt and we’d rather not deal with it. That wasn’t us doing that stuff. It was some nebulous, past-time others who didn’t know any better. But that isn’t reality. Thomas Jefferson absolutely knew that his behavior was immoral and wrong. Slavery had been a grievous sin for centuries. Why the contradiction? It’s not complicated. He made money off of it, so it was fine. Sound familiar? Profit over people is as much a foundational thought in our democracy as democracy itself.
MAGAs want to return to a period of vague American “greatness” and yet the only thing their responses have in common is the subjugation of their fellow Americans. Do they think this is a coincidence? Why is it that every period of “American Greatness” stands upon the shoulders of forced minority labor, segregation, and enslavement? Some MAGAs want to believe in the goodness of America without acknowledging the nasty stuff as if they can be separated out. White Americans thrived for centuries in America specifically because they oppressed and subjugated minorities! Not in spite of it.
When white men were looking for decent jobs throughout the past century (1900-2000), for the majority of that time they were only competing against a fraction of the possible workforce. It was much easier for a white man to get a job in 1970 because he was only competing with other white men! Certainly, there are a few exceptions but most of the decent, good-paying jobs were never an option for women or people of color. So please, Boomer, spare me the bootstraps speech. If I could get rid of every Boomer and white guy over-50 employed right now, it would be easy for us to get jobs too. Take a look at these Goobers below. Do you think these pasty white dudes would have done anything if they’d been competing against black players? We know they didn’t stand a chance because as soon as the NBA allowed black players, they pretty much took it over. That’s you, Boomer. You’re the 5’10” whitebread guard who’s skating by on prejudice and racism. Congrats!
This all brings me back to the central question: What Do They Want? It seems pretty clear and obvious to me that what a lot of them want is to return to a time of racial imbalance, segregation, and white supremacy. They might not know that’s what they want because supremacy blinds people to its existence, but that’s what they want. They want it to be easier for their kids to find jobs, to get into college, to buy a house, etc. The easiest way to do that is to minimize the competition. Again, I don’t think the majority of MAGA people actively think this way, but ignorance of their own racism does not mean it doesn’t exist. In fact, if anything, it only serves to strengthen the argument that it does.
Have a look at the video below. Yes, it’s 12 minutes long and maybe that’s too much. And yes, I am cherry-picking a video from The Daily Show which itself is likely cherry-picking the interview subjects. But that doesn’t mean these people don’t exist or that their thoughts aren’t common among MAGA folk. Just go on any social media site and you’ll be shocked at the similarities. When Obama golfs, he’s being lazy. When Trump golfs, he’s DOING BUSINESS. Sure, pal.
Again, there is one common thread with these people. They want the ability to be racist, misogynistic, and homophobic with impunity. Like they used to back when minorities and women knew their place and didn’t complain so much. Look at how they delight in being surrounded by people who won’t confront them on their poisonous mentalities. They can let their racist flags fly and not worry about some Lib-homo getting all pissy with them. If anything, they can compete with each other to see who can up the ante on the sexism. I’ll see your “Trump That Bitch” shirt and raise you with a sign that mocks George Floyd. They claim to love America and feel compelled to defend it but what they are confusing is an America failing to live up to its ideals with one that is. The America they hate and fear is what our country is intended to be. The one they want to uphold is a bastardization of true American ideals.
I took a gander at the official Trump campaign website (so you don’t have to) and I can’t find any specific policy ideas or plans for another term. The only thing on there is a paragraph with extremely non-specific goals like “lowering taxes”, getting rid of “Obamacare”, and ending “bad trade deals”. It is light on details and things the American public might want to know. For instance, which taxes are being lowered? Because in the last round of tax cuts, the only people who got help were already wealthy. And if the plan is to get rid of the Affordable Care Act then what is going to replace it? We’ve been waiting literally four years to find out and so far, nothing. There is no plan. There is only a rejection of what came before. Even the GOP as a party has no ideas. Their platform for 2020 is basically “Trump, Trump, only Trump.”
Contrast the Trump website with the Biden-Harris website. There’s a whole section devoted to specific plans for specific things. You know. An actual plan. And listen, I do not agree with some of these things. But at least it shows that someone is thinking about what to do. There is a roadmap to follow. Want to know how Biden will build the country back using American labor? There’s a page for that. Healthcare concerns? There’s a page for that. All Trump has on offer is a loose collection of “promises kept” on a totally separate website. And most of that stuff is a stretch. You ever write a term paper without having done the reading so most of the paper is just quotes and generalizations? It’s like that. Again, I checked it out so you don’t have to.
You can go issue by issue and do this all day. The simple fact of the matter is that Trump doesn’t, and never has, had a plan. It’s why our response to disasters like Hurricane Maria are slow, rife with fraud, and take years to implement. It’s why our response to COVID has been among the worst (if not THE WORST) in the developed world. There’s a reason for this lack of a plan. It’s not due to poor planning or morons being in charge of Trump2020. It’s because the plan is racism. Plain and simple.
Photo by Luke W. (not an actual burning cross)
I know it’s tiring to hear liberals constantly calling Trump and MAGAs racists. Honestly, I’m a little sick of talking about it. Imagine explaining every day that the sun rises. There isn’t a question about it anymore. When given the chance to expand and explain his platform beyond “going back to a time before” Trump hasn’t been able to. Instead, it’s ludicrous threats about the suburbs being invaded by people of color — oops, sorry, low-income people. The dog whistle about poor minorities is implied. Mind you, there’s no plan to help solve the numerous issues facing poor minorities in America, our fellow citizens in case you forgot. At least not from Trump. But all he has is a rough idea where they should NOT be, namely, where white people can get away from them and enjoy their wealth. If this isn’t boldfaced racism, I don’t know what is.
And this gets us to the heart of the What They Want. MAGA people are torn between two ideas that conflict, a phenomenon known as Cognitive Dissonance. It occurs when what we expect or want to happen ends up in direct opposition to reality. For MAGA folks, at least for the ones in denial about their love of white supremacy, this happens when they believe themselves to be non-racist and yet are confronted almost daily with multiple examples of Trump’s racism and their support of it. Because Trump isn’t out riding around in a Klan costume (unlike his father) his supporters can excuse the behavior. They say he was joking, or he was taken out of context, or FAKE NEWS. They HAVE to do this because the dissonance demands it. They will never see their own racism without significant psychological examination and self-reflection.
Ask a MAGA what they want out of healthcare and they will pretty much describe the ACA to the letter. Coverage of pre-existing conditions? Check. No government option to drive down costs? Check. Prescription drug coverage? Check. Their only grievance is that it’s expensive. Which some plans are. Because the ACA specifically banned useless policies that, while cheap, did not provide any real or meaningful coverage. And by removing the mandate that all people have a healthcare plan, Trump is essentially ensuring costs will go up over time. It’s a simple matter of math and risk pool. But search high and low and you won’t find a competing GOP/MAGA healthcare plan anywhere. They only know that whatever Obama did must be undone. I wonder why…
Trump supporters have trouble articulating what they want outside of saying what they DON’T want and that’s a dead giveaway. Something about America is different now and that difference is not good. What more could white men want? They can have guns up the wazoo. They can even march with them, shoot three people, and still waltz by cops unmolested. White men are still the wealthiest group of people in America with the most political influence. White men make more and have more wealth than anyone else. They run the majority of police departments and have the education system on lockdown. What more could they possibly want? It’s like Christians complaining about Christmas.
Cognitive dissonance forces white people to accept virtually any excuse for why racist things happen. It’s an isolated incident. It’s one bad apple. It’s the victim’s fault. It’s fake news. In reality, racism is usually the simplest and most accurate explanation for much of this. But because white folks (and by extension of their existence, black folks) live underneath the veil of white supremacy it makes it very hard for them to see the forest for the trees.
All of this leads to what this election is really about. Racism vs. Inclusion. Having a Plan vs. No Plan. Trump and the MAGAs are a one-issue party, whether they admit it or not. A black man being president really bothered a lot of white people. And now a hero has come along to right the ship. That’s Trump in a nutshell. I am far from confident that Biden will win this election because Americans, specifically white Americans, crave a return to greater supremacy. They might not understand their motivations but that part is irrelevant. All that matters is their actions. And based on the last four years of incompetence, cruelty, and corruption, their desires are clear. They want Whitey back. They want segregation back. They want to Make America Great*** Again.
***great = racist, misogynistic, homophobic, and sexist.