Thread by @DanielleMuscato

I've come to a realization. It took me a really long time to admit this, because for me, politics is so personal…#trans rights, feminism, racism, anti-capitalism. I wanted to believe that the right—in their own way—had authentic values-based reasons for being politically active

The more I interact with Trump supporters, the more I watch video after video of Trump rallies, the more time I spent in Trump forums trying to "figure it out," the more I realize, this is not about ANY political platform or policy at all.

To them, this is entertainment.

They go to rallies to have fun. They create groups to have fun. They exploit our anxiety & fear of being killed or legally "erased" as queer people or dying of poverty because it's FUNNY to them.

@AdamSerwer nailed it when he said, "The cruelty is the point."

They are SADISTIC.

It's the same reason they liked @realDonaldTrump's show The Apprentice so much. They actually ENJOY seeing people crestfallen, all their hard work down the drain, hearing the words "You're fired." They ENJOY his cruel insults, diet racism, and sexual harassment on the show.

The #MAGABomber doesn't bother them at all, because they experience genuine glee at any opportunity to "own the libs." They will even vote against their own interests if it makes the left upset. That's genuinely ALL they are seeking—making us suffer. It's mind-boggling, but true.

I think this goes straight to the top. Donald Trump doesn't measure his success as a president by any measure that other presidents do. In his mind, there are ONLY winners & losers—and if you're not one, you're the other. He doesn't understand the concept of win/win OR lose/lose.

He doesn't understand that something can be bad for the left AND bad for the right. He genuinely thinks that, if we are angry, *that means he won.* He also genuinely believes that—if the other side is happy or agreeable—*that means he lost.* That's why he's unable to compromise.

It's why he's so bad at international relations. He doesn't understand that, unlike selling or buying real estate, you have to deal with these countries again later. Or that if you piss them off enough, they just won't deal with you at all, and trade with someone else instead.

I've watched 100s of hours of Trump rallies (don't get me started). I haven't been able to find ANY explanation that makes any sense, but I truly think this is it: The question isn't, what is driving them politically? because they DON'T care about politics.

They're just sadists.

It seems too simple to be true. I think right-wing leaders DO exploit superficial political reasons, like abortion & immigration, as a mask. But really, they know immigrants boost the economy, & they go get abortions themselves when they need them, in secret. It's not about that.

What it's about is much simpler and much more evil.

It's just hatred. They hate anyone who does not conform to their racist, sexist, pseudo-Christian, straight, cigender, #nationalist ideal. They have no interest in agreeing to disagree. They have no interest in tolerance.

I don't think it's possible to work together with Trump Republicans. I think they ever only agree to work with us if they feel confident they can go back on their word to screw us later.

I think they have no intention of compromising on anything we say, any of our goals, at all.

That means we have to change our strategy. Any time spent engaging with them is wasted, because they are not debating in good faith. They are not basing their views on evidence, logic, or pragmatics. They're just trolling.

Therefore the best thing for us to do is outnumber them.

We need the highest voter turnout this country has EVER SEEN.

We have two weeks.

Do you have a plan to get to the polls? Do you know who you're voting for?

Make a goal of getting 5 people to commit to voting on Nov 6, every day between now & the election.

Let's do this #VOTE

The more I think about it, the more I want to clarify. It took me so long to believe this bc I thought, "How could they be so malicious? It makes no sense. What have we done to make them hate us so much? If not malice. It must be policy."

But sadism—that's different from malice.

Malice makes no sense without a motivation. It's the desire to do evil—having "ill will." But that doesn't explain why that desire exists, or why it's so strong.

Sadism means taking pleasure in causing others to suffer pain or humiliation. It answers its own question of why.