And across America, there are millions of people who, if you ask them why they feel safer with Trump as president, will tell that this didn't happen. Three times, even. That's Trump's real superpower. /1
This is a good piece from @politico about whether Trump would be cruising to re-election if he weren't nuts.
politico.com/news/magazine/…
But I think it's wrong, even as a counterfactual. /2
politico.com/news/magazine/…
But I think it's wrong, even as a counterfactual. /2
Yes, the economy is strong...but not where Trump's people are. If Trump were not able to convince his cult that reality isn't real, we'd be arguing about who's really doing well and who isn't - just as we did under Obama and every other president. Farmers would be up in arms. /2
When Trumpers say they're better off, there's no evidence for it other than that they *feel* better off. Factories aren't reopening. Dead small towns are not being reborn.
The cities? Doing fine, thank you. But Trump says: "This isn't true," and being *nuts* is what sells it. /3
The cities? Doing fine, thank you. But Trump says: "This isn't true," and being *nuts* is what sells it. /3
That's why speculating about how well Trump would be doing if he weren't nuts makes no sense; if he weren't nuts, people would be holding him responsible for things like multiple ICBM tests in NK, or gigantic trade war hurting farms and small businesses. But they don't. /4
This election will not turn on facts, data, events, or anything but a stubborn perception of 30-40 percent of a handful of states that Trump, against all evidence, made their life different than it was three years ago. There is no reasoning with them; just outvote them. /5x
