The divide is wide.

[Tobin S.]

I'm a trucker and I listen to truckers all the time on the CB radio. I'd say it's a safe bet that a majority of them are pro-Trump. I hear some liberal truckers out there sometimes, and their numbers might be greater than I'm guessing, but I hear from Trumpsters much more on the CB than those of the liberal persuasion.

A couple of drivers were talking on the CB yesterday and they were both pro-Trump. They both thought that the media treated Trump unfairly and that he was actually doing an excellent job. Then one driver said that his 31 year old daughter was mad at him because he voted for Trump. He said that she gets so mad at him sometimes that she won't speak to him for a while. He claimed that he didn't understand it. I could have clued him in as to why so many women were angry about Trump, but that would have been to invite a heaping of vitriol and I'm sure no understanding would have been gained. There would have been a lot of denial and insults.

These guys drive around all day listening to people like Sean Hannity and Rush Limbaugh, and no opposing view is ever presented to them. They buy all that shit unquestioningly. What they don't understand is that wealthy Republicans (whom Limbaugh and Hannity represent) are all about the money. That is by far their most important issue: their wealth. There are really no moral standards with them if the money is right. And with Trump, for wealthy conservatives, the money is damned good.

And that is why the Republicans are likely going to lose some power come November. If they would have at least made some kind of effort to purge the sexism from their party, they might be in a good position right now to retain total control. When the economy is good, many people will vote for incumbents thinking that they will be staying the course. Party affiliation is not an issue for them. But the hubris of the Republicans, doubling down on Trump and now Kavanaugh, is going to be too much for many voters.

Listening to conservatives has made me realize how wide the schism is between Republicans and Democrats right now. We are separate warring tribes who don't speak each others languages. It wasn't always this bad. There used to be some civility and empathy in our politics. That is no longer, and I'm afraid it's going to keep getting worse. Trump is the epitome of that incivility. He is the natural result in leadership in a society where people have stopped caring about each other.

[phylny]

1. A high school acquaintance of mind just said on Facebook

that since Kavanaugh is "pro-life" and will strike down Roe v. Wade, she will, and I do quote, "turn a blind eye if he committed sexual assault."

I can't even.

[Phoenix61]

5. A shining example of why they aren't

pro-life. They are pro-birth.

[byronius]

9. Pro-control of women. Early hominid style.

[homegirl]

17. The release

of the birth control pill in the early 1960's struck terror in the hearts of these "hominids" they could no longer control the "uppity wimmen" by forcing pregnancy and the resultant risks and limitations on women. And the aftermath of women demanding power is eating them alive.

[byronius]

18. Let us hope it eats them alive.

I'm a straight white male in favor of banning males in politics for a few generations. Seems fair to me. Smart.

Yes, there's some Sarah Palins. But on balance it would absolutely be a return to sanity.

[aeromanKC]

27. But but Susan Collins said

Kavanaugh will not vote strike down Roe. DOH!!

Like you said, "I can't even."

[Lanius]

31. Republicans, especially right-wing Christians, have become the ultimate single-issue voters

They are all about anti-choice SC judges, and they'll vote for any (Republican) president, Senator or Congressman who is anti-choice, not matter how corrupt or unethical they are.

[betsuni]

2. "When the economy is good, many people will vote for incumbents thinking that they will be staying

the course."

These people thought the economy was terrible two years ago and fabulous now. What has changed? I'd like them to explain.

[progree]

21. "These people thought the economy was terrible two years ago and fabulous now. What has changed? "

96 million "jobless Americans" instead of 94 million "jobless Americans" ...

There is a Bureau of Labor Statistics for NILF, Not In the Labor Force. https://data.bls.gov/timeseries/LNS15000000

Remember when Trump talked about 94 million "jobless Americans" during the campaign? Yup, that's what he was referring to. Well, it actually went up by 74,000 last month. And it's up by 2,000,000 from the inaugural month of January 2017. We now have 96,364,000 "jobless Americans", but he never talks about that anymore.

Of course, the vast majority are full-time students, and voluntarily retired of all ages (including centenarians). As for the NILF people who are NOT voluntarily unemployed, there is NILF, WJ -- "Not In Labor Force, Wants Job" https://data.bls.gov/timeseries/LNS15026639

It is 5,237,000 (which is 5.43% of the 96,364,000 NILF number). It is down 152,000 over the past month, and down 482,000 since the inaugural month of January 2017. But there's been a general upturn since this year's low point of 5,096,000 in March 2018.

Anyway, since Trump hung "94 million jobless Americans" around Obama's neck, we can just as well hang "96 million jobless Americans" around Trump's neck. I think it would be a great midterm theme for Democrats to use. I know, I know. While Democrats can stretch and exaggerate a little, we're just not capable of being bald-faced liars like the Rethuglicans.

More on above, including Trump's campaign era "42% unemployment rate" -- https://www.democraticunderground.com/100210153676

[mrsadm]

3. Thank you for your perspective on the reality out there

I’ve always felt that the right wing radio programs (Limbaugh et al) were/are responsible for the tightly, almost religiously held beliefs of trump supporters. Also, no amount of logic, reasoning, or evidence will even begin to seed the tiniest amount of doubt or self-reflection.

I’m afraid our culture is hopelessly doomed.

[MaryMagdaline]

8. Yes. I felt our democracy was dying in the 90s when thousands of people called into

Rush Limbaugh’s calling themselves “ditto heads.”
Ok, I thought, I believe you.

[Pholus]

4. The schism is not the fault of the left.

Look, you can't have a civil discussion with someone who falls back on "we will end you if you continue what you're doing" as a debate tactic.

In the 80's I thought it was a joke.

In the 90's I thought it was the sign of someone who was so mentally weak they couldn't argue.

In the 00's I started to internally measure where I thought the person sat on the extremist fringe.

In the 10's I more or less expect this kind of talk.

My standard response since Trump has turned into: "You sure talk a good game but if you ever do decide to start shooting your fellow Americans you'd better realize you stopped being an American that very instant. And you'll quickly find out you ain't nearly as good with your guns as you think you are."

That cost me one "friend" but it shut the other ones up so it was worth it.

[byronius]

11. They confuse fear and insecurity with strength.

Standard early human.

A marked and purposeful failure of public education, which was done to weaken the nation's fabric for the profit of a few.

Now we're all going to pay the price.

[alarimer]

6. I hate Republicans and conservatives

It is so clear to me that they people would follow Hitler. Nearly half of Americans are ugly, Fascist dirtbags.

I blame Fox News, spewing lies and propaganda day in and day out. Someone needs to buy it and take it off the air.

[DFW]

7. Don't lump convervatives in with Republicans.

I am your classic conservative, at least as defined in a dictionary of the English language (as opposed to Republicanese).

I still work for the same outfit that recruited me out of college in 1975. I have been with the same wonderful woman since 1974. We have raised two solid, intelligent children who have grown up, think independently, did well in their respective colleges, and have jobs in which they earn their own living and are well-respected in their chosen fields.

I am risk-averse, and do not like to make rash, un-thought-out decisions. I have no debts. I have no addictions, not even to alcohol, religion or nicotine. My favorite American philosopher is Thomas Jefferson.

I am the epitome of “conservative.” Why am I a Democrat? Simple: I do not believe that having a different skin color, belief, or income makes one a superior or an inferior being to myself.

[Merlot]

14. Maybe you're a conservative, maybe you're just lucky.

A lot of people would have liked to have had all the nice things you've had but those things didn't work out for them. It wasn't a matter of not making rash choices. Some people work really hard and things still go wrong through no fault of their own.

The term "conservative" has come to mean republican, they are lumped together no matter how much you wish it weren't so.

[DFW]

16. They only got lumped together by propagandists, not by Noah Webster, and Webster was there first

My wishes don't make up what's in the dictionary, nor do they dictate what's on Fox Noise.

Granted, some people luck out, some don't. I've paid my dues, still do. I'm 66, still work 80 hour weeks. But "a conservative" as defined on Fox is someone who is nasty, angry, insecure, and frightened by everything their TV tells them to be frightened of. That's not what's in the dictionary, that's not me, and no propagandist TV station can change that.

[Awsi Dooger]

22. I lump Republicans and conservatives together and will continue to do so

The voting tendencies are extremely similar. Normally the self-identified Republicans vote for the Republican nominee only 3-7% more dependably than self-identified conservatives. It was wider in 2012 with roughly a 10% gap.

And there are far more states in which the registration numbers don't reflect the state's partisanship as well as the ideological breakdown, which never lies

[RealityChik]

23. Disrespecting all Republicans is the Lib Achilles Tendon...

And one reason we lose. It's the reason why they vote against their own interests. The main objective is to "stick it to Liberals", no matter the cost. There are lots of Conservatives out there who hate Trump as much as we do. But because we think and act superior to them, they hate us more.

[Lanius]

32. I don't agree with everything you just posted.

I think a lot of Democrats and progressives have shown humility and respect to conservatives and Republicans for many years, only to have it thrown back into their face. Republicans have hated Democrats for a long, long time. I'm not talking disagreement. I'm talking seething hatred that goes back decades. I've never felt the same hatred from progressives for conservatives until the election of Trump.

And don't mistake a conservative's hatred for Trump as being a sign they're on our side. Most of them are more than happy with tax cuts for the wealthy, protecting white male privilege, cutting entitlements and engaging in 'both siderism".

[JHan]

34. I don't think self interest has much to do with it, people vote based on their values.

( which could actually work against their own self-interests)

And really, the ship sailed post civil rights.

Some say that Republican politics during the Clinton era , a la Gingrich, is the genesis for our current morass.

But I think other factors are at play: increased demands for representation among diverse groups, demographic shifts, cultural shifts and reactions to these changes.

And the notion of "elite liberals thinking they're better than us" is nothing new. It was used against FDR, Goldwater also used that meme in his campaign during the civil rights movement: "How dare these northern liberals tell southern states what to do as if they're better than us". And it is linked to a strain of American anti-intellectualism and hyper-individualism which shuns Government interference in anything ( unless it benefits the individual alone)

[progree]

19. I am a conservative too - I want to conserve all the gains we made under Clinton, Obama,

FDR, LBJ, etc.. Conserving these gains from the constant chipping away at them by the Caligula administration's executive orders and the Repukes' legislation and court rulings -- in health care, civil rights, voting rights, the environment, reproductive choice, yada. The list is long.

I never use the term "conservative" to describe Republicans or any other right-wingers. The term I use for that is "regressives".

[DFW]

20. More accurate, to be sure

They don't want to conserve much of anything. They don't even care about conserving the earth for their grandchildren. They want to make sure they're born, but don't care what kind of world they have to live in.

[groundloop]

10. Repubs are far more likely to push their beliefs onto others

I've noticed throughout the years that 90 % of the time it's right wingers who push their vitriol in public, calling liberals names, saying how they're being discriminated against, etc. We liberals tend to be less belligerent, less apt to try forcing our world view onto others, and in general less pushy.

I feel that we need to become just as vocal as right wingers because there's always a certain percentage of persuadable folks who are on the fence listening. If they hear our arguments enough times from different people some of them may come around to our side instead of the repubs.

[ChazII]

12. It would be a wonderful day

if your post would go viral on FaceBook. More folks need to read what you wrote than just DUers. Thank you.

[bluestarone]

33. Agree herer

GREAT post!! Sooo true

[Downtown Hound]

13. One thing though

Our society didn't stop caring about each other. Republicans stopped caring about everybody but themselves. A minor nitpick, but I think it's time that we start placing the blame where it belongs.

[Merlot]

15. That's very true.

"Society" isn't to blame here. The republicans have consistantly lowered the bar for civility and caring for others.

[maxrandb]

24. You hit the nail on the head

Google what happened in Rwanda after a decade or so of Hate Radio. We are heading in that same direction if we don't start getting serious about fighting this unchecked propaganda.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

25. A big fat K & R!

[CrispyQ]

26. The dems dropped the ball on hate radio.

"...listening to people like Sean Hannity and Rush Limbaugh, and no opposing view is ever presented to them."

This is why grown white women in AL were lamenting that their senate choices were a child predator or a "pro-abortion" Democrat. I don't think the dems have a clue how deep the roots of hate and anger are in the red states, & most of it cultivated & fueled by hate radio. And they still ignore it.

[democratisphere]

28. Largely you are dealing with dumb, dumber and dumbest.

Nothing you say will matter!

[TEB]

29. Agreed

I tell my fellow drivers on linehaul get the fuck out my face we don’t get along we don’t talk scumbags who voted for trump teamsters who voted trump and gop

[lunatica]

30. I agree with everything you say but one thing

Although Democrats and Republicans are miles apart and really divided right now the only party exhibiting tribalism and exclusion of the “other” are the Republicans. They are thriving under Trump because he’s exploiting that for self gain. The party of Trump is the party of anti Muslims, hatred of anyone who is brown, black or women who dare to want autonomy.

And I posit that Democrats are the absolute opposite. There is no one we don’t welcome into our party, even the Republicans if they can stop their agendas steeped in hatred. We not only welcome everyone under our umbrella, but we also fight for what we believe is right. We fight for human equality, for the integrity of families to stay together, for welcoming refugees escaping from violence, for human rights across all nationalities, for children of every race, for the rights of all Americans, even Deplorables.

You know what I mean and you know our side isn’t tribal. It’s just a convenient and intellectualy lazy explanation which people like Steve Kornaki have mainstreamed to sell his book. Now suddenly we’re “tribal”. That’s ridiculous. Our party hasn’t changed, except to be more inclusive of those who suffer for lack of healthcare, or due to the violent hatred of the Trump tribe.

[YOHABLO]

35. Well if they pursue indictments on the Trump organization we may get rid of him. The Republicans?

They're not going anywhere. Neither is ''Citizens United''. We're not going to be able to strike that down .. not yet anyway.