Editors Note: James Marshall Crotty is a columnist for the Huffington Post (which refused to publish this post).
by James Marshall Crotty*
I am a pro-choice, Earth First!, pro-LGBTQ Independent, who has spent his life upholding my Jesuit high school’s mantra: “Be a man for others.” Nevertheless, I proudly voted – without a moment of hesitation – for Donald J. Trump for President. Here’s why.
The Democratic Party I voted for in the past no longer represents my interests or those of my country. Despite all its egalitarian rhetoric – “stronger together”; “when they go low, we go high” – this nakedly corrupt political syndicate actually traffics in divisive, often violent, identity politics.
You might mistakenly think that I am part of this “bicoastal ruling class,” having lived in the liberal groupthink bubbles of New York and Los Angeles for the past twenty years. However, I grew up in the sensible, moderate confines of Omaha, Nebraska. My late father was a brutally poor Depression farm boy in northwest Iowa and neighboring South Dakota. He passed on to me the time-honored midwestern values of hard work, generosity, compassion, self-reliance and service. He did not lose these qualities by attending Yale Medical School.
Naturally, when I heard the nominee for the Democratic Party – seconded by her apologetic, and now apoplectic, minions in mass media — label half of Donald Trump’s supporters as “deplorable” and “irredeemable,” it got my dander up.
No harm would have come from Hillary’s ill-considered comment, except that the quiet, unassuming residents of the Midwest and Upper Midwest found in her words confirmation of what they had experienced in word and deed for decades from Wall Street, Hollywood, Bay Area and DC elites.
When Barack Obama said at a San Francisco fundraiser in 2008 that “You go into these small towns in Pennsylvania and, like a lot of small towns in the Midwest … they cling to guns or religion or antipathy toward people who aren’t like them or anti-immigrant sentiment or anti-trade sentiment as a way to explain their frustrations,” he outed himself as a card-carrying member of this smug and condescending insider class.
Secretary of State Clinton and President Obama demonstrated that dishonestly denigrating the decent denizens of rural America is a necessary rite of passage towards pocketing a king’s ransom from the world’s snickering “radical chic.”
On November 8, the largely agrarian Commonwealth of Pennsylvania – long a Democratic stronghold – calmly let the Democratic Party know that it had not forgotten those slights, as it put Donald Trump over the top. The other “Brexit states” of Ohio, Indiana, and Wisconsin had previously followed suit or, in the case of Michigan, were soon to follow.
However, rhetoric is one thing, but violent, dysregulated action based on that rhetoric is the true test of a party’s character. In that regard, the Democratic Party has lost its moral backbone. The party of open borders and trigger warnings now positions rhetorical slights as of greater national importance than the corruption and criminality of its members.
My Facebook feed shows that many Hillary-backers feel that the allegedly “xenophobic,” “misogynist,” and “racist” rhetoric from the President-elect “Trumps” violence against persons and property.
The roots of this childish lashing-out rests in the Democratic Party itself, which steadfastly refuses to call out criminal wrongdoing by its members let alone the thousands of Twitter threats – each one a prosecutable Federal offense – to assassinate President-elect Trump and rape First Lady Melania Trump.
Instead, the Democratic Party paints America as a land of “institutionally” oppressed “victims” in need of protection by the Democratic oligarchy, which, in turn, is protected by a superdelegate system designed to keep out the very people it claims to protect! Don’t believe me? Just ask the supporters of Bernie Sanders.
My fellow, black, white, Asian, Hispanic, Muslim, Jewish, male, female, gay, straight, young and old Trump supporters take a different view.
We stand with my fellow Nebraskan, William Jennings Bryan, who said, “Destiny is not a matter of chance, it is a matter of choice.” Instead of a bitter, failed power doling out reparations, apologies, and leverage to all those it might have offended in its rise to global leadership, we believe America should strive to remain an exceptional, inspiring, and innovative land of self-reliant, ethical and constitutionally protected citizens who come together to serve each other and the planet free of initiative-sapping, dependency-enabling government diktats. We take to heart the words of Democrat John F. Kennedy, who said, “Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country.”
53 years after President Kennedy’s tragic death, today’s Democratic Party is all about my rights, my opinion, my pain, my emotion and my history of grievance. Thus, this sclerotic 21st century Tammany Hall can only offer the indentured servitude of permanent victimhood, remedied through increased state power and surveillance.
Contrary to the lie that the Civil Rights Movement offered some “turn” in the Democratic Party’s modus operandi, this bigoted paternalism has always been the root DNA of the Democrats starting with slavery, through Jim Crow and right up through the welfare state and today’s apologies for mass violence (see the stand-down orders given by Democratic officials during the Ferguson and Baltimore riots).
As progressive philosopher Richard Rorty prophecised in Achieving Our Country: Leftist Thought in 20th Century America, the emotionally stunted beneficiaries of Democratic big-government largesse are taught early on – by needy, doting, helicopter parents and Critical Left academics – that the enemy resides in rhetoric. And if that rhetoric is not what the Democratic high priests of victimization deem “appropriate,” then any kind of lie, crime and anarchy is justified in opposing it. Thus, the visceral, often violent, reaction to Donald Trump, and the deliberate distortion of his message to fit Democratic victimology, or, if you prefer, pathology.
Democrats know that words like “racist,” “bigot,” “misogynist,” “Brownshirts” and “Nazis” – whose odious misuse I have previously lambasted — incite violence against opponents and inculcate lockstep obeisance to the Democratic Machine. Yet, they continue to use them, not because they have much real world validity, but to perpetuate – as Robert Michels foresaw in Political Parties: A Sociological Study of the Oligarchical Tendencies of Modern Democracy – their own existence.
When vast numbers of the “oppressed” come to feel that the Democratic thought police is their only bulwark against such demonic caricatures, then they are willing to forgive anything – corruption, criminality, vote-rigging, arson, vandalism, destruction of evidence, lying under oath, pay-to-play — that this great protector does or tacitly encourages. This is the very strategy that worked for decades to silence, psychologically “retrain” and eventually disappear un-believers throughout Latin America, Africa, the Soviet Union and many parts of Asia.
Whether they are conscious of it or not, this is the subtle indoctrination – brilliantly exposed by Angelo Codevilla in The Ruling Class: How They Corrupted America and What We Can Do About It – by which many Democratic voters came to forgive the corrupt, and likely criminal, Bill and Hillary Clinton. In this new and dangerously demagogic Democratic Party – where any opposition to its edicts is classified as “bullying” – leftist big-government ends justify any means.
Sending, receiving and then destroying classified State Department emails illegally residing on a homebrew server, engaging in blatant quid-pro-quo with inhumane foreign governments to line one’s pockets, as well as the riots, arson, vandalism, disruption, and physical violence that invariably arise when police decisions, court verdicts, and elections don’t go the way of today’s infantilized Democratic faithful are all of a piece. Over the last year, the silent majority of Trump supporters watched this ongoing spectacle of anarchy and criminality with gape-mouthed horror.
Naturally, when the putative head of the Democratic Party is herself under several FBI investigations, you cannot expect her to discipline the lawbreakers ostensibly acting on her behalf. Not that she would, even if found innocent. After all, if your opponent is effectively branded as “Hitler,” then any kind of social disorder can be forgiven.
As much as I embraced Bill Clinton’s Democratic Centrism in 1992 and 1996, and Hillary Clinton’s vague nod to the same in 2008, in the intervening years the Clintons have become symptom and beneficiary of a deep rot in our politics and government. The only way I knew to stop that rot, or at least send a signal – in a nod to Network’s Howard Beale – that “We’re Mad As Hell and We’re Not Going to Take This Anymore!” was to vote for the man who was on the other side of that rigged system for so long, and who is so rich and so un-beholden to special interests that he just might reform it.
Donald Trump is at times boorish and incurious. Moreover, he’s had his own share of legal troubles. However, he listens to America’s working class. He is their mouthpiece.
Yes, he is unpolished. He is at times distressingly intemperate, even incendiary. However, that is precisely why a vast swath of Americans of all races, orientations, genders, and hues — who dub themselves “The Deplorables” — adore him. When they see Donald J. Trump on a stage, they are not envious of his wealth and success. They think, “That guy gets me.”
Few liberal friends penning end-of-times jeremiads on social media right now will understand my logic. Upon learning of it, I expect them to continue their ad hominem broadsides against me and other Trump voters.
In the hypersensitive Obama Era world of micro-aggressions, safe spaces, and post-election coddling and counseling — where perceived slights trump real violence, and where the President-elect is portrayed as nothing short of Satan — their unhinged overreaction is understandable.
Moreover, at Monk Magazine and in all my books I championed the penniless, if often eccentric, underdog. In addition, I always voted on environmental protection and civil rights. The candidate who embraced those values got my support, no matter how much I disagreed with their other positions. I am also moderately pro-choice (though I believe that late term and especially partial birth abortions are an unnecessary abomination). And I so want to vote for our first female President.
However, in this election those important positions had to take a back seat to the greater good. Our country is in deep trouble. Our borders are broken. Drugs, crime, and trafficked humans are pouring in. Our manufacturing base is almost gone, thanks to the corporate globalists who control both parties. Our vets are ignored, or worse. Our crime rates are spiking again. Our inner-city schools are a joke. Those forced to attend these dropout mills should have a choice on how best to lift themselves out of their rut. Domestic terror attacks have increased. Russia and China are pressing their advantage like never before. Our standing in the world has diminished.
We are losing as a nation.
Fortunately, we now have as President-elect a proven winner who understands that we must drain the swamp of corruption in DC if we are going to get our mojo back. Mr. Trump also gets that we must restore law and order to our borders and cities if we are to remain prosperous, safe, and, thus, free.
He is an imperfect vessel, this bombastic billionaire, but he is the best shot we have. Yes, he’s had a few failures. What ambitious entrepreneur hasn’t? Yet, of all the Presidential candidates this cycle, President-elect Trump was the only one who actually built anything of lasting value in the private sector.
You can slam him for taking a million dollar loan from his Dad. However, I know plenty of trust-funders who got far more than a million bucks from their parents. And that money just went up their nose, or was wasted on various forms of self-indulgence.
Debate Trump’s net worth all you want, object to his gaudy aesthetics, his words, and his temperament, but your eyes do not lie. He is a major league developer who gets complex projects done on time and under budget. In addition, his gracious, mature, and well-mannered children suggests he’s a decent Dad to boot.
So, as I prepared my mail-in ballot back in Los Angeles, I reasoned, “Wouldn’t it be nice to have a builder-in-chief in charge of rebuilding our crumbling roads, bridges, airports and transportation grid?”
“Wouldn’t it be nice to have as President someone whose sole special interest is the American people?”
— Starting in 1983 at the Catholic Worker House in Manhattan through launching an urban debate and mentorship program (Crotty’s Kids) in the South Bronx in 2005, James Marshall Crotty has been a social justice warrior, peace activist, and environmentalis his entire adult life. He helped elect Harold Washington the first black Mayor of Chicago. He worked on the Presidential campaigns of Jerry Brown and Jesse Jackson. He voted for Bill Clinton twice and backed Hillary Clinton in 2008. He was on the front lines with Queer Nation in Kennebunkport, Maine, and, at Northwestern University, he helped lead the effort to divest university assets from the apartheid regime in South Africa. His full bio is here.
Photo credits: subjectpolitics.com and Huffington Post
James, a great article – I can see why the Huffington Post refused to run it. However, when you feel the need, you can simply link to a little website Down Under for people to see what Americans were denied.
I left the States in Feb 1982 and immigrated to Oz. I could see where it was going and wanted nothing to do with it. It took years before many of my relatives finally began to understand my decision – some of them are still clueless.
Like you I have had the various slurs thrown at me of being a racist, bigoted, misogynist, homophobe – a ‘deplorable’. One of my roommates in Law School would chuckle at such infantile name-calling, not only was Sheila black, but she was also a lesbian. I expect she also voted for Trump.
I’m looking forward to the next six months in American politics, we should know by then if Trump can begin to turn things around.
Again, congratulations on such a well written article.
Always appreciate your insights Terry
Oh, I left out one of the insults – I’m also a climate change ‘denier’.
That’s deplorable, Terry.
Or is it anti-deplorable. This new terminology is mixing me up.
Great article, thank you James.
“today’s Democratic Party is all about my rights, my opinion, my pain, my emotion and my history of grievance.”
Your sentiments are echoed beautifully by Kiki Green (32-year-old black female, educated with a Master’s Degree in Psychology/Counselling and a “survivor of narcissism”)
Some favourites …
* I’m Not Mean You’re Just a Sissy
* https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=KKTZpsaTEg
* Anti-Trump Protest & Narcissistic Rage
* https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=5VNe3h-yrCQ
* Liberal Tears for Cowardly Clinton
* https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=_RBaUYxQhmo
Dear Fish, you have brought Kiki Green into my life and now I can retire. The world is safe with Kiki.
Here are two comments under her Youtube video:
I’m a Black woman from the UK and I want to have her babies. She’s brilliant.
I’m a white homo from the U.S. and I do too. Gotta say , it’s a lonely feeling seeing how the people in my liberal little town are reacting .
Isn’t she great – a true ‘sister of critical thinking’! I meant to include this classic:
* Beyonce Knowles, Hillary Clinton I HATE YOU BOTH
* https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=5DkZXZnellE&t=51s
(featured here http://21stcenturywire.com/2016/11/11/beyonce-jay-z-hillary-clinton-you-dont-represent-blacks-women/)
At 14:05 “So who’s stupid? … So after you’ve learned your history – and American history – and you learn about globalism and what’s goin’ on – all that does is then put you on an even playing’ field with the most IGNORANT of white people. [look me in the eye expression] This is why you done let this bitch Hillary buy you a concert ticket for your vote – so she can continue to exploit your ass.“
God, what a difference Youtube makes.
But Kiki’s a little bit on the “blacks only” side. The business she describes of children being grabbed by CPS — Child Protective Service — was laid out by Biil Windsor in his Lawless America series, with most of the aggrieved Moms being white as snow.
By the way Bill Windsor has disappeared again.
Here is an examle of his findings: Irene Holmes lost her three little sons and infant daughter because she and spouse and kids were living in an RV (small caravan). She appears slightly disabled. Please start the tape at 27 minutes. At the end she sings a song she wrote which I think is brilliant.
Sounds to me very logical thinking. Just because you are brought up in a house-hold of a certain faith whether it be religion or politics, does not mean that you have to bow to that belief all your life. We as humans are given a very intricate organ known as the brain.
This brain should be used to think about the changing environment and mis-use of laws that are being used against us, and change our way of thinking to protect ourselves and others.
I think this is a very thoughtful and thought provoking post. My one question is how do you reconcile supporting a climate change denying candidate who is going to run a climate change denying administration (we already have signals of this) that has the power to undo considerable progress on the climate front? Climate is absolutely about the greater good, not just in the United States but globally. And the U.S. has tremendous power to impact how climate change is tackled internationally.
I ask this question and say this as someone who shares many (perhaps most) of your criticisms of the Democratic Party. I should add that I also didn’t vote for Clinton (I wrote in Sanders).
Thank you for writing this piece.
Because “climate change” is NOT driven by CO2. Never has and never will be.
The earth has gone through countless ice ages in the past and has even gone through an ice-age when the CO2 was about 4000ppm.
All ice core studies from Greenland, Lake Vostok and Antarctica show that the CO2 levels FOLLOW the earth’s natural temperature variations.
These are facts.
The fraudulent AGW theory is based on proven scientific fraud by the IPCC and has hijacked the environmental movement which has allowed an untold amount of real pollution issues to go completely ignored.
The bottom line is that CO2 is an essential trace gas that is necessary for life to exist on this planet.
It is NOT a pollutant no matter how many times the lying politicians and corporate media try to tell you that it is.
Hi there. I share your concerns. As I said on two panels recently at the Blue Ocean Film Festival and Summit in St. Pete’s, Florida, times like these actually sharpen the focus of environmentalists. As we see in Cuba, there are places on the planet that have delayed effects of climate change through hyper-local efforts. That is where the focus needs to be. It works.
Seriously? You actually believe this climate crap?
I believe the climate is changing. the evidence is all around, and this year will be the hottest again, as were the last few. either islands are sinking, or seas are rising.
I understand that we have gone through warming and cooling events in the past, but in the past, those events have taken place over centuries, are are not the same as the rapid changes occurring now, over decades.
As for the cause, it could be the fact that are skies are constantly filled with clouds that come out the backside of aircraft – or it may in fact have something to do with the blanket of pollution we are wrapping ourselves in, I dont know, Im not a scientist, I am though fairly certain, that we can not pollute our planet at an ever increasing rate, and expect that to have no consequence.
if science tells me that building 7 could not have come down at freefall acceleration through office fires alone, if I can look at the twin towers coming down, and understand for myself that is an explosion, and not a collapse, and im sitting through my tenth day straight again, of over 40 degrees celcius days, and science is telling me extreme weather events are part of climate change, Im inclined to believe something is going on.
I really hope Im wrong again.
Dear Fair, I go for the backside option.
¯_(ツ)_/¯
I need to be more cleverer to know if this info is useful or not. I think it would definitely appeal to those who like this sort of thing though.
https://climateviewer.com/chemtrails/
I certainly understand your reasons, but my honest feeling is that Trump voters (and perhaps election fraud) have unleashed a monster, the likes of which we’ve never seen in the U.S. I see no indication that he has the slightest interest in any class except his own. He deals with rich people and money. That’s all he knows and that’s all he cares about. I think that was completely obvious during his campaign and even more so now. The only reforms he’ll be interested in making are those that will provide more money and power to himself and his friends. My greatest hope is that he faces so much resistance from every direction that he is completely ineffective. Unfortunately, he’s putting together a team of individuals who are so greedy and so malevolent that they almost makes Hillary look good.
Personally, I’m fed up with with “the ruling class” and their shenanigans. I’m fed up with the belief that some people should have or need to have power over others, even when it’s obviously malevolent, and that some people have the right to harm others in the name of government. It’s unacceptable and it’s unsustainable. I’m mad as hell and I’m not going to take it anymore!
Speculator, I reluctantly have to agree with you. The one side of my brain hopes for a swamp draining miracle, but the other side of my brain knows that it will probably just be cleaning off the scum.
Personally I don’t believe there will be any major change until Western governments unhook themselves from the shackles of the Federal Reserve — or admit (for example) that 9-11 was made up magic trick.
While I agree the Democratic party left me, I didn’t leave it, I really can’t see Trump as a viable alternative. I think everything he says is a calculated lie – that he will say anything to get where he wants – so there is no credence to his posturing toward middle to lower class voters. His was a duplicitous power grab so he and his cronies can send the country backward toward another Reagan-type dismantling of the few remaining controls on the march toward complete fascism. He has also stated he plans to open up public lands to more extractive industries – can full-on privatization of said lands be far behind? How does that jibe with your “Earth First!” sensibilities? I hope I’m wrong about Trump, that he is what he says he is, but I wouldn’t bet on it.
Trump’s actions and team building since the “election” have certainly gone in this direction. I agree. It’s looking to me like there was a bit of a coup d’etat to grab power for these republicans. But then how convenient was it that the democrats put up such an unacceptable candidate like Hillary at the very same time? Makes me go hmmm.
Great thoughts. A very troubling time, with little improvement. As a former democrat and Prep grad, i agree that the establishment has changed. The big money and power will resist change, and reform will take a huge effort. As an aside, my dad was your dad’s first patient, and they both reminded each other often.
Anyone want to speculate on what the Reform might consist of?
I’m no fan of the Democrats, but you need to accept that both sides have accepted corrupt, possibly criminal leaders in order to further their own needs. The Fascism of the Right is equally as dubious and violent as that of the Left, the difference being only their beliefs in the ownership of Capital and private property.