The True Appeal of Trump That Democrats Are Still Ignoring
It’s deeper than racism and misogyny
Recently, I spoke with a liberal retired friend who worked the polls this election season. She shared an observation that struck me:
“I was amazed by how Mr. Trump motivated the sick, the lame, the old, and the young to come out and vote. We need to pay attention. Close attention.”
Her words resonated because they highlight an uncomfortable truth: despite all the impeachments, indictments, threats, and hateful rhetoric, Donald Trump’s appeal is not only holding but growing. And if we truly democracy — the idea that the common masses hold wisdom that is essential for self-governance — then broadly dismissing voters as bigots who voted against their own interests is a grave mistake.
This is a wake-up call to my fellow Americans who didn’t vote for Trump and are grieving his victory.
A tale of two campaign tones
This was not the year for a campaign based on joy and hope.
The world today feels precarious, and that weight is shared across demographics. Costs of living are soaring as wages stagnate. Families face eviction in droves, while homelessness and housing insecurity rise to levels not seen in decades. In the South, communities are struggling to adapt to an influx of refugees fleeing violence and climate change. Youth across our nation are suffering from mental health issues, hopelessness, and suicide. Globally, human trafficking is rising, wars are waging, and there are multiple genocides happening.
People aren’t seeking outlets for joy. They are seeking outlets for fear, grief, and anger.
Donald Trump and the Republicans understand these emotions and are harnessing them, albeit in a divisive way. By providing people with an outlet for their anger, they create a community that says, “Your fears are valid, and here’s who’s to blame.” While these narratives often vilify marginalized communities and stoke dangerous rhetoric, they do something that Democrats often fail to: acknowledge people’s sense of powerlessness.
In Trump, voters found a cause, a target for their frustrations, and a movement they feel emotionally aligned with— even if it’s one that channels their anger toward scapegoats rather than solutions.
Bernie Sanders and the Power of Righteous Anger
In 2016, Bernie Sanders provided a different outlet for anger — one focused on issues rather than people.
His campaign spoke directly to the rage and frustration people felt about income inequality, corporate power, government corruption, and arrogant elitism — far more appropriate targets than vulnerable communities. Sanders tapped into a deep-seated frustration with a system that seemed designed to ignore ordinary people in favor of rampant profit-seeking, and he did so in a way that resonated across class, race, and geography.
But the Democratic National Committee (DNC) sabotaged Sanders’ campaign, leaning heavily toward Hillary Clinton as the chosen candidate. Was it because Sanders’ platform hit too close to home, threatening entrenched interests within the Democratic establishment itself?
By sidelining him, the DNC sacrificed a chance to unite people against a common adversary — the powerful forces that exacerbate economic disparity and political disillusionment. When Sanders was cut out, that space of righteous anger was left wide open, and Trump filled the void. The DNC’s short-sighted decision helped pave the way for Trump to rally the disenchanted in a way Clinton’s message of hope simply couldn’t.
Democrats pivoted to directing voters’ anger toward Trump himself. That worked once, allowing Biden to get elected. However, this focus failed to address the systemic issues of economic inequality that transcend Trump or any singular person. Voters want a platform that is more nuanced than “we’re anti-Trump.”
The Democratic Disconnect
In a climate of crises and loss, many Democrats are doubling down on messages of unity and positivity that simply don’t resonate with the daily reality many Americans face.
For instance, during his 2020 campaign, Joe Biden promised a “return to normalcy.” But for people who were already struggling, “normalcy” didn’t feel like a solution. It felt like more of the same — a return to a system that leaves them overlooked and unheard. Now, as conditions have only worsened for low-income Americans, the Democratic establishment still isn’t offering a healthy outlet for the anger at injustice that so many feel.
There’s a lesson to be learned here: Democrats must recognize that for many voters, instead of framing issues as binary struggles between two parties, they would do well to address the root causes of people’s anger — housing market manipulation, insurance and Big Pharma’s exploitation of the healthcare system, labor exploitation, Wall Street greed, a broken immigration system, the war industrial complex— systemic issues that affect both conservative and liberal voters alike.
Paying attention to economically and ideologically diverse voters and building a movement around these common struggles, rather than focusing on party loyalty, isn’t just politically strategic. It’s critical if we want to survive the next few generations of existential crises facing us.
A Call to Constituents
Personally, I don’t have faith in either party to save us. When has that ever worked? Especially now, I don’t believe levels of corporate corruption that have infiltrated both parties will ever self-correct.
We have the ability to demand change in our interests no matter who is in office. That’s what corporations do. It’s called lobbying.
True progress for the working class always begins at the grassroots level, with coalitions of motivated and collaborative citizens working together to demand the change they want to see, starting locally.
As a professional community organizer, I have some insight on specific steps for doing that effectively, which don’t get taught in most schools. Now is the time for us to learn.