Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Their freedom requires your slavery.

I’m pretty sure there’s only one Jack Smith.

“More of this”, i said to the dog.

The cruelty is the point; the law be damned.

I’d try pessimism, but it probably wouldn’t work.

Republicans are radicals, not conservatives.

And now I have baud making fun of me. this day can’t get worse.

No offense, but this thread hasn’t been about you for quite a while.

Speaking of republicans, is there a way for a political party to declare intellectual bankruptcy?

If senate republicans had any shame, they’d die of it.

Do not shrug your shoulders and accept the normalization of untruths.

They fucked up the fucking up of the fuckup!

Give the craziest people you know everything they want and hope they don’t ask for more? Great plan.

Since when do we limit our critiques to things we could do better ourselves?

A Senator Walker would be an insult to the state and the nation.

Eh, that’s media spin. biden’s health is fine and he’s doing a good job.

Historically it was a little unusual for the president to be an incoherent babbling moron.

I’ve spoken to my cat about this, but it doesn’t seem to do any good.

… riddled with inexplicable and elementary errors of law and fact

fuckem (in honor of the late great efgoldman)

Reality always lies in wait for … Democrats.

You can’t love your country only when you win.

Republicans in disarray!

You don’t get to peddle hatred on saturday and offer condolences on sunday.

You are here: Home / Past Elections / Election 2016 / Trump and the BREXIT

Trump and the BREXIT

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Last night, John Oliver also spent a good deal of time talking about the Brexit and UKIP:

If it was not abundantly clear, the white nationalist strain of UKIP should seem very familiar to you, as it is basically the British version of the Trumpanistas, right down to his opinion on the Brexit:

Donald Trump reiterated his support for the U.K. to leave the European Union days before Brits vote in the EU referendum on June 23.

“I would personally be more inclined to leave, for a lot of reasons like having a lot less bureaucracy,” Trump told the Sunday Times. “But I am not a British citizen. This is just my opinion.”

Because of course you do, Donald. You’re a fucking idiot. There’s a great piece on NBC right now about who exactly the Trump supporter is, and it is well worth your time (lots of graphs and fun stuff):

A year after Donald Trump launched his presidential bid, and against all expectations, the business mogul is the presumptive GOP nominee. Who supported him? How did he take over a Republican Party whose leaders almost uniformly opposed him? And will the GOP ever be the same? NBC News crunched polling and election data and conducted dozens of interviews with supporters, critics and party leaders of all stripes for a series of stories explaining the phenomenon that defined 2016. In chapter one, we look at Trump’s voters: Where they live, what they want, and how their deep unease with a changing America fueled a political revolution.

Long story short, the Trump supporter is white, ethnocentric, afraid of immigration and immigrants, less educated (his highest support is among those without a HS diploma), worried about the future, and not earning what they used to and have not had any of the gains from the economy. This graph stuck out:

brexit

Basically, if we were in England, Trump would be a more vulgar Nigel Farage.

Reader Interactions

118Comments

  2. 2.

    cmorenc

    The song at the end of John Oliver’s Brexit piece was priceless (starts about 13:55 into the embedded clip above). The basic message of the song was We Brits need the EU, but all the countries in Europe suck so fuck you all anyway. Lead singer was a young boy – in a way, the role reminded me somewhat of the girl in the priceless “Wake the fuck up” political ad in 2012 with Samuel Jackson.

  6. 6.

    rikyrah

    isn’t this what folks like me have been saying all along?

    They wanna party like it’s 1948.

    and, we all know EXACTLY what they mean when they say ‘ Make America Great Again’

    Come on, now.

    We know it.

    And, as I’ve said before, I don’t have the luxury to not take Trump at his word, because his WORDS are why he won the GOP Nomination.

    He was not coronated. He went out and stabbed right into the vein of the GOP voter base.

    THEY chose him.

    He speaks for THEM.

    Which is why it somewhat amuses me to see clowns like Halperin and others pretend that folks like me didn’t hear what we heard on the campaign trail, and if he would just begin talking in dogwhistles, all would be well in the world.

    Phuck.outta.here.

  15. 15.

    p.a.

    @schrodinger’s cat: I agree, but…

    …and not earning what they used to and have not had any of the gains from the economy.

    the anger and hate is misdirected, but not baseless. Are there Dem pols, national, state, or local, who can refocus the anger to legit targets? What % of these people are reachable? (I’m not hopeful, but if some can be turned the rest could be buried electorally for a generation.)

  16. 16.

    Gin & Tonic

    @satby: Look at the bright side – that’s a maple, so you’ve got some good firewood for the winter.

  17. 17.

    Mnemosyne

    @satby:

    Holy shit! I hope everybody’s okay. Was it WaterGirl who had the same thing happen to her a few years ago? Whoever it was will probably have some good advice.

  18. 18.

    Momentary

    @schrodinger’s cat: yes, he absolutely is. In fact his support for Brexit is largely presumed to be a strategy for a coup against Cameron. If Brexit succeeds Cameron is expected to resign or be pushed.

  19. 19.

    Dee Loralei

    @satby: yikes. Didn’t this just happen to one of your sons too? I’m thinking the forest sure doesn’t seem to like your family much. Hope the damage was minimal and everyone and your pets are ok.

  20. 20.

    TriassicSands

    But Donald has fired his campaign manager. Because, as we’ve all learned from the cliche, Trump can never fail, he can only be failed by others.

    It’s become a cliche for Republicans in general, but Chump needs it more than anyone else ever has.

  26. 26.

    satby

    @dr. bloor: yeah. I had just gotten home so was still in the car waiting for the microbursts to slow down. Tree was upright when I pulled in, came down a minute later.

  28. 28.

    Jado

    This continually makes me sick. Trump supporters are usually white male lower educated and not making what they used to. You mean when they were members of strong unions? Back before they betrayed everything the Democrats worked for in cultivating and working with unions to make a respectable living for labor in this country? Before they threw it all away because the GOP promised that they would keep “those” people in their place?

    You guys had it all in your fathers time, and you tossed it away because you didn’t want to be considered the same as your minority union brothers. I hope you all choke on the racism you consider more important than financial security for your family, because the GOP corporate masters aren’t bringing those jobs back. Ever.

    You racist idiots.

  35. 35.

    Calouste

    @Iowa Old Lady: If Trump only manages to make Romney-level gaffs, the trip should be considered a success. I expect a lot worse, open muslimphobia among other things.

  36. 36.

    Russ

    It is probable that most of Trump supporters don’t realize they have to be registered to vote, vote on election day and know when election day is. Those without a high school diploma tend to not vote anyways, so there is that also.

  37. 37.

    Droopy

    This is the result of 30 years of Reagan Revolution – eviscerate educational institutions, leave unskilled workers with nothing to do but work at Wal-Mart, and you end up with a permanent ignorant underclass. These are the people who should be voting for the most liberal candidates, but of course they’ve been screwed their whole lives and have been told by radio bloviators that it’s the fault of “them.” Democrats have a lot of work to do to counter all this.

  39. 39.

    Momentary

    @schrodinger’s cat: Brexit is a Tory civil war, which would be fun to watch for those of us who are vehemently anti-Tory, if the stakes were not so high. It’s a bit like the division between the arch-capitalists and the religious fundamentalists in the Republican party. Cameron gambled that he could safely settle the issue with the referendum and get the Europhobes off his back, which has turned out to be a really stupid gamble.

  42. 42.

    SRW1

    @schrodinger’s cat:

    Parliamentary Tories are split in the middle, but there is an angry Brexit faction that is growling about wanting Cameron’s head even if Remain wins. Unlikely if Remain wins, but the Tories are gonna have a bit of a problem ‘healing’ the party.

  43. 43.

    a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q)

    @satby: NO… Are you and all critters okay?
    The trees are coming for all your houses.

  44. 44.

    satby

    Yes, this happened in February to the garage of my old house, which was flattened. Doesn’t seem to be any obvious holes in the roof, but won’t really know until we get the tree removed. There’s trees down all over, some blocking roads. And of course the power is out, a pine across the street was completely uprooted and fell across the lines.

  46. 46.

    Poopyman

    @satby: Well ,the “good” news is that it appears not to have sliced through the house. Is everything still watertight?

    The bad news is now you’re going to have to pay someone to take the other half down. But then, that’s what homeowner’s insurance is for.

  51. 51.

    patroclus

    That closing song had me laughing hysterically last night!! And it perfectly encapsulates the opinions of my British cousins with whom I e-mail frequently. They can not STAND the EU, but are probably going to vote for STAY on Thursday. They’re Conservatives and love them some BoJo, but they sort of kind of agree that they would be batshit crazy to leave, and they understand why we Americans want them to stay. If they start a massive trade war and tank the markets, they’ll never hear the end of it from me.

  54. 54.

    aimai

    @satby: OMG, I hope you are ok! We have a tree like that near us. I’ve beenw anting to take it down for years but need so much permission from neighbors that it hasn’t been possible to arrange. But if it goes down, it will go down like that.

  55. 55.

    eclare

    @rikyrah: Totally agree, wish your megaphone was bigger. Was texting with a friend of mine of Indian descent in Dallas about the level of racism that has been exposed. He said he now wonders about his daily interactions. Note, I am a middle aged white lady, and I find it scary, especially with all of the guns around.

  56. 56.

    maya

    @satby: I hope it looks worse than it is, damage wise. Looks just like a friend of mine’s house after hurricane Sandy in Jersey 2013, or 14. They had minimal damage from a big fir that snapped just like your tree.

  58. 58.

    Mnemosyne

    @Poopyman:

    IIRC, the Bushies changed that post-9/11 so they could claim that Saddam had “weapons of mass destruction” (which had previously meant nukes) when he only had regular bombs.

  66. 66.

    maya

    @patroclus: Yup. No more lend lease and pre DDay invasions of US troops with jingle in their pockets.

    On the other hand, after that NBC diagnosis, Trump now has a golden opportunity to really connect with his con-stituancy: “A GED on every out house wall”.

  69. 69.

    Momentary

    @catclub: well I meant a stupid gamble for Cameron personally, and that seems likely to be the case regardless of which way the vote goes on Thursday.

  71. 71.

    the Conster, la Citoyenne

    @Droopy:

    Democrats have a lot of work to do to counter all this.

    How could Democrats ever make someone stop being a racist? These angry whites want their country back from the very people that they see the Democrats representing. As a white person, and a Democrat, our work is to point out racism in our friends and family members. I’ve started doing that, and guess what? It sucks! But, something happens when you say the word “racist”. There’s a power in naming something truthfully. It’s white people work.

  75. 75.

    Brachiator

    and not earning what they used to and have not had any of the gains from the economy

    This is the canary in the coal mine for everyone.

    A stagnant economy affects everyone.

    And the situation in the UK is not as equivalent as some might think. It is hard to be OK for Scottish nationalism, and then say that the UK should stick to the EU. And there is growing support in Northern Ireland for Brexit. Funny thing, when you start talking about nationalism and devolution, you cannot keep it bottled up or blame racism.

  76. 76.

    hovercraft

    @catclub:
    It was an election promise he made to peel off votes from UKIP and to push up turnout for the tories. He assumed it was a no brainer and would not be close.

  78. 78.

    The Fat Kate Middleton

    @satby: Yeah, that sucks. We’ve spent the last three days cleaning up a similar mess at our place in northern Iowa – at least four big trees down, but none on our house, thank FSM.

  80. 80.

    Amir Khalid

    @srv:
    I did not need the mental image of Donald Trump wearing a tall beehive hairdo.

    I hates you now.

  81. 81.

    pseudonymous in nc

    @catclub:

    Should he have refused to even schedule a referendum? That seems like a different gamble.

    The behind-the-scenes suggestion is that Cameron didn’t expect a working majority, so the referendum would shore up the right wing but also be traded away in negotiations with the Lib Dems. Instead, the Lib Dems cratered and he got his poison chalice. Cameron’s a perennial student who swans about during the week then scrambles to get his essay finished on time. He deserves the boot for how he’s handled this even if Remain scrape out a win.

  83. 83.

    SuperHrefna

    @satby: oh no! I’m so glad you are ok, here’s hoping the tree don’t break anything expensive to fix.

  84. 84.

    Amir Khalid

    @satby:
    Yikes. Glad to hear everyone, on four legs and two, is okay. I hope the repair bills are survivable.

  85. 85.

    Brachiator

    @satby:

    This just happened. Yeah, that’s my house under there.

    Wow. Hope everything is OK. Good luck with the tree removal project.

  86. 86.

    Calouste

    @Brachiator:

    It is hard to be OK for Scottish nationalism, and then say that the UK should stick to the EU.

    That’s exactly the standpoint of the Scottish Nationalists though. They want out of the UK, but in the EU. In fact, the SNP has mentioned that in case of the UK leaving the EU, they would want to run another Scottish independence referendum with the explicit premise of Scotland returning to the EU.

  88. 88.

    Brachiator

    @Frankensteinbeck:

    For everyone bringing up Trump supporters being angry about economic issues: Read @the Conster, la Citoyenne‘s link. When the statistical analysis is done, it’s not economic factors. It’s just racism.

    The insistence that “Trump voters are bad people” does not, by itself, win more votes for the Democrats.

  89. 89.

    satby

    @aimai: it’s heartbreaking because it’s an old growth sugar maple. Beautiful in the fall. It’s twin is across the driveway and I always expected that one to come down first.

  90. 90.

    satby

    Thanks everyone. We’re all fine, all the neighbors too. Just waiting for the power to come back on because it’s 90 out.

  91. 91.

    Mnemosyne

    @Brachiator:

    The point is more that, given their tendencies, disaffected Trump voters are going to be far more likely to stay home than to vote for Hillary. That’s an important thing to know.

  92. 92.

    Brachiator

    @Calouste: RE: It is hard to be OK for Scottish nationalism, and then say that the UK should stick to the EU.

    That’s exactly the standpoint of the Scottish Nationalists though. They want out of the UK, but in the EU. In fact, the SNP has mentioned that in case of the UK leaving the EU, they would want to run another Scottish independence referendum with the explicit premise of Scotland returning to the EU.

    But there are some claims that leaving the UK could be financially ruinous for Scotland.

    But again, the point is that this still complicates the question. Scottish nationalism, good. English nationalism, bad. It would be interesting to see how inclusive Scottish nationalism might be.

  96. 96.

    Brachiator

    @Mnemosyne:

    The point is more that, given their tendencies, disaffected Trump voters are going to be far more likely to stay home than to vote for Hillary. That’s an important thing to know.

    Is that really the case? Is that a good thng? Do these Trump voters have cooties that render them to be untouchables, undesirable for any reason as far as Democrats are concerned? Are they totally irredeemable?

    The problem is, their economic problems don’t go away just because they are “bad” people. Their frustration doesn’t go away. This makes them potentially more unpredictable and dangerous.

  97. 97.

    the Conster, la Citoyenne

    @Brachiator:

    Trump voters believe ridiculous untrue things because they want to, and refuse to believe anything that contradicts the lies they want to believe, because they’re racist xenophobes who just simply know all of their lost status will be restored by a strong man with guts and bravado enough to bulldoze the politically correct barriers set up by those people, who need to be re-taught their place, then put there by force, if necessary. Are we supposed to cater to that?

  100. 100.

    Frankensteinbeck

    @Brachiator:
    True, but misidentifying their motivation ensures that you will not win them over. If economics is not their driver, economic appeals are of little or no use. Meanwhile, giving them the benefit of the doubt perpetuates systemic racism, and is the foundation the Reagan Revolution was built on. Knowing the enemy and calling out racism as racism are both correct strategies.

  101. 101.

    Citizen_X

    @Brachiator:

    The insistence that “Trump voters are bad people” does not, by itself, win more votes for the Democrats.

    No, but when they demonstrate it, repeatedly, it shows you should look elsewhere for potential converts.

  102. 102.

    Reforming with Results

    I wonder how similar this will be to Romney’s European trip in 2012.

  103. 103.

    Eric U.

    @Citizen_X: no, we need to peel off the few remaining reasonable Republicans and convert some independent voters into reliable dem voters. There are still some people that are on team Republican even though their philosophy doesn’t really align with the republicans at all

  104. 104.

    PurpleGirl

    @satby: OMG. Are you all right? Good thing Qunoot and Valentina have already gone home. Just when a few things were quieting down for you. I hope the there’s not too much damage.

  105. 105.

    rikyrah

    @the Conster, la Citoyenne:

    because they’re racist xenophobes who just simply know all of their lost status will be restored by a strong man with guts and bravado enough to bulldoze the politically correct barriers set up by those people, who need to be re-taught their place, then put there by force, if necessary. Are we supposed to cater to that?

    you know my answer….hell no

  107. 107.

    Mnemosyne

    @Brachiator:

    Is that really the case?

    If you think the above-quoted research that is the subject of the post is incorrect, please post a link to your preferred research. Otherwise, we have to work with the data we have.

    Is that a good thng?

    What, that research exists showing that Trump voters are driven by racism and xenophobia? Why are you blaming the research for showing reality?

    If you can figure out how to get white voters to abandon their racial identification and instead vote their economic interests, you will be a very rich man, because no one has been able to crack that nut, including Obama and Sanders.

  108. 108.

    Mnemosyne

    @Frankensteinbeck:

    Also, this:

    misidentifying their motivation ensures that you will not win them over. If economics is not their driver, economic appeals are of little or no use.

    Thomas Frank and others are desperate to point to something — anything! — other than racial animus to explain why white voters consistently vote against their own economic interest, but all of their alternative explanations have failed to pan out. At some point, we have to accept what those voters are telling us at face value rather than continuing to insist that they must actually be feeling something else.

  109. 109.

    I'mNotSureWhoIWantToBeYet

    @rikyrah: One thing to keep in mind is that Trump only won because of the “winner take all” system that the GOP set up.

    Donnie only won 44.54% of the popular vote in the GOP primaries

    Yes, he’s a monster that perfectly represents the Teabagger Id. But lots and lots of Republicans don’t like him.

    Hillary and Team D would be smart to keep that in mind, even as they do everything they can to try to have a huge turnout among Democrats.

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  110. 110.

    I'mNotSureWhoIWantToBeYet

    @satby: Oh no. :-( I hope the damage is much less than it looks like it might be.

    Hang in there.

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  113. 113.

    Smedley the uncertain

    @Poopyman: Insurance…yeah right! Had a very old maple drop two widow makers over the course of a year onto my truck. Truck insurance paid several $K to fix it each time. Then it dropped a huge widow maker on the side walk. I could only imagine what would have happened had someone been walking by… Called the Insurance dude and said I’m taking it down does my home owners cover any of the cost. Answer.. you guessed it. NOPE! Took it down any way for $1200. Thanks State Farm.

  115. 115.

    Ian

    @Major Major Major Major:
    I love how the republicans now claim the no fly list is unconstitutional. All tied in with keeping ammosexuals fully armed. Yet do they propose to do away with the no-fly list?
    (crickets)

  116. 116.

    Ian

    @Brachiator:
    Disagree sire. We can win Georgia, Utah, and Arizona for the first time in a generation because Trump and his voters are assholes.

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