Posted on 06/21/2016 5:20:39 PM PDT by mandaladon
PITTSBURGH, PA -- Donald Trump's Rust Belt base isn't ready to stop believing.
The Republican nominee's campaign is beset by infighting, organizational mayhem, paltry fundraising and daily controversies. But, according to a focus group of working class voters here, his White House bid remains a source of optimism among the blue-collar workers whose support he desperately needs to remain competitive in the fall.
"For now, despite all the gaffes and missteps, this group of blue-collar voters find reasons to support him and dismiss the criticisms or feel he may grow into the job," said moderator Peter Hart, who conducted the focus group on behalf of the Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania. "These are hard times for these people who are at the bottom rungs of the ladder and only want to hold on."
The group of 11 voters - including six who support Trump, four who back Hillary Clinton and one who is weighing both Trump and independent Gary Johnson - described their view of a political novice whose draconian positions on immigration and terrorism could fortify a country that they feel has become destabilized and vulnerable. His backers argued that his constant controversies merely display his personal confidence as a successful businessman and his refreshing disregard of judgment by elites.
"We've been lied to for so long " said Glenda, a 42-year-old bartender. "So what, he doesn't want Muslims, per se, that are terrorists in the country? Then I'm glad he's saying it because I don't want them in there either."
(Excerpt) Read more at nbcnews.com ...
Get this Ministry of Propaganda:
We’re going to elect Trump by such wide margins the Democrats won’t be able to cheat enough.
Most people made up their mind last year. Everything else is just preaching to the choir on both sides.
He needs to stick to his original positions and be ready to amplify them. And not be afraid to call out the dim’s for their actions and treason. Don’t be afraid. Trust the people.
Republicans have traditionally represented the wealthy and corporate interests.
Trump’s blue collar insurgency has transformed the GOP.
Most people made up their mind last year. Everything else is just preaching to the choir on both sides.
Not exactly. It’s all about depressing the vote for Trump. Dems will pull the lever for any criminal. That’s been proven. Now they are trying to push down support for Trump among Republicans & Indies. That is how Obama won in 2012 and the Dems are running exactly the same game plan.
The Reagan Democrats who became Republicans.
Not surprising to see old line liberal values come into the GOP with these voters.
But the kind of government programs of interest to them find no support among today’s Democrats.
Trump wants to refashion the old FDR coalition for our time.
No one can lie as fluently as Hilary, but the good people in this country aren’t looking for another Slick Clinton that twists all meaning out of words and suffocates the Truth under a mountain of putrid lies. God hates liars (Psalm 5:5,6) and will punish our nation for choosing to live under a liar’s rule.
Yes, and the libs are getting plenty of help from the losers in the GOP! Go Trump!
Most people don't pay close attention to the primaries especially when there are a lot of candidates.
And I firmly believe that this year we will have a bunch of people voting that normally do not.
The "working class", not as the democrats mean it "union members", but as it really is, people who work for an hourly wage, is seriously ticked off.
They are the people who are being forced out of their jobs to make room for their illegal alien replacements.
They are generally what is referred to as the working poor and they are seriously tired of seeing the non-working poor getting freebies on their dime.
And they see it every day.
They are the ones who are being told by their bosses that they can only work 28 hours a week because of Obamacare.
They are the ones being told that they will no longer get a bonus to buy their own health insurance.
As long as things bumped along ok they were not interested in politics. They were working hard to make a living.
Things are no longer ok.
And they are peeved.
I work for a salary, though not hourly. I am working class.
I think most of us are working class. The middle class has been squeezed and squeezed . . . more or less starting from Bush/Clinton’s NAFTA exacerbated by 20 years of open borders.
The key to Trump’s election is that his supporters will NOT get tricked or hypnotized out of it, even when the media hits us from 100 different angles with garbage like: “Trump is in trouble,” “Trump is unstable” “Republicans are worried about Trump” and dozens of other HIGHLY COORDINATED LIES.
We won’t be fooled, and WE ARE NOT GOING ANYWHERE.
That means that TRUMP’S SUPPORT CAN ONLY GROW . . . month—after-—month-—after-—month.
Right up to election day.
Yup, I’m so sick of hearing about Trump’s rough patch...how he has to pivot, how he can’t come back, he’s falling in the polls, the hateful rhetoric, his thin skin, and these are the positives!
I don’t think so; one of the problems facing Hillary in 2008 was that there were no “undecided”. Everybody knew her, and either loved her or hated her - and there was nobody to sway. Trump doesn’t have that same problem (though the media is working overtime to create that for him). As more libs realize Hillary will be four more years of Obamunist stagnation, I believe some will side with Trump. The Dem core (public employees, multigenerational welfare recipients - basically anyone detached from the private sector) will stay with Hillary.
“Donald Trump’s Rust Belt base isn’t ready to stop believing”
Implication: For everyone else, you can plead temporary insanity, get back with the cool kids, and vote Hillary.
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