Posted on 02/18/2020 3:55:27 AM PST by Kaslin
WESTBY, Wisconsin -- Spend any time with people who supported presidential candidate Donald Trump in 2016 and you quickly find out that the reasons they voted for Trump had very little to do with him.
It is likely one of the most misunderstood threads among this new conservative populist coalition. To get the real reasons for their support for Trump, you have to be where they are, have no preconceived ideas about who they are and have no prejudice for what you think their motivations are.
Tom Schaub, Ralph Petersheim, Donna Leum, Kris Amundson and Ben Klinkner are all sitting around a large conference table at the Westby Cooperative Creamery in this Vernon County town. There is a pot of coffee and an oversized box of doughnuts. The aroma that only bakery-fresh doughnuts can provide radiates throughout the room.
All four are dairy farmers. Schaub is president of the co-op. Petersheim has been recognized for his water and land conservation efforts by the county, earning him the Outstanding Conservation Farmer Award for his impeccable land efforts. Leum's family owns a 53-cow dairy, and both of her adult children are in different aspects of the dairy agriculture industry. Amundson's family produces 17,200 pounds of milk per cow each year for the cooperative. Klinkner is a sixth-generation farmer on his family's organic dairy farm.
They are all board members of a co-op that was formed over 117 years ago by local dairy farm families searching for a way to develop a sustainable market for their milk and dairy products in their creamery.
Individually, they are superhumans. Not only do they work the dawn-to-dusk hours required to bring you cheese, yogurt, milk, sour cream and any other dairy delight that fills refrigerators (cows are milked twice a day every day of the year); they are devoted conservationists of the soil and water, and are tireless volunteers dedicating countless hours to the 4-H club, local schools, their churches and the co-op board.
They all said their vote for Trump wasn't for him but rather for their communities.
It was an abstract and complicated decision that rarely makes sense to people who don't walk in their shoes, live in their ZIP code or understand how long establishments within both parties have let them down, their parents down, their grandparents down and their children down.
"People who don't know farmers or live near or in a farm community have little idea of why we feel so connected to our place," said Leum. "But they do seem to have strong opinions about who we are, and when they find out we supported Trump, they look at us as that dumb farmer who doesn't know any better."
"Well those dumb farmers, they're an electrician. They're a plumber. They are mechanics, scientists, conservationists. They take care of the crops that fill their cupboards, (who) love and care for the animals who provide dairy and meat for their feasts. They are also vets and engineers," she says with pride and a broad smile. "I mean, we have all these skills because you cannot keep calling repair people, so you do it yourself. So actually, I think we are pretty darn smart."
Overall, there are 68,700 farms in Wisconsin covering 14.4 million acres of land. They provide nearly $90 billion for the state economy every year and employ over 400,000 people statewide.
There are nearly 8,500 dairy farms in Wisconsin. Hundreds of them shuttered in 2019, continuing a 10-year trend the co-op board members said is largely based on a complex pricing system and fixed costs being spread over a wide swath of production.
"On the co-op level, we're given an advance price of what the milk is supposed to be for the month, so we base all of our prices on the products that we're making and selling," explained Schaub. "And then when the final price comes in, it can be a $2 difference."
"Well, that $2 difference. ... There's no way to make that up, so, then you have a loss for that month. Then, you string too many months like that in a row, and that's when things get rough," he said, adding that the eventual result could be bankruptcy.
All five farmers like President Trump's policies. His demeanor? Not so much. But they knew Trump would come through with better trade deals, which he did with the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement.
Vernon County is one of the 23 counties that voted for then-President Barack Obama in 2012 and switched to Trump in 2016.
While many national outlets have parachuted into the Vernon Counties of the last presidential race to ask voters about Trump when the trade deal dragged on, when special counsel Robert Mueller's report was released and when Trump was impeached (and acquitted), few journalists ask voters how they got here in the first place. Furthermore, few members of the Republican and Democratic establishments who mock farmers behind closed doors (or openly on social media) have reflected meaningfully about why farmers picked Trump over their establishment candidates.
Despite moans from the chattering class saying there have been too many stories on Trump voters, farmers such as these have a story to tell about lives focused on faith, family and farming. Few who actually know them could argue they're not creating a profound benefit for the entire country.
“We gotta get over this meme”
I agree. No president has ever been under siege like PDJT has. Starting from the day after the election they were campaigning for the Electoral College to nullify the election. There was never even a hint of a “honeymoon”. It has been relentless. Anyone else would have caved, but he will not. That kind of resolve is going to ruffle a few feathers. That is too bad, but that is the way it is.
A few day ago, some animal rights nut stormed a Sanders event and grabbed the mike. Sanders just walked away with his head down. There is your alternative. I prefer PDJT.
bump
Re: Trump’s Style: At first, he seemed gruff and brash. But, then when you see him in action among the wolves of the media and the Democrats, any person paying attention ought to realize he is just fighting back. That, in the opinion of the left, is not allowed. No one, no conservative, no Republican, has the right to fight back it seems. If you do, then you are brash and crude, vulgar.
They hate him, not only for his policies which favor American workers of all stripes, but also favor God-fearing people and life. None of those things endear Trump to the Democrats and news media. As for me, I love Trump more each day that he is my President and that he fights back.
Ditto!
In so many ways-Trump reminds me of Truman... ‘Give’em Hell Harry’ didn’t bother with ‘style’ either and just said what he had to say!
Truman was also a DC outsider and that’s probably more of a recommendation NOW than ever before!
Personally, I don’t think ‘likeability’ has any thing to do with fitness for the job. It doesn’t matter at all about his personality but rather his leadership, vision and resolution.
I didn’t vote for Donald Trump in the Tennessee primaries, and I had to fight with myself for many month, but when it was clear that he would get the nomination it was clear to me that he would be my candidate. So I voted for him and I will gladly vote for him on November 2nd again. I will vote for as many electoral people for him as I can in our Tennessee primary on March 3.
Are you that clueless?
Do you not think that Trump (forget about the GOP, which is primarily interested in its own continuation and buried corruption) has cared about and spent great political capital in furthering the interests of non-farm blue-collar workers?
Is he not, however, the president of all Americans, not just your favorite demographic?
Don’t be blinded: the Corrupt Turtle has been undermining Trump every step of the way—except for the universal GOP goal of more conservative judges.
Just look at the corrupt, anti-Trump SSCI, on which just this week the Corrupt Turtle swapped out a decent GOP senator for Never Trumper Sasse.
Your post explains it all. Like you say Trump has done great things and made great inroads into blue collar America. THE GOP HAD NOT AND REFUSES TO LEARN FROM TRUMP. Post Trump we can look forward to the same old globolist milquetoast RINO GOP.
Politicians fear this man because he fights and he gets things done the do-nothing pols we have been cursed with for the past three generations have neglected to do because they would run out of things to do.
Trump has my permission to solve all the problems and send them home only to convene for the hottest three months in DC and for the green new deal cool the place with hand fans.
These dweebs would be screaming to replace AOC with AC in no time.
It shows, doesn’t it?
BTTT
You just blew all your credibility on the entire “bring the jobs back home” discussion.
If we can’t grow our own food here then it doesn’t matter if we make anything else here. We can do without tires, electronics etc. We cannot do without food.
If you really cared about the workers than you’d also care about the agricultural workers that feed you.
or “...understand how long establishments within both parties have let them down...”
Yep, at some point both parties decided that they no longer had to listen to their voters.
Fair enough. And too true.
It’s about our white hot seething hatred for YOU, Washington Establishment. We’d pull the lever for Satan himself if we thought that was what’s needed to dislodge you.
Tom Schaub, Ralph Petersheim, Donna Leum, Kris Amundson and Ben Klinkner are all sitting around a large conference table at the Westby Cooperative Creamery in this Vernon County town. There is a pot of coffee and an oversized box of doughnuts. The aroma that only bakery-fresh doughnuts can provide radiates throughout the room.
All four are dairy farmers.
It seems that someone needs a math refresher course!!!
I see that Trump cares about all workers: white collar, blue collar, pink collar, those who wear plastic pocket protectors in their shirt pockets, and geeky tee-shirt without collars.
You and me both. The minute he stepped on the escalator, I was ALL IN. Don’t care what people think anymore.
Oh my God you are being a complete idiot. We are a now a client state ( and a debtor nation ) and we need all of those things made here, that is real wealth creation. Those jobs kepp small towns alive. We need a VERY HIGH PROTECTIVE IMPORT TARIFF to stop the decline of mid Americans and the rush to socialism. You are a perfect example of the stupid party non-think.
Trump cares but the GOP does not.
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