A small business owner who voted for Donald Trump recently posted a video on TikTok, pleading for help as crushing tariffs on China threatened to bankrupt his operation, which imports alloy wheels. His call for support, however, drew little sympathy from some fellow Americans.
“Votes have consequences,” he was told, with many comments from Twitter/X users relishing the notion that another MAGA voter was suffering because of their political choice. The backlash prompted a second video from the man, in which he dropped several F-bombs while criticizing the apparent heartlessness of those celebrating his hardship.
I think you have pinpointed the core issue.
Right-wing republican policies and ideas lends themselves to simple (but often wrong) models of explanation; “it is the fault of the immigrants; the poor; abortion is always immoral”, etc. You get candidates that radiate confident leadership spewing simple talking points they believe in.
Left-wing, especially progressive, ideas are often rooted in insight into the incomplete understanding we have of the underlying complexities. People who navigate these ideas won’t be as confident: “the cause is a bit of this and a bit of that; we don’t really know, but research points at” etc. To confidently sell policies based on these ideas to voters requires a level of cognitive dissonance, and also opens for criticism on being indecisive.
How can we package left-wing ideas in a way that attracts voters who are swayed by simple ideas presented with absolut confidence?