re: Trump, DC and things that seem clearer to me

quote:

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Unless you are 3 years old, all you have to do is go back to Obama.

People wrote songs about him for elementary school children to sing.

People would faint at his speeches.

Not only did the man win the Nobel Peace Prize before he did anything, his supporters defended it.

The Obama fan base was as rabid in support of him as Trump’s.

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I see it a little differently. Obama's celebrity came primarily from how he made people feel. In the many conversations I've had over the years with Obama fans the most common refrain when I asked what about him was so appealing was that he made them feel good (both white and black supporters). They couldn't point to any specific policy aside from the ACA (and often either blew off issues on it or blamed those issues on Republicans) on which they could pin their positive feelings. Bring up that Obama didn't have much to do with the ACA other than signing it into law and they simply don't care.

It's their perception of who he was and what he represented (as a black man being President) that they loved.

Trump, on the other hand, initially garnered support through his kitchen-table style of oratory, making simple and clear campaign promises, how he would accomplish them, making realistic expectations on what their impacts would be and not being afraid of fighting (to the contrary, he often proactively punches instead of waiting and countering, or doing nothing which is what many GOP'rs often have done). This support has increased as he's followed through on most of them, that their impact has at times been far greater than even he thought it would be and that he still takes fights head-on.

In short, Obama's fan base were loyal more to him for what he represented in their own lives whereas Trumps fan base is loyal more for who he is and what he's accomplished (and accomplishing).