The 2024 Election: Oh, The Lies We Tell Ourselves
In a country where whiteness and male privilege remain deeply aspirational for many, Trump is the living embodiment of both fantasies, no matter how grotesque or contradictory they are.
Democrats really cannot believe the majority of American voters sold out their country for cheaper eggs. Still, this ridiculous conversation permeates the shady aftermath of the 2024 U.S. elections. It’s not pretty, but here we are — once again watching the threads of democracy strain under the weight of denial and self-deception. Latino voters, white women, and yes, even a handful of Black men have lined up to justify giving their votes to a twice-impeached felon and a businessman whose business acumen is a mirage at best. And, as usual, the handwringing of Democrats continues in earnest. Some, like Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Bernie Sanders, argue that Kamala Harris and the Democratic Party are drifting too far to the right, abandoning the working class. On the other end, we have folks like Congressman Tom Suozzi pleading, “Democrats have to stop pandering to the far left.”
It’s like a political version of that age-old saying, “The left hand doesn’t know what the right hand is doing.” Only here, it’s not just hands — it’s an entire body that’s thrashing about with no sense of direction, all while the people who put Trump back into power continue to lie to themselves about why they did it.
Democrats don’t seem to realize that all this political ping-pong isn’t going to win any hearts, minds, or votes. Because let’s face it: for a substantial portion of the American electorate, policy is irrelevant. The truth is ugly, and it’s a truth Democratic politicians and their media allies on MSNBC, CNN, the New York Times, and the Washington Post, to name a few, continue to avoid. Voters chose Trump because, deep down, they are intoxicated by his projection of unachievable whiteness and swaggering masculinity. He’s the untouchable, the one who sneers at the rules and walks away clean. In a country where whiteness and male privilege remain deeply aspirational for many, Trump is the living embodiment of both fantasies, no matter how grotesque or contradictory they are.
We’ll hear all the same excuses about “economic anxiety” and “the price of eggs,” or immigration, or the cost of housing. But these are mere fig leaves draped hastily over a much more primal, visceral motivation. No one is arguing that inflation isn’t a problem or that housing isn’t a challenge. But anyone paying attention knows those issues aren’t what Trump voters prioritized. If they did, they would have voted for the party that actually offered coherent plans to address them. They did not. This is no mystery; it’s a reality Democratic leadership and its avatars refuse to accept.
Let’s talk about whiteness for a moment — the carrot that’s been dangling in front of the American public since the nation’s founding. Trump’s voters hear him bash Latinos, women, Black people, and immigrants and think, “Well, he doesn’t mean me. He means the other ones — the lazy ones, the lawbreakers, the ones who aren’t really “like me.” This is the lie we’re all supposed to swallow, that somehow Trump’s bigotry is a buffet where people can pick and choose who he disrespects and who he doesn’t.
What a joke. Trump repeatedly shows us that his loyalty extends to no one but himself. Yet his supporters cling to the notion that he will “defend them” against the shifting demographics, the diversifying voices, the very things that make America truly great. They think they’re buying into a kind of exclusivity, a membership card to a gated community in their own minds where people like them are always on top, and anyone who doesn’t look, sound, or pray like them is on the outside looking in. It’s not about policies. It’s not about values. It’s about a fantasy of entitlement that doesn’t need to make sense; it only needs to feel comforting.
Meanwhile, the Democratic Party is squandering valuable time trying to “meet people where they are.” They think if they find the right slogan, the right balance of progressive and centrist policies, they’ll pull those swing voters over. Newsflash: they won’t. Those voters are too busy reveling in the cultural mythology Trump represents to give a damn about how much the minimum wage is or how many green energy jobs are in their state. They’re in it for the white-knuckle thrill of Trump’s transgressions, the satisfaction of his defiance. For them, Trump’s recklessness isn’t a liability; it’s the very allure.
Let’s not kid ourselves: it is NOT the economy stupid! It’s about identity, pure and simple, the unchecked rage of a demographic that feels its grip slipping and thinks, if only they can align themselves with a figure like Trump, they can hold on a little longer. Trump is the ideal avatar for this insecurity: he’s shameless, unapologetic, and will burn everything down before admitting defeat. That’s what they’re signing up for, whether they realize it or not.
It’s time the Democrats stopped playing the appeasement game and recognized that a party so caught up in apologizing for its values is doomed to fail. Enough with the pandering to the undecided and the “economically anxious” as if their choice of Trump was just a misunderstanding or a lack of education. Enough with the illusion that this is a matter of messaging or tweaking some policy positions to hit the right note. It’s not.
The Democrats need to stop hoping for some magical voter epiphany where Trump supporters suddenly see the light and vote blue. They’re not going to do it. Instead, Democrats need to rebuild the party on a foundation of voters who actually believe in equality, justice, and a future that isn’t built on exclusion and supremacy. And they need to stop pretending that those voters who abandoned them are simply misguided souls waiting to be led back. They’re not.
So, no more lies, please. We know exactly what this election, this moment, was about. It’s time the Democratic party and progressive media accept the truth. Let’s stop excusing those who would say they sold out their country for cheaper eggs when we know they sold out their country for the unachievable whiteness of Trumpism.
