Brunswick Beacon, 12.12.24
In his Nov. 28 letter, “Thank goodness!” Dick Wilson claims Democrats wrote two years of letters containing lies about Trump. He offers no examples to prove his point. Wilson’s fact-free claim illustrates why Trump won. It wasn’t what voters didn’t know; it was what they thought they knew that was wrong.
Right-wing media contributed. Google: “The link between media consumption and public opinion.” You’ll find October’s Reuters/Ipsos poll. Respondents who knew that violent crime experienced historic declines favored Harris by 65%. Those who wrongly thought it increased preferred Trump by 26%. Respondents who knew inflation is down where it was before COVID favored Harris by 53%. Those who wrongly thought otherwise preferred Trump by 19%. Those who knew stock markets were at all-time highs picked Harris by 20%. Those aware that southern border crossings had declined dramatically preferred Harris by 59%.
Many believe America has absurdly more minorities than it does. Media fear-mongers fan the flames of resentment for ratings.
A YouGov study found the average respondent thinks 41% of Americans are black, 30% are Jewish, 27% are Native American, 27% are Muslim and 21% are transgender! The actual percentages are 12%, 2%, 1%, 1%, 1%, respectively.
On election day in swing states Trump carried, including North Carolina, Google reported a spike in searches for the question, “Did Joe Biden drop out?” Imagine being so wrong about basic facts that some North Carolinians arrived at polling stations only to be flummoxed by the fact that Biden wasn’t on the ballot!
Wilson complains about spending four years “under your president” and says “under our president” things will improve. Like Trump, Wilson divides Americans into “us” and “them,” who Trump calls “the enemy within.” But we’ll suffer the next four years together. Trump’s job is to unite Americans despite being a convicted felon and adjudicated rapist who, for the third time, most voters voted against. With his clown-car cabinet selections, he’s off to a poor start.
Arthur Hill
Southport
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