Flyover States
Imagining Instability
However, this popular narrative authored by Trump’s administration can only account for, at most, a couple hundred thousand of the almost 63 million people who voted for Trump. And while older upper-middle-class conservatives who typically vote red account for much of Trump’s constituency, many others who align with him unite under the guise that they are enduring severe economic hardship, like the miners and factory workers. And for many of these voters, particularly those in the Midwest, this is simply not true.
Many People Have Said This
To non-Trump supporters, his volatility was always frightening. His voters, by contrast, felt relieved to hear from a candidate who was so frank and forward. An article headlined “Why So Many Americans Hate Politics” in the Washington Post explains that the population’s widespread disdain for our governing bodies stems from feeling deceived or “shut out” from politics. Canned speeches and interactions with the public serve no purpose other than to deceptively and condescendingly campaign, benefitting no one but the politician in question.
Trump’s Midwestern Promise
Still, there exists a belief in the Midwest as the last preserve of a simpler, friendlier, perhaps greater time in America that probably never really existed. Midwesterners take pride in this. They have to. Without bustling cities or scenic beaches, Iowans and Oklahomans and South Dakotans take solace in the moral decency of their hometowns. And while the Midwest frequently falls victim to the ridicule of New Yorkers and Californians, some of them hold this sentiment too—especially conservatives.
