Who Are Those Guys?

This title comes from a phrase repeated several times in the movie classic, Butch Cassiday and the Sundance Kid. Butch or Sundance repeatedly asked the rhetorical question as they were relentlessly pursued by a posse who overcame all their efforts to throw them off their trail. I ask it here to explain the numbers of remaining Trump supporters even while he repeatedly does everything in his power to alienate them.

A quick Google search finds that the latest Gallup poll has Trump with a 36% approval. I find such a number astounding. Who are those guys? I decided to do a completely unscientific study that ignored facts and reason in an attempt to answer this nagging question. Such a study (devoid of facts or reason) should meet or exceed the bar set by MAGA folks for the things they believe in with devotion.

I quickly concluded, and found out why the subject of this analysis likes to avoid the burden of facts and scientific analysis, that you can just go with your gut and rapidly develop an opinion based solely on conjecture. You don’t have to prove anything. You can just make shit up if you want. So, here goes.

It seems that ongoing Trump supporters fall into two main groups. The first is obvious and easy to explain. That group is the one that benefits financially from Trump’s actions. Lower personal or corporate taxes make a certain group almost giddy with delight. The removal of government scrutiny and regulation makes life more profitable for some. A few even get a “Get out of jail free” card if their nefarious deeds get found out and punished in the courts. This group is smaller in head count but most valuable to The Trump Galactic Empire when it needs financial support.

This first group has a subgroup who are not extraordinarily wealthy, but who act as the Dark Jedi/Inquisitors of the Empire. These are elected government officials and others appointed directly by Darth Trump. For them, Trump’s approval is a matter of survival. Some, like Pete Hegseth or Karoline “lips like a machine gun” Leavitt, are but Stormtroopers who are fanatically loyal to their commander. Others like Marco Rubio are just windsocks biding their time.

The second major group is the largest in terms of numbers. It is perhaps a bit smaller than it once was as some come to face the stark reality of food insecurity, higher healthcare expenses, and higher expenses for clothing and other necessities. Those that remain in this second group, make up the vast majority of that 36% number.

They are perhaps nice folks who unwittingly have fallen under the spell of a charismatic leader. These too are Stormtroopers, and represent the mass-produced, faceless ground forces of the Trump Galactic Empire. They are fanatically loyal and more likely to fall under the spell of “influencers.” For some, Trump is just another religion that provides them with something missing in their lives. Groupthink comes naturally.

Former Trump/MAGA supporters are not the ones who would like 30 dolls for Christmas, or even three, but would like to be able to afford just one without having to figure out what they will have to give up. Yes, if an honest election were held today, the likelihood of a Trump victory would be doubtful. I apologize for the mixed movie metaphors but both the Butch/Sundance and the Star Wars references seemed appropriate.