Crowd Size

President Trump should not be discouraged by underwhelming attendance at his Tulsa rally. His base is still going to vote for him. Some just do not want to get sick or die for him. They do not care if he asked whether Finland is still part of Russia. At least he apparently knew Finland was adjacent to Russia and had been part of the Russian Empire. He probably wanted to know if he had to kiss Putin’s ring before buying or invading Finland and whether the Soviets were still mad at the Finns for joining the Nazi attack on Russia. When George W. Bush could not name the leaders of India and Pakistan, I doubt I could. I can look up the name of Finland’s President or ask Ken Jennings to identify the entire Finnish cabinet. Neither Jennings, Trump, or I should be President. But people voting for Trump care about the things most people care about. Do they have a job with health care? Are their children safe and getting educated? Can they afford a home or pay the rent? Can they buy food? The environmental forecasts for 2100, 2050, or even 2030, are not as important as whether their car will start tomorrow. Trump has plenty of voters who feel they are better off with him. Unfortunately his Democratic competition inevitably gets narrowed to followers not leaders. I voted for Hillary who was not the leader of a Me Too Movement. Joe Biden, like me, will jump on Democratic trains heading for the White House. But after over half a century as a politician, he only now gets the unwanted touching protocols. At age 77, the Black Lives Matter Movement has awakened him to the urgency of that issue. Imagine what he will learn in his 80’s as President.

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