Opinion Editorials, June, 2016

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Finally!  Thanks to Donald Trump entering presidential politics, the closeted majority of bigopats (bigoted patriots) can now exercise their vocal chords and become overt in their patriotism and other personal preferences without being pointed at, or even publicly shamed.  At last, Americans are now openly able to defy, show disdain for political correctness, and join in open liturgy, and not just in spirit, those patriotic militias; and, most importantly, erect the promised wall and validate the hope to “Make America Great Again!”

Yes; Donald Trump has made bigoted patriotism cool again… showing anger against the political establishment, or defecating on anyone who stands on the way, the battle cry of his political march: to conquer the White House.  To hell with the GOP leadership if they are unwilling to swear unequivocal allegiance to his Trump brand of leadership.   

I believe that most of us never gave much thought to the existence of bigoted patriots, other than possibly in passing reference to Pat Buchanan who in my view is way too entrenched in Paleoconservatism to be grouped with ignorant bigopats.  This bigopat group, however, represents possibly 40 percent of the over-30 white vote – which is approximately 80 percent of the white electorate; and 25 percent of the white millennials which make up the other 20 percent of the white electorate.  Thus, if we assume 70 percent of the total electorate in 2016 will be white, given the 2012 presidential stats and trends, we could end up with 26 percent of the electorate being made up of bigopats; with a major, but safe, assumption that the non-white electorate (African-American, Hispanics – regardless of race, Asian and others… which would add up to 30 percent) would have no significant impact or “membership contribution” to the bigopats… perhaps 1 percent; 2 at most.

Simple math applied to reasonable assumptions on the data provided, although only questionably valid (scientifically/statistically), it does grind out a purposeful figure, 26, as the bigopat percentage representation of the total electorate.  Even with a large margin of error, the range would be 24-28 percent of bigopats, or roughly a quarter of the electorate.

And that would make bigopats the largest bloc or political group in the nation, a group neither documented nor acknowledged either by poll-takers or the mainstream media, a subject too controversial and embarrassing.  My breakdown of the current electorate: Bigopats, 26 percent; Liberals, 18 percent; Conservatives (religious), 18 percent; Conservatives (fiscal), 17 percent; African-American, 13 percent; Hispanic (US citizens), 11 percent; and Progressives, 6 percent.  [An effort has been made to identify major groups with vote-leaning patterns; acknowledging, however, the subjectivity involved… no matter if unintended.]  

It wasn’t long after entering politics last year that it became obvious Donald Trump, the braggadocio, pull-no-punches new politician on the scene, had attracted and held like a magnet, the entire contingent of bigopats.  An entire quarter of the electorate corralled and branded… to be lot-fed until the November trip to the slaughterhouse.

Seldom, if ever, has any novice American politician inherited overnight a quarter of the electorate… with such little effort, and so resoundingly!  It had to be the result of political genius, or a political ripeness waiting to be harvested.  One would opt for the latter without dismissing some degree of political genius.  And that brings us to the true bottom line prospect of Billionaire Donald winning the presidency in November.

Having the bigopats in the bag, all Trump would need to succeed would require him to garner 10 percent of the non-white vote (African-American and Hispanics) and half of the remaining white vote.  And, although the math would give him just a slight popular majority, the breakdown in the Electoral College would strongly favor him.  However, every indication at this time places those reasonable vote requirements to succeed… way, way out of reach.  His “unfavorables” are so high (c. 70 percent of the electorate) that other than his captive 25 percent of bigopats, he is barely making a dent with the rest of the electorate… walking an even narrower path than those disastrously-famous presidential contenders of the past century: Alfred Langdon (R-1936); Barry Goldwater (R-1964); George McGovern (D-1972); and Walter Mondale (D-1984).  Is Donald Trump destined to be the non-political parasite that conned the exalted and traditional Grand Old Party into a blood-sucking feast just to satisfy this vampire’s quench for vainglory and impudent bigotry?

Or, could it be, as a friend recently suggested to me, that the only way Trump can keep his flock of bigopats, that incredibly high 25 percent of the electorate, is simply to apply an ongoing, constant brushstroke of bigotry and pseudo-patriotism.  Presumably, Trump finds catering to the bigopats far more his style and reality-showmanship than dealing with old-school politicians who won’t totally surrender to his non-negotiable whims.

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editor@aljazeerah.info & editor@ccun.org