… The idea that all Americans are cut from the same cloth is seductive and comforting. And a politician trumpeting that America is made up of two hoary, warring factions with opposing sets of objectives would probably be committing political suicide. But are Americans really united in their love for each other? In the midst of a divisive 2020 presidential campaign, that description hardly seems apt. Americans’ predispositions about the best way to structure and conduct social life are as distinct as could be. …
Though my circle of acquaintances is unashamedly left leaning, I spent the past two years immersed in the mindsets of hard core Trump supporters. On the basis of this experience, I am convinced that the country contains two decidedly different groups — and that the issue dividing them is how “outsiders” should be treated. As I am using the term, outsiders are not merely people who live outside the country, but also those already inside the country who, because of religion, race, history, language, sexual preference, culture or politics, do not strengthen the status and position of what Trump supporters perceive to be the nation’s core insiders. CONT.
John R. Hibbing (U. of Neb. at Lincoln), CNN