If the Britons who powered Brexit to victory were Americans, they’d look a lot like Donald Trump voters. Both camps are fueled by older, working-class whites spurred by nationalism and nostalgia for a bygone era. Their economic prospects have diminished in an era of globalization, and they feel that immigration […] Read more »
On immigration, the white working class is fearful
Although a few political analysts have been focusing on the white working class for years, it is only in response to the rise of Donald Trump that this large group of Americans has begun to receive the attention it deserves. Now, thanks to a comprehensive survey that the Public Religion […] Read more »
The Republican Party’s White Strategy
… Although trump has broken with his party’s establishment on many issues, immigration has been the most central to his rise. … Until recently, immigration did not sharply divide the two national parties. In 1986, 42 percent of House Republicans, along with 64 percent of House Democrats, voted for a […] Read more »
Donald Trump’s Coalition of Restoration
… As a first-time candidate with no record in public office, the most important decision Trump faced was how to define himself to the public. From the outset, he has stressed three principal identities. One is as a savvy business executive who would use his private-sector smarts to turn around […] Read more »
How Immigration and Concerns about Cultural Change are Shaping the 2016 Election
… Americans remain firmly committed to an immigration policy that would allow illegal immigrants a way to become citizens, compared to other policy options. More than six in ten (61%) Americans say immigrants living in the U.S. illegally should be allowed a way to become citizens, provided they meet certain […] Read more »
How racial prejudice helps drive opposition to gun control
Last week, Sen. Chris Murphy made a small splash by filibustering on the Senate floor until, he said, Republicans agreed to allow a vote on a modest gun control measure. When the nation has debates like this, commentators often focus either on what was meant by the Second Amendment, or […] Read more »