This article is from the source 'nytimes' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/24/opinion/trump-silent-majority.html

The article has changed 2 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 0 Version 1
Trump Doesn’t Speak for the ‘Silent Majority’ There Is a ‘Great Silent Majority.’ But It Stands Against Trump.
(about 5 hours later)
President Trump believes he represents the “silent majority” of the country against a dangerous, radical minority. He says as much on Twitter, frequently yelling “SILENT MAJORITY” at his followers. Accordingly, his campaign for re-election has tried to appeal to this “majority” with displays tailored to its perceived interests.President Trump believes he represents the “silent majority” of the country against a dangerous, radical minority. He says as much on Twitter, frequently yelling “SILENT MAJORITY” at his followers. Accordingly, his campaign for re-election has tried to appeal to this “majority” with displays tailored to its perceived interests.
Because Trump believes that this silent majority is protective of Confederate statues and other monuments, he marked Independence Day with a speech on July 3 denouncing “angry mobs” for “defacing our most sacred memorials” and “unleashing a wave of violent crime in our cities.” Because he also believes that this silent majority fears integration and diversity, he has issued constant warnings to the “suburban housewives of America” that Joe Biden, the former vice president who is his opponent in the election, will destroy their neighborhoods with affordable housing. “People have worked all their lives to get into a community, and now they’re going to watch it go to hell,” he said last week. And because he believes that this silent majority is hostile to protests against police brutality, he has deployed federal law enforcement officers to Portland and other cities to suppress “anarchists” and generate “law-and-order” images for his campaign.Because Trump believes that this silent majority is protective of Confederate statues and other monuments, he marked Independence Day with a speech on July 3 denouncing “angry mobs” for “defacing our most sacred memorials” and “unleashing a wave of violent crime in our cities.” Because he also believes that this silent majority fears integration and diversity, he has issued constant warnings to the “suburban housewives of America” that Joe Biden, the former vice president who is his opponent in the election, will destroy their neighborhoods with affordable housing. “People have worked all their lives to get into a community, and now they’re going to watch it go to hell,” he said last week. And because he believes that this silent majority is hostile to protests against police brutality, he has deployed federal law enforcement officers to Portland and other cities to suppress “anarchists” and generate “law-and-order” images for his campaign.
Unfortunately for Trump, there’s quite a bit of distance between his perception and our reality. Most Americans support efforts to remove Confederate statues and monuments; most Americans welcome racial and ethnic diversity and few believe their communities should be less diverse; and most Americans are supportive of the Black Lives Matter movement and protests against police brutality — 67 percent, according to the Pew Research Center.Unfortunately for Trump, there’s quite a bit of distance between his perception and our reality. Most Americans support efforts to remove Confederate statues and monuments; most Americans welcome racial and ethnic diversity and few believe their communities should be less diverse; and most Americans are supportive of the Black Lives Matter movement and protests against police brutality — 67 percent, according to the Pew Research Center.
There is a silent majority in this country, and it is arrayed against a radical, extremist minority. But it stands against Trump, not the other away around. He and his allies are and always have been in the minority, acting in ways that frighten and disturb the broad middle of the electorate. And as long as Trump cannot see this — as long as he holds to his belief in a secret, silent pro-Trump majority — he and his campaign will continue to act in ways that diminish his chance of any legitimate victory in the 2020 presidential election.There is a silent majority in this country, and it is arrayed against a radical, extremist minority. But it stands against Trump, not the other away around. He and his allies are and always have been in the minority, acting in ways that frighten and disturb the broad middle of the electorate. And as long as Trump cannot see this — as long as he holds to his belief in a secret, silent pro-Trump majority — he and his campaign will continue to act in ways that diminish his chance of any legitimate victory in the 2020 presidential election.
It’s worth unpacking the phrase “silent majority.” It dates back to a speech given in late 1969 by Richard Nixon defending the Vietnam War at a moment when antiwar sentiment was on the rise. “As president of the United States,” Nixon said, “I would be untrue to my oath of office if I allowed the policy of this nation to be dictated by the minority who holds that point of view and who try to impose it on the nation by mounting demonstrations on the street.” He continued: “And so tonight, to you, the great silent majority, my fellow Americans, I ask for your support.”It’s worth unpacking the phrase “silent majority.” It dates back to a speech given in late 1969 by Richard Nixon defending the Vietnam War at a moment when antiwar sentiment was on the rise. “As president of the United States,” Nixon said, “I would be untrue to my oath of office if I allowed the policy of this nation to be dictated by the minority who holds that point of view and who try to impose it on the nation by mounting demonstrations on the street.” He continued: “And so tonight, to you, the great silent majority, my fellow Americans, I ask for your support.”
Nixon’s basic view of American politics was that the country was divided between a disruptive, countercultural left (enabled by feckless, liberal elites) and a broad middle of Americans who craved order and stability. Less than a month before that speech, he convened a secret group he called the “Middle America Committee,” tasked with reaching a “large and politically powerful white middle class” that is “deeply troubled, primarily over the erosion of what they consider to be their values.” These Americans, in the view of the committee, felt that they had “lost control of a complicated and impersonal society which oppresses them with high taxes, spiraling inflation and enforced integration.”Nixon’s basic view of American politics was that the country was divided between a disruptive, countercultural left (enabled by feckless, liberal elites) and a broad middle of Americans who craved order and stability. Less than a month before that speech, he convened a secret group he called the “Middle America Committee,” tasked with reaching a “large and politically powerful white middle class” that is “deeply troubled, primarily over the erosion of what they consider to be their values.” These Americans, in the view of the committee, felt that they had “lost control of a complicated and impersonal society which oppresses them with high taxes, spiraling inflation and enforced integration.”
Nixon identified with that middle — he spoke directly to its fears and anxieties about race, crime and rapid cultural change, as well as its resentments toward those groups (like the Black Power or women’s liberation movement) that might try to overturn the existing social order.Nixon identified with that middle — he spoke directly to its fears and anxieties about race, crime and rapid cultural change, as well as its resentments toward those groups (like the Black Power or women’s liberation movement) that might try to overturn the existing social order.
And he could do this, in part, because the “the great silent majority” within Middle America shared a similar position in the social and economic landscape of the country. They were nearly all white (of varying ethnic origins); some were college-educated but the vast majority were not; they had left the cities for the suburbs, part of the “white flight” that transformed the built environment of the country.And he could do this, in part, because the “the great silent majority” within Middle America shared a similar position in the social and economic landscape of the country. They were nearly all white (of varying ethnic origins); some were college-educated but the vast majority were not; they had left the cities for the suburbs, part of the “white flight” that transformed the built environment of the country.
The silent majority of 1969 was a singular grouping of Americans. The silent majority of 2020 is not. It is diverse, made up of many millions of Black, Hispanic and Asian-Americans as well as whites. It is still largely working and middle-class, and it still lives in the suburbs, but those suburbs are also more diverse and heterogeneous. This “silent majority” isn’t as worried about crime and disorder — violent crime is still near a 30-year-low — but it is concerned with economic security and the rising cost of housing, health care and education. Faced with protests against police brutality, this “silent majority” wants reform and sees racism as a serious problem for the country. And in the midst of a deadly pandemic, it wants the federal government to take control and manage the crisis as best as it can, rather than try to wish it away.The silent majority of 1969 was a singular grouping of Americans. The silent majority of 2020 is not. It is diverse, made up of many millions of Black, Hispanic and Asian-Americans as well as whites. It is still largely working and middle-class, and it still lives in the suburbs, but those suburbs are also more diverse and heterogeneous. This “silent majority” isn’t as worried about crime and disorder — violent crime is still near a 30-year-low — but it is concerned with economic security and the rising cost of housing, health care and education. Faced with protests against police brutality, this “silent majority” wants reform and sees racism as a serious problem for the country. And in the midst of a deadly pandemic, it wants the federal government to take control and manage the crisis as best as it can, rather than try to wish it away.
What the silent majority doesn’t want are spectacles like the crackdown in Lafayette Square or the current operation in Portland. What it doesn’t want are endless displays of cruelty for its own sake. Although this silent majority has no uniform view of how to handle issues like immigration, it stands against the hostile rhetoric and draconian policies of the present administration.What the silent majority doesn’t want are spectacles like the crackdown in Lafayette Square or the current operation in Portland. What it doesn’t want are endless displays of cruelty for its own sake. Although this silent majority has no uniform view of how to handle issues like immigration, it stands against the hostile rhetoric and draconian policies of the present administration.
To Trump and his allies, the country is filled with “shy” supporters just waiting for the right time to reveal themselves; they think they can rally this public to their side with a violent demonstration of “law and order.” They think they can run the Nixon playbook again, not realizing that to the broad middle of the country, they are the ones who represent the politics of division, disruption and disorder.To Trump and his allies, the country is filled with “shy” supporters just waiting for the right time to reveal themselves; they think they can rally this public to their side with a violent demonstration of “law and order.” They think they can run the Nixon playbook again, not realizing that to the broad middle of the country, they are the ones who represent the politics of division, disruption and disorder.
Or maybe they do realize it. Earlier this week, Trump issued a memorandum directing Wilbur Ross, the Commerce Secretary, who oversees the Census Bureau, to exclude unauthorized immigrants from the final report for the purposes of apportionment in the House of Representatives. Like last year’s blocked attempt to add a citizenship question to the census, this would reduce representation for states and localities with heavy immigrant populations — legal or otherwise — shifting power to more rural, more white, more Republican areas of the country.Or maybe they do realize it. Earlier this week, Trump issued a memorandum directing Wilbur Ross, the Commerce Secretary, who oversees the Census Bureau, to exclude unauthorized immigrants from the final report for the purposes of apportionment in the House of Representatives. Like last year’s blocked attempt to add a citizenship question to the census, this would reduce representation for states and localities with heavy immigrant populations — legal or otherwise — shifting power to more rural, more white, more Republican areas of the country.
This is not the move of a president who believes his party holds a majority of the country. It is the move of a president who knows he is in the minority, who knows his coalition cannot win a fair fight for future political power.This is not the move of a president who believes his party holds a majority of the country. It is the move of a president who knows he is in the minority, who knows his coalition cannot win a fair fight for future political power.
The silent majority of the country is against Trump, his allies and his would-be successors. He is trying to build a world where that doesn’t actually matter.The silent majority of the country is against Trump, his allies and his would-be successors. He is trying to build a world where that doesn’t actually matter.
The Times is committed to publishing a diversity of letters to the editor. We’d like to hear what you think about this or any of our articles. Here are some tips. And here's our email: letters@nytimes.com.The Times is committed to publishing a diversity of letters to the editor. We’d like to hear what you think about this or any of our articles. Here are some tips. And here's our email: letters@nytimes.com.
Follow The New York Times Opinion section on Facebook, Twitter (@NYTopinion) and Instagram.Follow The New York Times Opinion section on Facebook, Twitter (@NYTopinion) and Instagram.