There’s a favorite expression of President Trump’s — some variation of “Nobody’s ever seen before” or “Nobody’s ever seen anything like this.” He says it to emphasize the good (unemployment numbers) or the bad (illegal immigration) or something that in the future could be good (your 401k if Trump’s elected) or bad (your 401k if Biden’s elected).
Sometimes, he’s right. Sometimes, it’s hyperbole, his version of You won’t believe your eyes, but never has the expression been more true than when it comes to the enthusiasm we’re seeing for this president. It’s literally something nobody’s ever seen before, and I say that as someone who remembers Ronald Reagan’s triumphant 1984 reelection, when he ended up winning 49 states.
Reagan’s reelection was more of a thank you tour for the president on top of an acknowledgment by America that Americans made the correct decision in 1980 to fire Jimmy Carter. We don’t fire a lot of presidents in this country. Before Carter, there was Herbert Hoover all the way back in 1932.
Reagan almost singlehandedly lifted America out of the tortuous sixties, the hell of Vietnam and Watergate, the energy crisis, and the misery index. He lifted us into an era of peace and prosperity unseen since the end of World War II, one that would last until September 11, 2001.
We were America again, and 1984 was about doubling down on having made the right decision four years earlier.
But even Reagan… Sure, he attracted large crowds, but nothing like this. Sure, people waited to wave at the presidential motorcade, but nothing like this. Add to all this the organic and truly grassroots boat and vehicle parades we’re seeing… Miles and miles and miles of cars and boats. Imagine committing yourself to something like that. The logistics. The waiting. The inconvenience of losing an entire day. And we’re seeing these expressions of support all over the place, even Beverly Hills, and they’re yuge.
Nobody’s ever seen that before.
Trump supporters have even taken to showing up at Joe Biden’s anemic rallies to counterprotest, and sometimes, the Trump supporters at Biden rallies outnumber the Biden supporters.
Nobody’s ever seen that before.
We have thousands, sometimes tens of thousands of people waiting outdoors in line for a chance — not to see the president — but to experience the presence of the president.
Maybe five percent of Trump crowds actually “see” Trump. You could “see” him much better at home on TV. Anyone who’s ever been to an arena rock concert knows what I mean. You see, it’s not about “seeing” anything. It’s about being able to say you were there. It’s about experiencing the Experience. It’s about sharing what means something to you with those who feel the same way — the camaraderie, the joy of that, the pleasure that comes when you realize you’re not the only one who knows the intricate lyrics to “You Shook Me All Night Long” or when to chant “Lock Her Up!”
You’re all in on the joke. You all know the signals, the nuances, when to chant, when to laugh, when to cheer…
Nobody’s ever seen that before…
Some people even show up knowing they have no chance to see the president. They show up only to prove to their fascist governments they will show up.
Nobody’s ever seen that before…
You see, there’s a big difference between Trump and those who came before…. Unlike so many — John McCain, Mitt Romney, Paul Ryan, Jeb Bush, George W. Bush… Trump has never let us down. Never betrayed us. Never sold us out. He keeps his promises. He is our Muhammad Ali, a man who refuses to be anything other than his own man, who doesn’t win them all, but who never quits on his stool. He’s loud and boisterous and shocks the Well, I Never! crowd and takes flaming arrows in the back on our behalf — and unlike any politician in modern history, he is losing a fortune serving as president, not accumulating one.
You see, he’s not our leader. That’s what the liars and people who hate us believe (or pretend to believe)… They say he’s our leader and we are his mindless followers. That’s not it at all…
What Donald Trump is, is our champion.
There’s a difference.
A big difference.
And people are not out there expressing all this unprecedented support for Trump like Nobody’s ever seen before just because we’re desperate to not see those who hate us (Democrats, the national media, Hollywood) grab hold of the levers of power against us…
We are also out there in open defiance of those who hate us; those who smear us as racists as they tell black people what “black” means; those who smear us as violent as they encourage and excuse the left-wing terrorists in Black Lives Matter and Antifa; those who smear us as power hungry as they seek to lock us down, confiscate our ability to defend ourselves, raise our taxes, limit our language, cancel and blacklist us, and force us to buy overpriced health insurance.
That’s the best part of all this… Watching the American people stick their finger in the eye of the fascist, priggish, authoritarian left; watching millions openly defy the finger-waggers, the shamers, the scarlet letter-inflicters…
If you’ll pardon the term, Trump supporters are “woke,” and regardless of what happens on Election Day, that genie’s not going back in the bottle, and that’s something nobody’s ever seen before…
Anyone familiar with the gay rights movement of the 70s and 80s can see the similarities. Trump supporters — the MAGA movement — has been defamed, shamed, blacklisted, physically assaulted, marginalized, and made to fear expressing who we really are by insufferable, bullying bigots and monstrous moralizers… and we’re not going to take it anymore.
We’re out and we’re proud.
Follow John Nolte on Twitter @NolteNC. Follow his Facebook Page here.
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