Forgotten folk of coal country pin hopes on Trump
CHARLES Pinkerton is sitting three stools away, whispering with his hand up against the side of his mouth. He keeps glancing to his right to make sure the people sitting at the table next to him can’t hear. ‘People are fed up,’ he says. ‘People here in West Virginia, they have always voted Democrat, because of the coal and the deals with the unions. But they were always Republicans at heart. I know a lot of people who will vote Trump, and they know he isn’t presidential material. I won’t be. I’ll be voting Clinton.’
Charles is a rarity in Morgantown, West Virginia. Here, in coal country USA, Hillary Clinton has few supporters.
Three days before election day, in a US divided by race, class, and education, the 2016 campaign for the White House has divided a nation further. While minorities overwhelmingly favour Clinton, whites are split at historic levels along the lines of educational background. Those with a degree are much more likely to support Clinton than those without.
Much of the reason for the divide lies in the fact that the educated classes are doing much better, and earning more, than those who do not have a degree.
But the rift between Americans runs deeper than that. It is this economic divide, along with the racial divide, that Donald Trump is exploiting. It is a divide that blinded many to his broad appeal, despite his extreme views. It is a divide that led many to underestimate him.
Some differences, though, are profound and lasting, having less to do with what people think and more to do with how they feel. In many parts of the US, people feel forgotten.
In trying to understand how Trump could become president, there are few better places to visit than McDowell County, West Virginia. Generations have grown up on coal in this bluecollar county. But coal is losing ground. ‘There is nothing here any more,’ said Ed Shepard, 92.
‘They took away our mines. They left us with nothing.’
The town of Welch, like many others, saw its economy ruined. Residents had to rely on government support. Shops closed, business floundered. When Trump entered the race, his message resonated with many white, less-educated voters. He told the coal miners he would bring back the mines, he would restore their sense of pride.
In Youngstown, Ohio, a similar sentiment of desperation is fuelling a surge in Trump support. On Wednesday, 68-yearold Lisa Dutton said she had voted Democrat all her life. This week she voted for Trump.
‘I’m fed up of all the corruption,’ she said.
In Trump, Linda has found an anti-establishment brand of politics that cultivates and validates this distrust.
To dismiss Trump supporters as uneducated, gap-toothed hillbillies is to miss the message at the heart of this presidential debate. Yes, many who are voting Trump are driven by racism and sexism. Others are voting out of dislike of Clinton. But there are Trump supporters with legitimate concerns, who believe he is the person to help them. They have willingly set aside his bigoted rhetoric and bought in to the promise of making America great again. Many just want America not be hopeless again.