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George Roch's avatar

Linda and Damon's Weekly High/Lowlights present a very odd contrast. Linda rightly points out that the true numbers, demographics, and goals of asylum seekers is very different from the image portrayed in Trump/Maga land. Polling of Republican views on immigration would certainly show a seismic shift as a result of this demonization.

By contrast Damon notes a similar shift in Republican views on gay rights but blames it entirely on the over-reach of "trans activists". Damon does not even consider that demonization of gay people as a whole has become a core Maga tenet. Demonizing all gay people as "groomers", passing don't say gay laws and restricting a parent's rights to choose medical help they think is right for their own children seem like radical over-reach to me. By Damon's own figures, shifting views on gay rights seems limited almost entirely to Republicans. Could perhaps Maga demonization be at work here?

ADD: besides Damon's lowlight, I really appreciated the rest of this well considered episode. You thoughtfully tackled some tough issues at a very difficult time.

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Bruce Lawrence's avatar

Nope. "Demonization of gay people" is not a MAGA tenet. It is a tenet of the religious right, but that's only one faction of MAGA, and not the majority. One reason Trump is more popular than, say, Mike Pence or Tim Scott, is because the non-church-going Trumpkins think their moral obsessions are too weird. But if anything comes across as weirder than the religious right, it's trans activists.

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George Roch's avatar

Oh, really? Trump's 6/8/23 remarks: "Leftwing gender insanity being pushed on our children is child abuse..... pass a bill that the only genders recognized by the government are established at birth.....no one had heard of (trans) until the radical left invented it just a few year ago". So, not just demonized but a Nancy Pelosi plot.

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Bruce Lawrence's avatar

Read your Trump quote again. It is pretty confused. That's because in this instance, like so many, Trump is just trying to say stuff he doesn't understand and doesn't believe in order to validate the strongly held beliefs of one faction of his supporters. They will give him credit to paying lips service to their concerns, while the rest of his supporters barely understand it, as intended. It's how the big tent of Trumpism keeps so many disparate factions together.

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Migs's avatar

This. Trans is just an excuse to move back rights on gay people.

This is the same thing that is now happening on abortion. Abortion is the wedge to go after plan b, sex education, birth control, or ivf.

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