Reflecting on the Election

Watch Jack Brown’s reflection at school meeting.

I remember back in 2008 when the General Motors automobile plant of Moraine, Ohio shut down. For decades Chevy pickup trucks and suv’s rolled off the line, but when the plant shut down during the recession, 2400 plant employees were sent packing. I remember when the banks foreclosed on neighbors houses and almost all of southwestern Ohio shared a deep sense sorrow. It is not worth anyone’s time to point fingers and blame one political party or another, but what I can tell you is our government has done little to show that they actually care about these hardworking people in recent years. It used to be that we saw the American worker as the heart and soul of this country, and in 2008 and 2012  hardworking Ohioans bought in on Obama’s message of hope. While our nation has been sound under his honest and steady leadership, a lot of these people felt like they were being sold out to democratic policy that overregulated their jobs and made times even worse. When Trump announced his candidacy he promised to put these people first. He promised to bring back jobs. He had a message, and while his rhetoric was raw and fierce, he captivated many Americans who were looking for a champion. “Make America Great Again” may mean nothing to all of us who already believe our nation is great, but to these people it meant everything. They saw a rebirth in American manufacturing, and they were reminded of the glory days. You can be sure that if Trump could deliver even a fraction of that, they were going to get out and vote. Most of all though, these people were tired of being called uneducated white guys who were to blame for all of our country’s problems. Sure many of them do not have college degrees, but I can guarantee you that any man or woman who works so hard so that they can send their kids on to college, is a genius. And while we all found it easy to boast of our high virtues and intellect, my friends back home only felt compelled to protest. In many ways they were not voting for Trump, but rather voting against all of us who painted them to be a bunch of idiots.