While the average voter may not be well versed in economic policy and global political nuances, there is much we do understand.  We understand basic math; we know what happens when you consistently spend more than you make. We understand the difference between an expense and an investment. We also know the difference between the country portrayed from New York and Los Angeles and the way it really is.

We also know that a high paid actor in films we enjoy is not our personal friend and confidant. He or she has a job that pays pretty well, but that does not make his opinion any better than ours and his opinion matters no more than the best supporting actor in a B movie.

In this election cycle it is a handicap.  There is a revolt against the elites and there are few as elite as the people who get paid 7 and 8 figures to star in fantasies and fiction.  It did not help Hillary win the election, and it was an embarrassing episode to see them begging electors to defect.  It was twice as embarrassing to see the effort cost Hillary twice as many electors as Trump.

Democrats still try to explain their loss in the pathologies they create for their opposition. Fake news and the post truth era are preferable explanations than the understanding of their voters.  This has long been their preference; they consider American anti-intellectual and anti-rational.

In the face of this failure, perhaps they should revisit the constitution or introduce themselves to it. It is ironic to hear the left echoing the framers and the founders with quotes recently used by the right. Perhaps like the framers they will now consider the place and the limits of democracy, the strength of federalism, and the dangers of excessive central power.

print