Scott City, Kansas — In the heart of Western Kansas, snow on the ground offered a white Christmas for residents, and a way to mark the end of the year. While the County voted solidly for Trump, the Hillary voters in the community and surrounding areas remain convinced they understood Trump from the beginning.
Cynthia, a mother from the nearby community of Garden City looked back at the first year of the Trump presidency: “I was pretty convinced on election day he was a creep. A year later, I’m still convinced he’s a creep. He’s done exactly what I thought he would do, just more of it.”
This sentiment was echoed by members of the local UFCW union, “What did people expect? He ran as an outright racist. He has governed as a buffoon.”
Nearby Finney county, a community with a majority-minority population and a booming population base, has been reliably Republican, in part, however, due to voter suppression. “Trump was the disaster we thought he was going to be, the bigot we all knew he was from the beginning.”
Finney County was home of an attempted bombing event prior to the election, one aimed at a Somali refugee community.
Trump's national popularity may be plummeting but there are still plenty of Trump supporters. In nearby Healy, Kansas, a tank sits outside of a gun store with a large “Trump for President” sign. Trump won the state of Kansas convincingly, as most Republicans have done over the decades. Trump, however, isn’t as popular today as he was on election day. Polling done through state entities shows Trump at under 50% approval rating.
Part of this could certainly be attributed to a rise in those who are active in opposition to president Trump.
In Sedgwick County, home of Koch Industries, Kansas put on a tough race against newly elected Ron Estes, and attendance at community meetings in outlying areas has increased. “I see a lot of new faces coming into our meetings. Not just young people, either. We’re seeing people who have never been politically active before who want to change things,” said Cristel, an organizer.
Trump hasn’t accomplished everything he set out to, and in the mind of some, that is certainly a benefit. “Thank God I ended my year still with insurance, that’s all i can say,” said Deborah, a woman from a small community in Kansas 4th Congressional District. “I had breast cancer 13 years ago. Before the ACA, I could barely get insurance at all. At least I’ve got one more year of coverage, thanks to his failures.”
Thea, an organizer from one of the bluest areas of the state, though, offered a warning: “Trump hasn’t been an utter failure. He’s certainly encouraged and ramped up a lot of hatred in this country. He’s given inspiration to some truly terrible people.”
Thea is encouraged, though, by Kansas Democratic performance in the Fall, 2017 elections. Those elections, while non-partisan, offered ideological debates between progressive and conservative values on the ballot. It also was the first time many registered Democrats ran for public office. The election of almost 400 newly elected Democratic members in these positions is certainly a sign.
Lavonta, from Topeka, Kansas, agreed: “We are certainly awake now.”
Becca, who registered Republican, says she’s learned a lot about what is really going on, and is doubtful she could be swayed. “I knew in October last year he was a disaster. But I didn’t know how much of a disaster. I wake up sometimes and I think about what can be done to stop these things. If Trump doesn’t get what he wants, it isn’t because he doesn’t have the Republican majority in the house and senate, the only way we stop him is to force the elected Republicans to recognize this is not the kind of country we want to live in. So, I’m keeping the pressure up and I’ll be calling my elected officials every day.”
Being able to say you are a multi-generational Kansan is a tradition, a sign of deep roots within to the state. Jean definitely feels this connection. “I’m a 6th generation Kansan. Kansas began as a Free State. We were the state that fought for union safety of coal workers.”
With the first year of the Trump administration coming to a close, I asked all of those I met this year if they had reconsidered or were willing to consider Trump. Because this blog should be family friendly, I’m unable to print most of the replies, but Cynthia offered this rather PG version: “Yeah, hell no. He is who I thought he was all along.”
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