FRANCIS JACOBSON
Sanders wants the state to be the “Great Provider” with free health care, free education, etc. which he will pay for by taxing the “One Percent.” He says he is a socialist and, Soviet hyperbole aside, he focuses solely on material benefits. He seems less focused on the anxieties caused by the social changes Globalization has created. He is probably the most sincere of all the candidates regardless of whether or not you agree with him. I say this because his words equate with his actions.
Mr. Trump wants the state to be the “Great Protector” by creating a state that is secure in preventing global competition from harming the American worker who has lost out in the New Economy. In addition, his targeting of immigrants and Muslims seeks to establish some sort of “social solidarity” in which the United States (or part of it) is protected from the social changes of Globalization. Muslims can’t “be American” because of their “terrorist religion” and kick out all the illegals and we don’t have to hear anymore Spanish. Everyone will “speak American.” I have a great deal of empathy with his supporters. I admire them for not wanting a “Great Provider” but for wanting to earn their way through life. They know, however, that they are “being screwed” by the more powerful players who benefit at their expense. However, they show a tremendous lack of historical knowledge and charity. As for Mr. Trump, I do not believe he is sincere because none of his actions has equated his rhetoric. In other words, he is a cynical opportunist playing on anxieties for personal gain. In my mind, that is the worst type of person.