Arlie Hochschild, faculty affiliate of the Berkeley Center for Right-Wing Studies, published an opinion essay in the New York Times. She explains that people in Kentucky's Fifth Distcict seem more committed to Mr. Trump than they had been before despite Trumps' Big Beautiful Bill that will cut services like Medicaid which more than 40% of people in the Fifth District rely on. As for the likely cuts to SNAP and Meals on Wheels, Andrew Scott, a Trump supporter and the mayor of Coal Run Village said, “You know how proud and stoic Appalachians are — we know how to take a little pain. People may have to suffer now to help make America great later." Hochschild declares that Democrats face a double task. America needs a firm hand on the wheel of democracy — defending the free press, universities, the judiciary. At the same time, Democrats need to begin taking steps to regain the basic trust of voters who once supported them.
July 24, 2025