Why Trump Won

 
 

Vocabulary

loyal	disbelief	new-found
thrill	overdue	pave the way
shock	Rust Belt	Fifth Avenue
cheer	incredible	unpredictable
lack	Blue State	take care of
appeal	highlight	no uncertain terms
elegy	resonate	working-class
attract	ship out	to stomach something
ignore	cycle (2)	frustration
election	campaign	turn the tide
lean (2)	Red State	nationwide
hope	catch up	blue-collar worker
elect	supporter	president-elect
respect	represent

 
 
 
 

Video: Why Trump Won

 

Transcript

Welcome back to The Lead. Many of Hillary Clinton’s loyal supporters are still in complete disbelief.

But for many of his nearly sixty million voters, today is a thrill and long overdue, especially for working-class White voters, including voters from the Rust Belt, who helped pave the way to the White house for a self-described Billionaire from Fifth Avenue.

Mary Simcos, Grand Rapids, Michigan: “I think it’s going to be a big surprise, and an incredible shock to a lot of people. But I say Trump’s going to win.”

Donald Trump’s historical election is shocking, yes. But unpredictable? Not for the Trump supporters we spoke with this year.

Orie Baker, Middletown, Ohio: “Naw, he’s a great man. He ain’t lost at nothing he’s ever done. He goes up. He don’t go down. Put him in as president, he’ll go up; he’ll take us up.”

Revitalizing the economy was a message that resonated nationwide.

Steve Rogers, Middletown, Ohio: “It’s just the lack of job creation in this country. We seem to want to ship more jobs out. The way things have been going on here lately, that’s pretty much status quo on what the problem is.”

Author Jaime Vance highlighted Trump’s White, working-class appeal in no uncertain terms.

JD Vance, Author “Hillbilly Elegy: “So as long as the Democratic Party can do little but cheer about how great things are, I don’t think they are going to attract a lot of these voters because for them, not everything is great.”

Generally speaking, when they say they feel ignored, they’re kind of right.”

JD Vance, Author “Hillbilly Elegy: “Yeah. That’s definitely true, people feel neglected, and maybe they’ll stomach it for an election cycle or two.

But eventually that frustration catches up to the political movement, and that’s what’s happened I think in this cycle.”

But Trump’s campaign also turned its tide in traditionally Blue States, such as Pennsylvania.

Journalist: “Philly’s a traditionally Democratic city.”
Vincent Termini, Jr., Philadelphia: “Sure is.”
Journalist: “But I wonder, do you hear from Trump supporters? Are there any around here?
Vincent Termini, Jr., Philadelphia: “We kind of get a lot of leaners, who say “I’m voting for Trump. We get a lot of people are wondering, “Are you voting for Trump?

We just want someone in office who is going to take care of the blue-collar workers.”

For millions of Americans, the president-elect represents new-found hope and — yes — change.

Kelly Geller, Las Vegas: “Your vote counts and you need to respect that. Many times I voted; and the guy I voted for didn’t win. And so this one time I hope he does.”

Questions

1. Many people were shocked and surprised that Donald Trump won and Hillary Clinton lost the US presidential election. True or false?

2. Were the main supporters of Trump rich businessman like himself?

3. Most people were concerned about gay marriages and terrorism. Is this correct or incorrect?

4. Did the Democrats actually help working-class people or just encourage them?

5. Have voting patterns changed over the years?

6. What do the voters want or hope for?

 

A. Are you and your friends surprised that Hillary lost and Trump won? What were peoples’ reaction?

B. Do most people support Hillary, Trump, about fifty-fifty or it depends on the individual?

C. What can you say about political parties and who they represent?

D. Does support, loyalty and allegiances change (frequently)?

E. What might happen in the future?