Trump’s efforts to bolster American defenses resonate with rural voters, but his tactics cost us goodwill, and Democrats should capitalize on that.
Mark Yonkman is the founder of the newly created Super PAC Reclaim the Rural Vote and a rural vote messaging expert. Mark’s background straddles not only the rural and urban worlds but the black/white, gay/straight, and farm/professional worlds as well. Read more of his Rural Whisperer columns here.
Most rural voters I know believe that we are already at war or soon will be.
Many in the military believe so as well. Even the Secretary General of NATO has said that all NATO countries should be on a war footing.
President Trump has leaned into this core commander-in-chief issue.
And to the rural voter (disregarding tactics), Trump is eating Democrats’ lunch when it comes to defense.
To prepare for war, Trump correctly identified that the United States must ensure control over the Panama Canal, Arctic military, and shipping lanes as northern waters become passable year-round. He is increasing the number of American heavy ice breakers from 2 to 40, which is more on par with Russia.
Trump noted that we need to ensure that we have resilient backup power in a time of war if our pipeline infrastructure is attacked.
Trump also proposed an “Iron Dome” over the United States to shoot down enemy missiles.
On the economic front of defense, he previously imposed steel tariffs (which Biden wisely kept in place) to encourage the re-opening of foundries in the country.
Trump wants the U.S. border as secure as possible and for our neighbors to pay some of the cost.
He reinstated veterans who were discharged under the COVID-19 vaccine mandate.
Meanwhile, military recruitment is up – even PBS noted that the Army will meet its recruiting goals in a dramatic turnaround.
All this is a rational strategy. However, his tactics are not.
Trump’s sharp rhetoric and threats to allies come at a steep cost. He is eroding American goodwill and creating future military risks.
Democrats should be running on that issue rather than criticizing his strategy.
Instead, I hear Democrats and legacy news media advocating that Democrats hit him with the price of eggs and how they haven’t come down since Trump returned to the White House.
On the other hand, my friends and neighbors are talking about when historians will say World War III started.
Was it the invasion of Ukraine?
The Hamas attack on Israel?
When did China invent an EMP generator that does not rely on a nuclear explosion?
My father always said, as do the 25-year-olds who returned from Afghanistan, that the only way to prevent war is to prepare for war. And as Sun Tzu pointed out, you should never go to war with someone who is strong.
So while Trump addresses this rural narrative and concern by talking about and preparing for war, Democrats are talking about egg prices. And USAID, which many voters have never heard of. Democrats need to look in the mirror and realize how weak and out of touch they sound.
I was convinced Harris would lose the election when I received my first and only flyer from the Harris campaign, the day before the election, that said that as my commander-in-chief, her priority would be abortion… in Michigan, which has constitutionally protected abortion rights.
Democrats need to show a better way and stop the harm the chattering class is causing.
Trump’s tactic on the border issue seems very clear. He threatened tariffs to bring Mexico and Canada to the table. That worked.
He then gave them 30 days to come up with a proposal. They are working on that now. I suspect that when they return, there will also be some trade concessions in their proposals so that Trump can claim victory on border security and our trade imbalance.
Will this take 30 days or 60 days? I don’t know, but I suspect it will happen. And yes, it could include a much smaller tariff – he is keen on essentially imposing a regressive national sales tax on Americans to raise revenue.
But there will be a deal.
The media responded first by arguing that this was a disastrous trade war. It wasn’t. Then, when he paused tariffs, the legacy news media ridiculed him for “caving” and not getting a good deal.
But we have no idea what the deal is yet.
When asked if the tariffs would be lifted in 30 days, he said, “We’ll see what they come back with.”
All this mocking of Trump does is poke the bear and make him more likely to exact more from our neighbors than he would have, just to prove them wrong. While Trump is playing with matches, the media is spraying gasoline in the air.
Hasn’t it occurred to anyone that farmers know precisely how much Canada buys in American agricultural products? And that the Farm Bureau is all over this, trying to temper Trump’s demands? The media is making these efforts more difficult.
Democrats need someone to step up and say: “Yes, I understand the strategy – but look at the cost with Trump’s tactics. Democrats have a better way.”
Trump is simply spending our accumulated goodwill. You can only take advantage of your best friend so many times. I have no doubt Trump’s tactics will work in the short run. But it costs untold amounts in goodwill, as our allies will quickly work to U.S.-proof their economies.
Democrats should be pointing this out. Even if Canada and Mexico came up with $10 Billion in additional border security, is that worth $3 Trillion (10% of GDP) in American goodwill?
I had suggested this very strategy to Kamala Harris last year, but with a different tactic, suggesting that the United States and Canada help pay for Mexico’s effort to secure their borders and address their gang and cartel issues.
It would have been inexpensive and generated goodwill – all while letting the Biden administration save face on its handling of the border.
Starting this narrative now would illustrate that Democrats know how to discuss defense.