Trump supporters are ignoring the math — and the consequences: analysis

President Donald Trump’s supporters defy objective reality on key issues, according to a political analyst — and the consequences of their ignorance on those matters is desire for America.

“Recent polls, however, show that substantial numbers of Republican voters simply don’t believe these statements,” wrote MS NOW’s Ryan Teague Beckwith on Sunday. Beckwith was referring to the facts that solar power is one of the cheapest forms of electricity in the world, that American importers bear the brunt of tariff payments and that noncitizen voting is extremely rare — all of which a majority of Republicans do not believe because Trump tells them they are not true.

“That’s bad for the country, because it’s harder for us to solve problems and decide how to move ahead when we can’t agree on the facts,” Beckwith added. “It’s also bad for Republican politicians — and they have only themselves to blame.”

He continued, “Led by President Donald Trump, many members of the GOP in recent years have made their case by attacking the underlying facts, making baseless claims and undermining the credibility of independent experts who could contradict them. The result is a party that is increasingly out of touch with voters outside its ideological bubble and unable to come up with good arguments or practical solutions.”

Beckwith then broke down the numbers, pointing out that 51 percent of Republicans believe tariffs are “fees foreigners pay for selling products in the United States,” 43 percent said solar power is more expensive to consumers than most other energy sources and 82 percent said large numbers of noncitizens cast fraudulent ballots in American elections.

“The sheer number of Republicans who believe things that aren’t true distorts the political landscape,” Beckwith pointed out. “As problems arise, they effectively box Republican politicians out of making certain arguments or trying specific solutions. When Trump’s broad-based tariffs lead to increased prices, how can Republicans in Congress push back if their own supporters don’t see the link?”

In addition to making Trump’s base a force for injecting falsehoods into American discourse, Beckwith pointed out it also leaves Republicans vulnerable to Democratic attacks.

“The result is a party whose debating skills have grown rusty, preaching the same tired sermons to an ever smaller choir of supporters as the day of reckoning grows closer,” Beckwith concluded.

Similar to Beckwith, former Trump-supporting Rep. Joe Walsh (R-IL) wrote in February that the president has turned his party into a cult of personality — which is evidenced by their poor understanding of the issues.

“I thought you wanted him to end wars all over the world,” Walsh said. “You said you wanted him to end American entanglement in conflicts and wars around the world. America shouldn’t be involved in these wars, you said. That’s why you’re voting for Trump, you said.” Then, despite Trump’s wars against Venezuela and Iran, his base still supports him.

“And you don’t like when people call you a cult, Trump voters?” Walsh argued. “What else are people to think when you voted for Trump to get us the hell out of wars around the world, and instead he gets us involved in wars around the world and starts new wars, and you still sing his praises and support him? What are we to think, MAGA, but that you are a cult?”

He added, “You’ve got no argument against people calling you a cult. And if he takes us to war against Iran, and you clap and applaud and throw him flowers, Trump supporters, I will be at the front of the parade calling you a cult.”