With the 2024 Presidential Election recently concluded, now seems like the right time to reflect on the two debates that candidates on the opposing tickets participated in this cycle. On October 1, 2024, Americans saw two vice-presidential candidates take center stage, shaking hands and exchanging compliments in a surprisingly cordial debate. The media at the time called this “refreshing.” The debate was lauded as a “return to civility” in contrast to the past eight years of Trump-style debate tactics. There indeed were many marked differences between the Presidential and Vice Presidential debates of this past election cycle. Beginning with a cordial handshake, the VP debate proceeded with a comparatively polite discourse, each candidate complimenting the other, and making it known when they were in agreement on the issues. With Trump having declared his intent not to run again after 2024, it seemed like the obvious future of presidential debates: a return to pre-Trump debating.
As mentioned previously, the media was thrilled about this development. But with the campaign now over and the election decided, it seems clear that legacy media sources were astroturfing this desire for civility in our political discourse at the presidential level.
In choosing to elect Trump, it seems clear that the feelings of the overlooked American worker were miles away from those of the average media pundit. While the status-quo elites at college campuses, legacy media corporations, and our government bureaucracy cheered for this return to more muted debate rhetoric, Trump’s victory shows that the steel worker thought differently. Indeed, exit polling shows Trump’s support among the non-college educated, or working class, at 56%. The election proves beyond a shadow of a doubt that in the calculations of many Americans, Trump changed politics for the better.
To these Americans, Trump represents their political champion and a flat out rejection of the establishment; as an outsider, Trump promised to rattle the system. The very same system which, under the guise of “politeness” and “civility,” has lied to the faces of Americans for decades as jobs are shipped overseas. Even with his victory, it seems likely we will never again see a debater like Trump. Nobody will have the courage to call out the establishment and big-money donors in a debate crowd.
Trump’s first term was beleaguered by creatures of the DC swamp, these same educated elites, working against him and the interests of the American people, preventing him from enacting change even as his own party held overwhelming control in government. Despite this, he still represents the largest threat to the status-quo establishment. If any proof of this is needed, look no further than the 2024 primaries. Of the two jurisdictions won by Nikki Haley, the only one that decisively voted in her favor was DC, where she won by roughly 30%. It seems likely that if a jurisdiction filled exclusively by members of the elite existed, such a district would have supported Haley by an even wider margin.
With all that said, we should not be so eager to praise a return to civility in our debates. Granted, less mean things might be said, but the American working class would feel disenfranchised. The acclaim for the 2024 VP debate was nothing other than a show of force by the establishment. They are eager to tell everyday Americans that this country WILL go back to how it was, and the media attempts to convince people that this is a good thing. The elites were eager to return to a world where they could lie straight to the faces of the American people, shrouded behind their Ivy League educations. With no Trump figure left to call them out, this looked like the future.
Luckily, with Trump’s victory, the next four years will not be a return to the way the establishment wants things done. But as we begin looking forward to 2028, these same forgotten Americans, ignored by our elite, will need someone else to step forward as their voice. J.D. Vance represents a good starting point, holding some of Trump’s desirable aspects, but he is not yet a real replacement for Trump. While Vance looked solid, calling out moderators and performing well in countless hostile interviews, there remains uncertainty over whether he will be able to fill Trump’s shoes as the anti-establishment champion that the downtrodden American worker needs. Vance is incredibly sharp, and seems full of potential, but a future without Trump feels unimaginable. After all, by 2028 we will have experienced 12 years of Trump’s political relevance. As of now, it is unclear whether Vance will step up in a meaningful way after Trump. One thing is clear, though, when we see the debates return to smiles, compliments, and handshaking, we should not be celebrating a more comfortable method of debate. Instead, we should be mourning the loss of an American political icon, and the anxiety that will bring for the backbone of America.
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