More Working Class Voters Are Flocking to Trump

Can Democrats win them back?

Every once in a while former President Donald Trump allows his mask to slip, and he certainly broke his “man for the working class” character during a recent campaign rally in Erie, Pennsylvania.

“I know a lot about overtime,” Trump told rally goers who, just seconds ago, broke out in thunderous applause over his pledge to end taxes on social security, tips and overtime. But their excitement died down to relative silence as Trump finished his statement:

“I hated to give overtime, I hated it. I’d get other people—I shouldn’t say this, but I’d get other people in. I wouldn’t pay.”

Trump quickly realized that what he had just uttered didn’t play well with the crowd and immediately moved on. But that moment was an honest glimpse into who he really is.

That’s not my speculation either. It’s not like he was some warrior for the working class during his time in the White House, having appointed Marvin Kaplan, a longtime lawyer for House Republicans, and William Emanuel, a corporate lawyer. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) called Kaplan out in particular, skewering him for working on measures that strip workers of their right to organize their workplace and form unions.

But despite all of that, and the Trump Administration’s affinity for repealing Obama-era labor protections, the former president continues to increase his support among union members and working class Americans.

Bill Clinton won the union vote by a whopping 30 points in 1992. But by the time Hillary Clinton was running in 2016, that number was nearly cut in half to just 16 points. You’d think that bleeding working class support would translate into some level of panic among Democratic leadership. 

But no.