Voting One's Social Class

Writing in the Harvard Business Review, a source COTTonLINE seldom cites, Joan C. Williams argues that the key to understanding the Trump phenomenon is social class.

One little-known element of that gap is that the white working class (WWC) resents professionals but admires the rich.

Most blue-collar workers have little direct contact with the rich outside of Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous. But professionals order them around every day.

Women don’t stand together: WWC women voted for Trump over Clinton by a whopping 28-point margin — 62% to 34%. If they’d split 50-50, she would have won.

Class trumps gender, and it’s driving American politics. Policy makers of both parties — but particularly Democrats if they are to regain their majorities — need to remember five major points.

> Working Class Means Middle Class, Not Poor
> The Working-Class Resents the Poor
> Class Divisions Have Translated into Geography
> Emphasize Economics
> Don't Write Off Blue-Collar Resentment as Racism

Williams' article is worth reading in its entirety.