I understand you're not trying to be political, but instead discussing the underlying psychology, and I'll endeavor to do the same. I think focusing on these s

I understand you're not trying to be political, but instead discussing the underlying psychology, and I'll endeavor to do the same. I think focusing on these sorts of domestic social issues misses a huge part of the point. To borrow a phrase from another presidential campaign, "it's the economy, stupid". If there's a downturn and people are getting laid off from their jobs, or if there's inflation, people are going to feel like the country isn't doing well. Especially when you can tell a compelling narrative about how it's the fault of other countries. A huge part of the MAGA narrative was about China and Mexico ripping us off in unfair trade deals because the US government is terrible at negotiating, so we should elect a strong, tough negotiator. And you can sort of extend this into foreign policy as well. Trump's foreign policy was scatterbrained from a policy perspective, but from a psychological perspective, there was a very consistent theme. Project strength. Don't look weak. Be a tough negotiator. Pull out of deals where we're getting screwed. Play hardball. The core of the MAGA message was about winning. It was a mantra, everything from "America doesn't win anymore" to "you're going to get tired of winning". Nostalgia is part of it, but so is power. I also think people are nostalgic for the post-war era when the US produced the most steel, the most cars, the most oil, and everyone could get a middle class job and buy a house and a car or two, even on a single income. That nostalgia is almost universal and bipartisan. Some people emphasize stronger unions and lower income inequality, some people emphasize the role of foreign trade, some people emphasize both. It depends on what narrative you're telling and who you want to blame. But at this point, the nostalgia itself is old enough that it isn't directly personal for the majority of voters anymore.