This election is about values, not policies. It was *always* about values and not policies. This was obvious to anyone with half a brain-cell from the first day that Trump announced he'd be running again. Every single comms person who does not get that should be given their severance and a reference
All elections are about values at their core.
Policy is just the application of values to the real-world.
Poll-driven ‘median voter’ wonk brain approaches cannot grasp this because they are fundamentally amoral.
Honestly, I think Trump 2016 disproves the values thesis. I think historical contingency put him in a position to win the Republican nomination, and as bad as the values already were, they got substantially worse to accommodate Trump.
I'm arguing something similar to the Overton Window. Basically, I think people's values have plasticity, and will deform to protect ego, to fit in, or when under threat.
I hate it but I think you are correct. By and large people care about fitting in and getting on with their community.
Values mold to fit community norms.
