Newly re-elected Sen. Sherrod Brown of Ohio took a sledgehammer to the laughable myth that Donald Trump is a populist who cares about the struggles of working Americans.
In an interview with MSNBC’s Chris Matthews, Brown – who is reportedly considering a presidential run – said Trump isn’t a real populist.
“Real populism isn’t racist,” the popular Democratic senator said. “Real populism isn’t anti-semitic. Real populism doesn’t push people down, it lifts people up. It doesn’t divide workers, it doesn’t call people names.”
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2020 watch: Ohio Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown goes after Trump for conning working Americans. #ctl #p2 pic.twitter.com/ubADOTw2sl
— PoliticusUSA (@politicususa) November 15, 2018
The Ohio Democrat said:
You get [working class voters] back by talking about the dignity of work. I think you point out this sort of phony populism of Donald Trump, where he talks about working-class voters, but he divides them. He probably doesn’t know too many of them, number one. Number two, the White House looks like a retreat for Wall Street executives. But he has put this phony populism out there. And real populism isn’t racist. Real populism isn’t anti-semitic. Real populism doesn’t push people down, it lifts people up. It doesn’t divide workers, it doesn’t call people names. And a campaign against Donald Trump is, you put up his phony populism that’s really for Wall Street against real populism that’s for workers and as I said there, when you talk about workers, you’re talking about all workers, whether you punch a clock, whether you work for a salary, whether you work at a hospital, working construction.
Sherrod Brown’s message could be a winning one in 2020
With the Democratic field already shaping up to be massive, Sherrod Brown’s unique message – one that has broken through in increasingly red Ohio – could make him a formidable candidate.
The Ohio Democrat isn’t just an unabashed liberal, but he’s somebody who has shown that a true blue progressive candidate can win in a state that’s trending red – all without compromising his liberal roots.
In 2016, enough voters in rust belt states fell for Trump’s phony and racist version of populism. As the 2018 midterm elections showed, these Americans aren’t about to make the same mistake again.
Sherrod Brown is betting that his version of populism can pull these midwestern voters back into the Democratic column and prevent Donald Trump from winning a second term in 2020.
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Sean Colarossi currently resides in Cleveland, Ohio. He earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism from the University of Massachusetts Amherst and was an organizing fellow for both of President Obama’s presidential campaigns. He also worked with Planned Parenthood as an Affordable Care Act Outreach Organizer in 2014, helping northeast Ohio residents obtain health insurance coverage.
