In politics a dog whistle is coded language designed to garner the votes of supporters without arousing the ire of those with opposing views. While nothing restricts its use to a particular type of politician, demagogues have historically been most adept at it. As the Republican National Convention wound down yesterday and as the election season heats up it is important that middle-of-the-road voters learn to detect the normally inaudible (to them) messages President Trump emits. Let's talk about the increasingly strident "law & order" theme of his recent speeches in response to Black Lives Matter protests all over the country. Right-wing media understandably report this as a laudable stance in defense of private property and businesses threatened by violent protesters. Left-wing media for their part predictably decry the use of this stance to violently suppress mostly peaceful protesters who have legitimate civil rights issues. The noise this back-and-forth creates does not change the minds of 80-90% of voters who appear to have made up their minds already. What it does do is make it harder to hear what the president is leaving unsaid. After all, given that he is in office now with an Attorney General with an expansive view of executive power and a supine Senate majority ready and willing to stymie anything the House may try by way providing a check or balance, what keeps the president from taking the strong actions he implies he will take if re-elected? The answer is that taking the actions this president is capable of taking to enforce "law & order" or saying out loud what those actions might be would result in losing the votes of those who may not yet have made up their minds. As polarized as the electorate appears to be, that could determine the outcome of the election. The deployment of troops in Washington state and elsewhere we saw earlier in response to the protests was just a mild version of the measures the president will take if re-elected to a second term. I don't think it is an exaggeration to say that protesters regardless of skin color will face violent suppression from law enforcement if Trump wins a second term. His supporters hear his dog whistle loud and clear. On the anniversary of the March on Washington and MLK's "I have a dream" speech, the question is can the rest of us hear what is left unsaid?
- drrama7