They'll Never Learn

What does regret mean to you?

This past Tuesday, The New York Times published its latest in a series of voter focus groups. This newest iteration involved twelve individuals from across the country who voted for Donald Trump in 2024. The Times interviewed each of these voters to ask them about their reactions to the second Trump presidency based on their expectations having voted for him. As a whole, nine of the twelve individuals expressed regret for doing so, with their reasons being anything from Trump not living up to his campaign promises to his seemingly not having the right priorities a second time in office. None of the twelve gave Trump higher than a 'C' grade for his performance, and the overall tone of their remarks was one of disillusionment and disappointment. Combined with recent critics Marjorie Taylor Greene and Tucker Carlson, along with 36 incumbent GOP congressmen choosing not to seek re-election, it would appear that the fever is finally breaking and Republican voters are finally realizing the error of their ways. 

Except for the whole "regret" thing.

Because it is one thing to regret having done something. It's something else entirely to never do it again. While it's certainly encouraging that nine of the twelve in the Times focus group understood the error of their ways, what we don't get is a sense of whether or not their current regret translates into a change in future voting patterns. Are they regretful that they chose to vote for Donald Trump, who isn't living up to what they believe to be his core campaign promises? Or are they turned off from the entire Republican Party that has allowed Trump to be Trump and implement his half-cooked agenda on the American people?

While it's easy for the Times and other outlets to now identify disgruntled Trump supporters, it's hard to interpret their in-the-moment responses as anything that would predict future voting habits. As we all know, it is a long time between now and Election Day 2028. Between now and then, the airwaves will be flooded with countless attacks on Democrats. The Democratic candidate for president will be a communist/socialist in favor of open borders, big government, excessive taxes, and will be marked as being soft on crime. Meanwhile, the GOP candidate will keep our country safe against illegal immigrants, disease, gang members, and the radical left woke/DEI agenda. The playbook never changes because all the GOP has is fear to keep its members in line. If they can instill enough fear in the base and just enough in independent voters, then it simply won't matter if their fears are all unfounded and used for propaganda and gaslighting purposes only. 

Outlets like the Times won't return to the 12 participants in their focus group in 30 months because they know what we know: these people aren't gonna change. Their momentary regret means nothing when the 2028 election comes down to JD Vance versus Kamala Harris. Do we honestly expect anyone who voted for Trump in 2024 (as well as those who voted for him in 2016 and 2020) to suddenly see the light and vote Democrat in 2028? Think about everything that wasn't a dealbreaker for them with Trump in 2024: putting kids in cages, butchering the pandemic response, and leading an armed insurrection to overthrow the United States government. If none of these actions stopped them from voting Republican in 2024, what on earth will stop them from doing so in 2028?

Republicans vote that way for life. Those that actually switch are so statistically insignificant that it hardly matters in the grand scheme of things. We know that Republican presidents are terrible for the economy. We know that trickle-down economics has been the greatest economic lie of the last half-century. We know that science, education, and medical research will all suffer under a Republican president. We know that Republicans will abuse their positions, enrich their friends, and find ways to derail investigations into their wrongdoing. Deep down inside, Republican voters know this, too. But their complete lack of empathy leads them to continually vote against their own best interests simply to keep the woman/immigrant/minority down the block from advancing. It doesn't matter that their own advancement is being stalled out because of GOP policies; as long as they remain ahead of their neighbor, then that's all that matters. 

This right here is the only thing we should take away from The New York Times piece. Trump loves the "uneducated" as these twelve individuals definitely fit the bill. And while they can recognize that they made the wrong choice in 2024, there is absolutely nothing stopping them from making that same wrong choice the next time around. Republicans always fall in line, while Democrats fall in love. These twelve individuals are a classic case study of how and why we need robust civics education in this country. But since we don't have that, and we have their votes worth the same amount as yours or mine, we mustn't chase the "regretful Trump voter" at the expense of bringing in new, vibrant people of color to the voting booth. Those are the folks who can think beyond GOP propaganda and can actually differentiate between the two parties. They are the ones who have empathy, lived experience, and an understanding that there is one party genuinely invested in their health, safety, and security. These people may not be part of any New York Times focus group any time soon, but they are critical to the success of Democrats in 2026 and beyond.

Unlike the twelve Trump voters, who are as hopeless as they come.