It’s the Negativity, Stupid

That’s the play. Don't play into it.

Not the issue.
Not the policy.
Not even the latest outrage.

The negativity.

That’s what Trump, Vance, Bannon, Noem, Bondi, Blanche and the rest of the cruel bandits want us to feel.

A steady drip of frustration. A constant hum that everything is broken. That the system is rigged. That nothing works. That the other side is unstoppable. That collapse is just around the corner.

Keep people agitated long enough and they either burn out or lash out.

That’s the strategy.

And I feel it.

You can feel it in my rural county. Fundraising is down. Civic groups are thinner. People who used to lean in now lean back. They’re not apathetic. They’re tired. They’re frustrated. But ask them who they’re frustrated with and the answer floats. Washington. Raleigh. The courthouse. “All of them.”

When frustration doesn’t have a clear target, it becomes atmosphere.

That’s the negative in the air.

But here’s what they don’t want you to notice.