Donald Trump's big circus has begun its tour in 2024. The show's main clown said Saturday he wants to win the presidential election “for the third time.”
Despite this lie (he didn't win in 2020), Trump has a real chance of winning the presidential election next November.
Several factors explain Trump's popularity: his image as a strong leader in front of an increasingly senile Joe Biden; the Democratic Party's connection to the intersectional whims of a particular left; the inability of Democratic leaders to stem waves of illegal immigrants; the racism of part of the American population in view of the minorityization of whites expected around 2040.
But even Trump's most ardent supporters would have to admit that his rhetoric is increasingly undemocratic and misleading.
He shows signs of early senile dementia. He is becoming more and more inconsistent in his comments.
Yet nearly half of Americans continue to believe in him. For what?
High illiteracy
One of the most underestimated factors in Trump's support is the high illiteracy rate. About 21% of Americans cannot read or write. 54% of Americans have a level of English proficiency equal to or below sixth graders.
In other words, only 46% of Americans likely have sufficient language skills to fully understand Trump's words.
Surprisingly, 77% of Black Americans have moderate to high reading comprehension. That share drops to 66% for Hispanics and 65% for whites.
Fools on a global scale
Globally, the United States lags far behind Canada and European countries, whose literacy rates are close to 99%. The American literacy rate is on par with countries like Iraq, Tunisia and the Congo.
Better education doesn't necessarily mean voting for Democrats. But in general, those who have a university degree and are therefore supposed to understand the language better vote between 60 and 70% for the Democrats, regardless of their religious, racial, etc. affiliation.
All of these statistics are frightening.
They point out that, unlike voters in most other democracies, a large portion of the American population is intellectually incapable of understanding political debates. This important segment of the American population is leaning toward voting for Trump.
They also show that in our time when social networks transcend borders, a large part of the American population is particularly vulnerable to manipulation by external propaganda, such as those from China or Russia.
In short, American democracy is threatened by the serious deficiencies of the education system in the United States.