I think progressives need to understand Trump voters. No, really.

[zipplewrath]

41. The unions managed them

Yes, they were always socially regressive. The unions managed that aspect of their behavior by keeping the focus on the economic issues. But as unions became less significant, through their own success, the union members were swayed into thinking that they didn't need the unions anymore. They have paid the price ever since Reagan for this line of thinking. And their offspring gave up pensions for 401K's. When they woke up and realized what was lost, they found that the democrats had participated as much as the GOP.

The unions were victims of their own success. They got put into labor laws, what they formerly had to fight for in contract negotiations. The more we mandate things like overtime pay, minimum wages, paid time off, etc. the less the worker sees a need for a union. Unions need to deal with this, and to more overtly offer services that the members engage with regularly.