In the days that followed the election, I was able to stomach some of the right wing media. I wanted to see the heads exploding. So I turned on Bill O'Reilly. He said something I thought was very insightful, and with a minor change I believe I can agree with him:
The white establishment is now the minority. And the voters, many of them, feel that the economic system is stacked against them and they want stuff.
I have seen much made of the "stuff" argument on both sides and I would agree with Bill if he had said "different" stuff. For sure the Koch Bros et al would have expected "stuff" for their "investment" of billions of dollars of Super Pac money, but different "stuff" than what the middle class wants. (Other diarists have pointed this out.)
But I think the larger point that is missed is that voters "feel that the economic system is stacked against them".
He was saying this with derision but I felt it hit the nail on the head. People have come to realize that this economy favors the wealthy over the middle class.
President Obama addressed this issue during the campaign when he talked about everyone playing by the same rules. Many of us in the middle class are aware that the value of our take home pay from a job (I'm not an entrepreneur) has been sliding, while corporate America is making greater profits than ever.
Mitt Romney refuses to release his tax returns because that's all we need to know. He's better than even his own father. Different rules because he's rich(er).
Corporations can afford to hire lobbyists and get their laws passed, donate lots of money to political campaigns, and even spend unlimited amounts on "free speech" (Citizens United). The middle class is struggling to pay it's bills. Different rules because they're rich.
I could go on about this forever, but everyone here knows what I'm talking about.
As I said, Bill O'Reilly was very insightful. But he's not likely to convince anyone else in the Republican party, including himself.