166 Comments

I heard you on Beck the other day and was so impressed by you. I am a conservative, voted for Trump, and for the sake of this country, I will vote for him again. I’m so thankful you are on Substack. We need sane voices in this country. You, Bari Weiss, Glenn Greenwald, Matt Taibbi, and many more are my Radio Free Europe. We need thousands more like you. Thank you.

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Small business owner (insurance agency) . Customers from all over the world. 5 of first 10 business customers Mexican owned. Have over 500 Indian customers. We are not bigots! Just because you'd like the border secured doesn't mean you are something phobic! My oldest is gay. We have an awesome relationship. I love him and his partner. I grow organic vegetables for our community food bank and local restaurants and operate a tree nursery. I also am an ardent trump supporter simply because he wants to eliminate the swamp.....thats it.

He's all the things boomers can be but he hates DC and so do I. I welcomed you to MAGA 2 weeks ago because you seemed hesitant.......jump in girl, were good people.

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I've always been an independent. My father was a libertarian of a sort, not the Koch bros. kind, but more of the Ron Paul kind. I grew up around conservatives in a religious, rural area and then went to college and was around liberals. My "ideals" are all over the place, and, trust me, I have no love for Republicans or the religious right. From my early twenties to my early forties, I voted almost straight D. I voted for Trump over both Clinton and Biden, but I would never call myself a supporter. I voted for Trump because Hillary struck me as the least authentic, most corrupt politician I'd come across in my lifetime. I would have gladly voted for Bernie Sanders. I would never have told you the world was going to hell if Clinton won. I figured it would be one scandal after another, but beyond that . . . meh. Not much would change. But Trump won and the insanity began and I was on the "wrong" side of it.

I think Trump was no better or worse than your average president but perhaps a bit more responsive to his voters than most. I can't actually say whether I'd like to meet him. On the one hand, I think he's probably as egotistical and bombastic as he seems, but on the other he seems so much more authentic than say an Obama or a Bush. The fact that I'm supposed to "repent" if I voted for him, per the journalist on Bill Maher's last episode, gives me the creeps and enrages me at the same time. Trump is no better nor worse than any other politician from either side and this is such a transparent attempt to *shame* people into giving one side power when they have done nothing to earn it and have abused what power they have been given.

Having spent my life around conservatives and even conversing with them online, I will tell you right now, you'll meet a-holes. I've been called a commie and a babykiller. I've lost one friend in real life on the right because I wasn't sufficiently "right" and I've lost a friend who was libertarian like I am for having the temerity to vote for Trump and laughing when she said someone was going to assassinate that poor, sweet Ilhan Omar. However, at no time during the height of the Tea Party movement did the Republican Party coalesce around and cater to the Tea Party movement. Instead, they welcomed them in their midsts, yes, but business went on as usual (maybe too much as usual as Republicans are servants of the corporate status quo above all), and at no point did I, a liberal/libertarian, have to watch what I said around my conservative friends and acquaintances. They might have looked at me like I was an idiot, but they wouldn't have been reaching for tar and feathers. The problem with the Left is that they seem to be in the grip of mass hysteria and there is almost no one among them that is willing to reel them back from the edge of the cliff. Instead, the Democrat Party keeps feeding that hysteria hoping it will win them power. It's a most cynical and sickening move that doesn't bode well for any of us.

But other than that, all I have to say is welcome to the real resistance, which isn't really left or right or conservative or liberal or libertarian. It's just a bunch of us that want all this insanity to stop and if that means burning the Democrat Party to the ground, then as many times as I voted for them in the past, I'm still fine with it. Maybe something more sane will rise from the ashes.

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I did not vote for Donald Trump in 2016 but after his election I posted on my Facebook saying we might as well wish him the best for the sake of the country.

I got vitriolic reactions and lengthy screeds from otherwise sane people who yelled at me that Donald Trump was an existential threat to every person they loved and by not raging I was part of the problem. I honestly didn't get it.

I withdrew from social media. I quickly learned not to engage people in conversations about any "current events" even in real life to avoid getting a tongue-lashing if my hatred of Trump didn't meet their standard. I worry that my own thinking could become insular; a victim of my own custom-made echo chamber. Maybe culture is made in the crucible of conversation and none of us can create it without one another. I hope there is a way to make debate great again.

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I hope this isn't too blunt but I think there are a lot of people like this. I voted for Obama twice and then Hillary. Then when Trump won I thought ok, if the Democrats act sane and reasonable they should be able to make huge gains standing against Trump. Fun to laugh at that thought now. They went nuts and I can't believe more people don't see it. But if you are in a bubble where you don't hear any arguments to the contrary, then you might not know any better.

And of course there are bubbles on the right and people who only partake in right wing media. But the difference to me is that it's not the right who looks to banish people from social media, and is increasingly censorious against people they dislike. That's the fundamental difference. The right is eager to have a debate, whereas the left frequently wants to deny the ability to have one, and is quite often outraged when exposed to a differing viewpoint. Which I find pathetic and view with contempt.

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I was a Democrat from a Democrat family. During Obama’s second term, I saw the writing on the wall...my party had sold out to big business, radical leftist ideology, and had become everything I stand against. They used the levers of power in the IRS to go after the other side and seemed to hate the truth. That made me switch sides and I voted for Trump in 2016 because he wasn’t the establishment(of either side) and he said things about the “swamp” and what made our country weaker that just made sense to me.

I couldn’t believe the hate that came from the left after he was elected either. Now, 6 years later, and after he isn’t even in office anymore, the Democrats have become authoritarian like the old right. It is their way or the highway, and that doesn’t sit right with me in what is supposed to be a free country. I don’t have a lot of hope for the future of the country at this point. They literally control all the levers of power except the SCOTUS and it scares me what they are doing with all that power. Let’s hope more freedom lovers on the center left make the journey we did, but all the ones I know hate Trump so much, you can’t get through to them(which I can understand to some degree). Some people say the first sign of Mass Formation was the pandemic, but I think it happened 4 years earlier with Trump’s election in 2016 and has just gotten worse.

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Hi, Sasha! You have become one of my & my husband's must-reads. We are conservatives, voted for Trump, loved everything he did in office. Our son, who publicly supported the president at school (middle & high school), was vilified, ostracized, beaten, and eventually received a death threat, all for simply refusing to conform to Leftist ideology. He received this mistreatment from students, as well as from teachers and administrators. (Yes, Fed court case pending. He graduated from homeschool. ) My former friends on the Left were horrified as these things happened to our son and our family, but then voted for the same people who encouraged this treatment. When the calls came from the Left for us to be put in camps and there was not a peep from my "friends", I dumped them all, sought out a new circle of like-minded Americans & have forged new, meaningful friendships. I applaud you with everything I have for having the courage to look truthfully at the situation and adjust accordingly. Also, adorable pups! Keep the writing coming! Thank you.

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Hi Sasha,

I was a life long Democrat. Voted for Obama twice. Was tired of the same old promises made, and promises never kept. I was looking for a change. I was never a fan of Hillary. I was intrigued with Trump because he was different. Not a politician, but business man. I started to listen to what he had to say, and liked what I heard. I credit him for opening my eyes to all of the corruption I was oblivious to. The first time I heard the terms “fake news” or “drain the swamp” I didn’t have a clue as to what on earth he was referring to. I quickly learned. I voted for him twice. I didn’t feel comfortable putting my support for Trump on SM or even sharing it with family or friends. I kept it a secret. That should tell you something right there. The other side is so aggressive with their hatred towards anyone that doesn’t agree with them politically. Yet they can post and slander Trump and his supporters without concern of losing their livelihoods or being censored. I will vote for him again if he runs. I will vote for anyone that has an America first agenda. Trump kept his promises.

I believe if the election wasn’t stolen he would still be doing great things to “Make America Great Again”.

Thank you for stepping out and spreading truths. You are a breath of fresh air. Your voice is heard and important. I look forward to more of your writings. God Bless You.

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Hello, and thank you for the dose of sanity. I didn't vote for Trump in '16 (voted Libertarian just to keep them on the state ballot), and I really hope he does not run again. Still, I understand why so many of my fellow conservatives love him (and they do, it's that personal): he kept his word as best he could, after decades of betrayal from supposedly conservative politicians who fell in with the Washington Way Of (Not) Doing Things. This is more than half of the basis for the cult that surrounds him. Add in that he was right about China, and we free-traders were wrong, and his seriousness about controlling the border, and you have the makings of a powerful faith that Trump alone will make America a great place to work and raise a family again for the average American citizen, in whose interests the government is supposed to operate.

Me, I want Trump policies without Trump, but I recognize that there is a very small cadre of politicians from whom we might get that. Cruz, DeSantis, Cotton, and a handful of others whose names escape me right now.

On the other hand, we have those who want a "fundamental transformation" of the United States, as Obama promised. They have their own faith, and will fight just as zealously to further it. Since they control the majority of the press, tech companies, and the justice bureaucracy, those are the tools they use. We are in for a long period of Lawfare, and we'll be lucky if it doesn't produce sufficient injustice that violence erupts in response.

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Sasha, your interview with GB was my first introduction to you and your writings. Thank you. I nearly cried while reading your work here to find someone that was able to see through the constant lies and attacks. It is shocking to see people I once held in high regard melt into a puddle of seething hatred and rage for anyone who has the audacity to hold or express another opinion. You are wise to stay away from social media. It does no one any good, in fact, it is an evil that may never be throttled. Again, my deepest gratitude to you for your bravery to write hard things and willingness to see the "other side".

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Sasha.....I’ve been reading your work on Awards Daily for years. I sensed your political leanings, but of course your awards analysis was brilliant, so I just brushed aside what you were saying politically. To hear you on Glenn Beck - I kept wandering if this was the same Sasha Stone! I’m so impressed that you took time to see the “other side.” That is what’s missing for many on the Left - the unwillingness to hear our point of view. My two grown children believe everything the Left tells them, and they tolerate their parents’ beliefs. If there is any advice you could give on the parent/child difference of opinion, I’d be grateful. Thank you!!

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I heard you on Glenn Beck’s show the other day, and was quite impressed by you. I appreciate your honesty, your courage, and your integrity. I wish more people were like you and would actively choose to listen to the other side and walk some time in their shoes. And then be willing to admit when they’ve had it wrong. (On both sides.) Thank you for being a voice of reason and of fairness.

I was happy when you described your experiences at Trump rallies and that they were moments of joy and humor. That’s how I’ve seen them. I still have well meaning, non-leftist friends who just want to be nice who have branded all Trump supporters as hate-filled bigots, and then with great embarrassment tried to walk it back a bit when I tell them I am one. They then state that I’m not like the REAL Trump supporters. They believe every lie spewed by the mainstream media. They cannot grasp any facts if I try to enlighten them (nicely).

So again, I admire and appreciate you. I look forward to reading more of your writing.

[I am a Christian missionary who spent about 20 years in the Philippines with my family, until we settled back in the States 3 years ago. I love reading everything I can get my hands on about what is going on in this country and around the world. You will add to that growing knowledge.]

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In This House We Believe

Free Speech For Me But Not For Thee

My Rights, Your Responsibilities

Government Provides, Business Takes

People Are Responsible For Their Ancestors, Not Their Behavior

We Are Tolerant, You Bigots

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I am a medical researcher who spent his whole career trying to improve health outcomes especially in minorities where that is an especially acute issue. I am now retired and glad to be retired since I would no longer be able to teach or do research in this medical environment. Wokeism is destroying medicine and I will not be apart of it. Health disparities are now being blamed on “racist” physician’s instead of the biological differences among us. Admission status to medical schools are being relaxed as are the abilities to pass medical boards which will result in inferior doctors being released on the public. Who will benefit from this? Well, that will. Be the malpractice lawyers who make a fortune from the carnage that is about to unfold unless this madness ends.

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I gravitated to everything you said on Beck. I know what it’s like to live in a place that some folks can’t see past their rage. I live on Maui, born and raised. I’m sure you’re aware Hawaii is a deep blue state and not counted much in the polls, but I still vote ☺️ because I can’t pack my ‘ohana up and drive to the next state. I am of Hawaiian ancestry but oh how I love America. Of all the countries in the world, I’d rather be struggling as an American 🤙🏽. I’m so happy you were able to get out if that bubble. You give me hope that one day my friends and family here can also burst that bubble and see the truth. I just hope it’s sooner than later. In the mean time, my husband and I will continue to button down the hatches and holomua (move forward). Best wishes to you and your new found freedom...Aloha ‘Oe 🌺🌺🌺

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I don't know if it was the Blaze or Breitbart but I read your article through them. Then I heard you on Beck. Great interview. I'm a conservative stuck in psychotic Massachusetts. I registered as an independent about 25 years ago. My intent was to listen to and consider both sides. I may have voted for dems in low-level elections but never for president, senate or congress. I couldn't understand the inability to compromise on issues. It really frustrated me. Also frustrating is how my vote counts for nothing in this tax-happy state. Anyway, over the years I grew up and grew more conservative and watching democrats during the Obama years I vowed to never vote (knowingly) for a democrat in any election ever again (unfortunately its hard to find out the party of every town meeting member and that sort of thing). I will go to my grave standing for God, Jesus and conservative values. God bless you for your boldness.

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