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Trump is but the latest politician to serenade Youngstown

Ruben Navarrette Jr. on

Yet, Trump implies that immigration is a huge concern here?

I've never been to Youngstown. The closest I got several years ago was spending a couple days in Lorain, another Ohio town about 90 minutes away that was also hit hard by the decline of the nation's manufacturing industry from the late 1970s to the mid-1980s.

Youngstown first landed on my radar during the 1996 presidential campaign, when conservative journalist Patrick J. Buchanan made a run at the Republican nomination. Buchanan accused GOP elites of neglecting those folks in the Rust Belt states who were struggling with high employment, low wages and home foreclosures. And Youngstown -- a former behemoth of the steel industry -- was a prime example, Buchanan said.

Old scapegoats give way to new ones. A couple decades ago, Buchanan told the people of Youngstown that greedy corporations and monied interests were to blame for their troubles. Then came a wave of elected officials who blamed unfair trade deals and globalization. Today, Trump puts the blame on Latino immigrants.

Do you know who no politician ever blames for the problems that besiege Youngstown? The residents of Youngstown, who may not have much but still have the power to vote. From the stories I've read, many of them refused to move and seek out opportunities in other places. Others passed up the chance to acquire more education, training and skills. After all, they must have reasoned, Grandpa managed to have a job for life and a pension -- all with no more than a high school diploma. So why couldn't they?

 

Because Springsteen was right. The world did change. And those who didn't change along with it got left behind.

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Ruben Navarrette's email address is ruben@rubennavarrette.com.

(c) 2017, The Washington Post Writers Group


 

 

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