, Columnist
The Republican Convention, Translated for Liberals
The emphasis on authority and order may strike Democrats as silly. But it comes from someplace deep.
Don't laugh this off.
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Many Democrats do not merely disagree with the Republican Party platform and with the speakers at this week’s convention. They may even struggle to understand what they are reading and hearing.
That’s a problem for Republican politicians, who hope to connect with Democratic voters, but even more for Democrats, who hope to keep the presidency and to capture the Senate. The reason is that Republicans are appealing to deep and honorable strands in American political culture, which Democrats ignore at their peril.