Basket of deplorables explained

"Basket of deplorables" is a phrase from a 2016 US presidential election campaign speech delivered by Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton on September 9, 2016, at a campaign fundraising event. She used the phrase to describe "half" of the supporters of her opponent, Republican nominee Donald Trump, saying, "They're racist, sexist, homophobic, xenophobic, Islamophobic".[1] The next day, she expressed regret for "saying half", while insisting that Trump had deplorably amplified "hateful views and voices".

The Trump campaign repeatedly used the phrase against Clinton during and after the 2016 presidential election. Many Trump supporters adopted the "deplorable" moniker for themselves in reappropriation. Some journalists and political analysts questioned whether this incident played a role in the election's outcome. In her 2017 book What Happened, Clinton herself said that her comments on the "basket of deplorables" were a factor in her electoral loss.[2]

Background

Throughout her presidential campaign, Hillary Clinton expressed her concerns regarding Donald Trump and his supporters. The New York Times and CNN cited Clinton's earlier articulation of similar ideas to the phrase in her August 25, 2016, campaign speech at a rally in Reno, Nevada.[3] [4] In that speech, Clinton had criticized Trump's campaign for using "racist lies" and allowing the alt-right to gain prominence, claiming that Trump was "taking hate groups mainstream and helping a radical fringe take over the Republican Party".[4] Clinton also criticized Trump for choosing Steve Bannon as his chief executive officer, especially given Bannon's role as the executive chair of the far-right news website Breitbart News. Clinton read various headlines from the site, including "Would You Rather Your Child Had Feminism or Cancer?" and "Hoist It High and Proud: The Confederate Flag Proclaims a Glorious Heritage".[5] On that same day, Clinton posted a video on Twitter depicting white supremacists supporting Donald Trump. Within the video is a CNN interview wherein Trump initially declined to disavow white nationalist David Duke.[6]

During campaign fundraisers in August 2016, Clinton reportedly explained her divide and conquer approach to courting Republican voters by putting Trump supporters into two "baskets": everyday Republicans whom she would target for votes, and the alt-right crowd.[7] During a September 8, 2016, interview on Israel's Channel 2, Clinton said: "You can take Trump supporters and put them in two big baskets. They are what I would call the deplorables — you know, the racists and the haters, and the people who are drawn because they think somehow he's going to restore an America that no longer exists."[8]

Speech

At an LGBT campaign fundraising event in New York City on September 9, Clinton gave a speech and said the following:[9]

Clinton response

The following day Clinton expressed regret for "saying half", while insisting that Trump had deplorably amplified "hateful views and voices".[10] At the second presidential debate in October 2016, after Trump mentioned the speech in a response to James Carter, debate moderator Anderson Cooper asked Clinton: "How can you unite a country if you've written off tens of millions of Americans?"[11] Clinton responded to Cooper's question by saying: "My argument is not with his supporters, it's with him and the hateful, divisive campaign he has run".[12]

On October 20, 2016, during the 71st Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner, Clinton joked about the phrase, telling the guests: "I just want to put you all in a basket of adorables".[13]

Clinton campaign

Clinton's campaign pointed to a series of polls that showed that some of Trump's supporters held negative views toward Latinos, African Americans, and Muslims. Clinton's campaign used the incident to try to force Trump's campaign members to denounce its extreme supporters. For example, after Mike Pence refused to call David Duke "deplorable", Clinton's running mate Tim Kaine accused Pence of enabling racism and xenophobia.[14]

Trump response

Donald Trump criticized Clinton's remark as insulting to his supporters.[15] [16] In a rally at Des Moines, Iowa, Trump stated: "While my opponent slanders you as deplorable and irredeemable, I call you hardworking American patriots who love your country".[17] [18] During the rest of the election, Trump invited "deplorable Americans" on stage.[19] For example, at a rally in Miami, Florida, on September 16, 2016, Trump parodied musical Les Misérables with the title Les Déplorables under the song "Do You Hear the People Sing?".[20] [21] Trump also used the label against Clinton in an advertisement, which claimed that Clinton herself is deplorable because she "viciously demoniz[es] hard working people like you".[22] On November 8, 2017, one year after the election, Trump thanked the "deplorables" for his victory.[23]

Trump campaign

Others in Trump's campaign responded negatively to the statement. Trump's running mate Mike Pence stated in a Capitol Hill meeting: "For Hillary Clinton to express such disdain for millions of Americans is one more reason that disqualifies her to serve in the highest office."[24] Kellyanne Conway, Trump's campaign manager, had issued a statement on Twitter, claiming: "One day after promising to be aspirational & uplifting, Hillary insults millions of Americans."[25] [26]

Meanwhile, Roger Stone and Donald Trump Jr. posted a parody movie poster of The Expendables on Twitter and Instagram titled "The Deplorables", which included Pepe the Frog's face among those of members of the Trump family and other right-wing figures.[27]

In the final months of the election, the Trump campaign released official merchandise with the word "deplorable".[28] [29]

Trump supporters

During and after the election, the "deplorables" nickname was reappropriated by many Trump supporters.[30] [31] Weeks before Trump's inauguration, various celebrations were held using the word "deplorable". One notable celebration was DeploraBall, which was celebrated by Trump supporters and several members of the right at the National Press Building from January 19 to 20, 2017.[32] [33] [34]

Analysis

The day after Hillary Clinton's speech, some political analysts compared the statement to Mitt Romney's 47% gaffe in 2012.[35] [36]

After the election, Diane Hessan, who had been hired by the Clinton campaign to track undecided voters, wrote in The Boston Globe that "all hell broke loose" after the "basket of deplorables" comment, which prompted what she saw as the largest shift of undecided voters towards Trump.[37] Political scientist Charles Murray said, in a post-election interview with Sam Harris, that because the comment helped get Donald Trump elected, it had "changed the history of the world, and he [Haidt] may very well be right. That one comment by itself may have swung enough votes, it certainly was emblematic of the disdain with which the New Upper Class looks at mainstream Americans."[38]

In an interview with CNN on December 4, 2016, Hillary Clinton's campaign manager Robby Mook said that the statement "definitely could have alienated" her voters.[39] Meanwhile, Courtney Weaver of Financial Times believed that Clinton's comment had no effect on the election, stating: "To argue that one word cost Mrs Clinton the election is foolish." However, Weaver acknowledged that the statement "did not hurt her opponent".[29] James Taranto of The Wall Street Journal wrote that Clinton only stated that she regretted saying half without indicating whether she underestimated or overestimated.[40]

Spectator columnist Charles Moore compared the impact of the statement to that of British left-winger Nye Bevan's comments disparaging British Conservative Party members as "lower than vermin" in 1948.[41] Moore noted that these remarks sparked a similar outrage and led to the formation of the "Vermin Club".

Some Trump opponents turned the phrase against the Trump administration, for example Time writer Darlena Cunha opined that several members nominated for Trump's cabinet were a "basket of deplorables" spreading racism, Islamophobia, and antisemitism.[42]

In her 2017 book What Happened, Clinton said that her comments on the "basket of deplorables" were a factor in her electoral loss.[2]

Politicos Rich Lowry describes conservatives' interpretation of Clinton's use of the term as "an unfair, disparaging term for people who believe reasonable but politically incorrect things (immigration should be restricted, NFL players should stand during the national anthem, All Lives Matter, etc.)".[43]

In popular culture

Linda Tripp, infamous for her role in Clinton-Lewinsky scandal, penned a memoir titled A Basket of Deplorables: What I Saw Inside the Clinton White House, which was published in December 2020, eight months after her death.[44]

Notes and References

  1. Reilly, Katie (September 10, 2016). Read Hillary Clinton's 'Basket of Deplorables' Remarks on Trump Supporters . January 23, 2021 . . February 18, 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210218212344/https://time.com/4486502/hillary-clinton-basket-of-deplorables-transcript/ . live .
  2. News: Zurcher . Anthony . September 12, 2017 . What Happened: The long list of who Hillary Clinton blames . . July 21, 2018 . February 3, 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210203100814/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-41244474 . live .
  3. News: Chozick . Amy . Hillary Clinton Calls Many Trump Backers 'Deplorables', and G.O.P. Pounces . February 10, 2017 . . September 10, 2016 . Her remarks on Friday were a more pointed version of her earlier criticisms of the movement her opponent has spurred. . February 23, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170223014037/https://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/11/us/politics/hillary-clinton-basket-of-deplorables.html . live .
  4. News: Merica . Dan . Tatum . Sophie . Clinton expresses regret for saying 'half' of Trump supporters are 'deplorables' . February 10, 2017 . CNN . September 9, 2016 . Although Clinton has accused Trump of racism before, she has never explicitly called him a racist. Last month, she delivered a major speech in which she accused Trump of aligning himself with far-right extremists and saying he 'built his campaign on prejudice and paranoia'. . February 16, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170216154622/http://www.cnn.com/2016/09/09/politics/hillary-clinton-donald-trump-basket-of-deplorables/ . live .
  5. News: Fix . Team . Ohlheiser . Abby . Dewey . Caitlin . Hillary Clinton's alt-right speech, annotated . January 23, 2017 . The Washington Post . August 25, 2016 . January 25, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170125140318/https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2016/08/25/hillary-clintons-alt-right-speech-annotated/ . live .
  6. News: Hillary Clinton Says 'Radical Fringe' Is Taking Over G.O.P. Under Donald Trump . The New York Times . Matt . Flegenheimer . August 25, 2016 . March 1, 2017 . February 28, 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210228102810/https://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/26/us/politics/hillary-clinton-speech.html . live .
  7. Web site: Debenedetti . Gabriel . Trump cuts into Clinton's lead as crucial stretch begins . September 4, 2016 . Politico . January 23, 2017 . January 29, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170129183352/http://www.politico.com/story/2016/09/donald-trump-hillary-clinton-september-debate-227714 . live .
  8. Web site: Kelsey . Adam . Behind Hillary Clinton's 'Basket of Deplorables' Line . September 13, 2016 . ABC News . January 23, 2017 . February 2, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170202022624/http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/hillary-clintons-basket-deplorables-line/story?id=42069200 . live .
  9. Reilly . Katie . Read Hillary Clinton's 'Basket of Deplorables' Remarks on Trump Supporters . January 23, 2017 . Time . January 22, 2017 . November 10, 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20211110172258/https://time.com/4486502/hillary-clinton-basket-of-deplorables-transcript/ . live .
  10. Hillary Clinton Says She Regrets Part of Her 'Deplorables' Comment . Time . Katie . Reilly . September 10, 2016 . January 23, 2017 . October 14, 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20161014034420/http://time.com/4486601/hillary-clinton-donald-trump-basket-of-deplorables-half/ . live .
  11. News: Blake . Aaron . Everything that was said at the second Donald Trump vs. Hillary Clinton debate, highlighted . January 23, 2017 . The Washington Post . October 9, 2016 . January 27, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170127062622/https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2016/10/09/everything-that-was-said-at-the-second-donald-trump-vs-hillary-clinton-debate-highlighted/ . live .
  12. Web site: Strauss . Daniel . Clinton regrets 'deplorables' comment, bashes Trump for 'hateful, divisive campaign' . October 9, 2016 . Politico . January 23, 2017 . February 2, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170202011218/http://www.politico.com/story/2016/10/2016-presidential-debate-hillary-clinton-deplorables-229494 . live .
  13. News: Hains . Tim . Hillary Clinton Mocks Trump at Alfred Smith Dinner: He Sees Statue Of Liberty As a '4' . February 1, 2017 . . October 20, 2016 . November 10, 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20161110103957/http://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2016/10/20/hillary_clinton_mocks_trump_at_alfred_smith_dinner_he_sees_the_statue_of_liberty_as_a_4.html . live .
  14. News: Collinson . Stephen . Why 'deplorables' spat is here to stay . February 1, 2017 . CNN . September 13, 2016 . October 21, 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20161021083658/http://www.cnn.com/2016/09/13/politics/donald-trump-hillary-clinton-deplorables . live .
  15. News: Hillary Clinton Calls Many Trump Backers 'Deplorables', and GOP Pounces . The New York Times . Amy . Chozick . September 10, 2016 . Prof. Jennifer Mercieca, an expert in American political discourse at Texas A&M University, said in an email that the 'deplorable' comment 'sounds bad on the face of it' and compared it to Romney's 47 percent gaffe. 'The comment demonstrates that she (like Romney) lacks empathy for that group', Professor Mercieca said. . February 10, 2017 . February 23, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170223014037/https://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/11/us/politics/hillary-clinton-basket-of-deplorables.html . live .
  16. News: Clinton Calls Some Trump Supporters 'Basket of Deplorables' . . Jennifer . Epstein . September 10, 2016 . Republican pollster Frank Luntz described Clinton's comments as her '47 percent moment', a reference to Republican Mitt Romney's remarks at a private fundraiser in the 2012 campaign. . March 5, 2017 . January 12, 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210112153602/http://www.bloomberg.com/politics/articles/2016-09-10/clinton-calls-trumps-supporters-basket-of-deplorables . live .
  17. News: Jackson . David . Trump seeks to profit from Clinton's 'deplorables' remark . February 1, 2017 . USA TODAY . September 15, 2016 . en . February 18, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170218101648/http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/elections/2016/09/15/donald-trump-hillary-clinton-basket-of-deplorables/90352670/ . live .
  18. News: Obama Scoffs at Donald Trump's Appeal to Working-Class Voters . . February 1, 2017 . Fortune . September 14, 2016 . September 19, 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160919191855/http://fortune.com/2016/09/14/obama-trump-working-class/ . live .
  19. News: Supporters join Trump on stage: We are not deplorable . . Lisa . Hagen . September 10, 2016.
  20. News: Darcy . Oliver . Trump walks onstage to theme of 'Les Miserables', greets 'deplorables' at his Miami rally . September 16, 2016 . Business Insider . September 16, 2016 . September 17, 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160917041321/http://www.businessinsider.com/trump-les-miserables-deplorables-miami-2016-9 . live .
  21. Robinson . Will . Donald Trump Enters Stage to 'Les Mis' Theme, Welcomes 'Deplorables' . September 16, 2016 . Entertainment Weekly . September 16, 2016 . September 18, 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160918144721/http://www.ew.com/article/2016/09/16/donald-trump-les-mis-deplorables . live .
  22. Web site: Trump releases new ad hitting Clinton for 'deplorables' remark . . Hanna . Trudo . Steven . Shepard . September 12, 2016 . January 23, 2017 . October 13, 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20161013064652/http://www.politico.com/story/2016/09/clinton-deplorables-trump-ad-228018 . live .
  23. News: Estepa . Jessica . President Trump thanks 'deplorables' for helping him win the 2016 election . November 8, 2017 . USA TODAY . November 8, 2017 . en . November 8, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171108213641/https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/onpolitics/2017/11/08/president-trump-thanks-deplorables-helping-him-win-2016-election/844744001/ . live .
  24. News: Hains . Tim . Pence: For Clinton To 'Express Disdain' For Everyday Americans 'Disqualifies Her' . February 1, 2017 . Real Clear Politics . September 13, 2016 . May 10, 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180510051246/https://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2016/09/13/pence_for_clinton_to_express_disdain_for_everyday_americans_disqualifies_her.html . live .
  25. News: The Latest: Trump campaign objects to 'deplorable' language . January 23, 2017 . Associated Press . September 10, 2016 . February 2, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170202023943/http://bigstory.ap.org/article/052109a4de02459798529c5172f1374a/latest-campaign-frenzy-begins-early-voting-starts . dead .
  26. News: Corn . David . The Time Trump's Campaign Manager Called Americans 'a Bunch of Pigs' . January 23, 2017 . Mother Jones . September 15, 2016 . en . February 2, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170202021632/http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2016/09/kellyanne-conway-trump-deplorables-bunch-of-pigs . live .
  27. News: Trump's son, adviser share image featuring The new rights favorite cartoon frog . September 12, 2016 . Yahoo News . Dickson . Caitlin . September 15, 2016 . April 3, 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190403135942/https://news.yahoo.com/trumps-son-adviser-share-image-featuring-white-nationalists-favorite-cartoon-frog-170540004.html . live .
  28. News: Daileda . Colin . Trump selling 'deplorable' t-shirts on campaign website . January 23, 2017 . . September 20, 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200920142802/https://mashable.com/article/donald-trump-deplorable-t-shirts/ . 20 September 2020 . live .
  29. News: Weaver . Courtney . Year in a Word: Deplorables . January 23, 2017 . . December 27, 2016 . February 18, 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210218213752/https://www.ft.com/content/af01ff78-c394-11e6-9bca-2b93a6856354 . live .
  30. News: 'Deplorable' and proud: Some Trump supporters embrace the label . . William . Cummings . September 12, 2016 . May 14, 2024 . November 17, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171117180910/https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/onpolitics/2016/09/12/deplorable-and-proud-some-trump-supporters-embrace-label/90290760/ . live .
  31. News: Beckett . Lois . A morning with 'adorable deplorables': why Trump supporters are optimistic . January 23, 2017 . The Guardian . January 20, 2017 . January 23, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170123065518/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/jan/20/donald-trump-supporters-inauguration-interview . live .
  32. News: Andrews . Natalie . Before the Inauguration Day Galas, a 'Deploraball' . January 19, 2017 . . January 19, 2017 . January 19, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170119193821/http://www.wsj.com/articles/before-the-inauguration-day-galas-a-deploraball-1484848514 . live .
  33. News: Pager . Tyler . 'DeploraBall' highlights worries over 'alt-right' participation in Trump presidency . . January 19, 2017 . January 19, 2017 . January 19, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170119050003/http://www.bostonglobe.com/news/politics/2017/01/18/deploraball-triggers-debate-over-alt-right-participation-inaugural-festivities/cvYYaUbw6PfPYJfRYzW3CN/story.html . live .
  34. News: Booker . Brakkton . Alt-Right Infighting Simmers Around Inaugural 'DeploraBall' . January 17, 2017 . . January 1, 2017 . January 17, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170117093045/http://www.npr.org/2017/01/01/507395282/alt-right-infighting-simmers-around-inaugural-deploraball . live .
  35. Web site: Hillary Clinton's 'Basket of Deplorables', In Full Context of This Ugly Campaign . . Domenico . Montanaro . September 10, 2016 . The remarks also remind of inflammatory remarks in recent presidential elections on both sides – from Barack Obama's assertion in 2008 that people in small towns are "bitter" and "cling to guns or religion", to Mitt Romney's 2012 statement that 47 percent of Americans vote for Democrats because they are "dependent upon government" and believe they are "victims", to his vice presidential pick Paul Ryan's comment that the country is divided between "makers and takers." . April 5, 2018 . April 11, 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180411172901/https://www.npr.org/2016/09/10/493427601/hillary-clintons-basket-of-deplorables-in-full-context-of-this-ugly-campaign . live .
  36. News: Voters strongly reject Hillary Clinton's 'basket of deplorables' approach . . Aaron . Blake . September 26, 2016 . On the other hand, it's not clear whether this comment, even if people don't like it, will have anywhere near the effect that Romney's "47 percent" comment was supposed to have. That's especially because Clinton has backed away from saying it applied to half of Trump supporters and, as I noted two weeks ago, the fact that Romney's comment might have alienated people who actually might have voted for him. Clinton's comment was about people already backing her opponent – a key difference. . January 23, 2017 . October 22, 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20161022065429/https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2016/09/26/voters-strongly-reject-hillary-clintons-basket-of-deplorables-approach/ . live .
  37. News: Understanding the undecided voters . . Diane . Hessan . November 21, 2016 . May 12, 2017 . February 18, 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210218214505/https://www.bostonglobe.com/opinion/2016/11/21/understanding-undecided-voters/9EjNHVkt99b4re2VAB8ziI/story.html . live .
  38. Web site: Charles Murray (political scientist) . Murray . Charles . Charles Murray: Hillary Clinton's 'Deplorables' Comment May Have Changed The Course Of World History . . April 25, 2017 . April 12, 2019 . November 12, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20201112033330/https://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2017/04/25/charles_murray_hillary_clintons_deplorables_comment_may_have_changed_the_course_of_world_history.html . live .
  39. News: Scott . Eugene . Mook: Clinton's 'deplorable' comment could have alienated voters . January 23, 2017 . CNN . December 4, 2016 . February 2, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170202024136/http://www.cnn.com/2016/12/04/politics/clinton-deplorables-apology/ . live .
  40. News: Taranto . James . Doubling Down on 'Deplorable' . January 23, 2017 . The Wall Street Journal . December 9, 2016 . January 22, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170122204820/http://www.wsj.com/articles/doubling-down-on-deplorable-1481303167 . live .
  41. Web site: Moore . Charles . Will Trump produce merchandise for his 'basket of deplorables'? . . March 13, 2017 . November 17, 2016 . March 14, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170314063100/http://blogs.spectator.co.uk/2016/11/will-trump-produce-merchandise-basket-deplorables/ . dead .
  42. Cunha . Darlena . Donald Trump's Administration Is a Basket of Deplorables . January 23, 2017 . Time . November 22, 2016 . January 22, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170122161555/http://time.com/4577724/donald-trump-deplorable-administration/ . live .
  43. News: Lowry . Rich . The Garbage Case for Roy Moore . December 7, 2017 . . December 6, 2017 . December 7, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171207031152/https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2017/12/06/lowry-roy-moore-garbage-216051 . live .
  44. Web site: A Basket of Deplorables: What I Saw Inside the Clinton White House .

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