I went the other way.
I’m a political Benjamin Buttons I guess.
And I agree with those who say that Trump isn’t a conservative, moderate, liberal. He has no ideologies beyond whatever gives him power, because having power lets him do what he wants.
I don’t think that’s the case. I think it’s more that peoples’ political views tend to solidify between their 20s and early 40s, and that’s what they tend to have for the rest of their life. If society progresses on a liberal arc, their views tend to be seen as more and more conservative. But if society trends more conservative, their views may be seen as more lefty.
For example, when i was growing up, some of the hard socialists in our community were the older folks - who had adopted socialism during the Depression as a possible cure for the problems of that time. Their views didn’t change as they got older, but they were increasingly seen as radical lefties, as the political balance had shifted to the centre.
On the other hand, my grandmother in her old age would still talk about the British Empire, wish that we had the union jack, respect for British ties, etc. Very conservative views in the 1970s - but they were mainstream when she was a young woman in the 19teens. She hadn’t become more conservative; Canadian society had become more liberal.
And in Quebec, the hard-core separatists are in their 60s - they formed their views during the Quiet Revolution. Younger voters are a lot softer on the separatism issue, to the point that the Parti Quebecois has been losing support steadily. Still, it’s the older folks who tend to be more radical.
But getting back to Trump - remember, Donald and his Dad had to defend early on from a federal civil rights suit alleging racial discrimination in their housing units. I don’t think much has changed, in Donald’s world view, as his comments about immigrants, Mexican judges, “good people on both sides”, “shithouse countries”, all demonstrate.
When his “universe” was the Greater New York celebritysphere, he was seen by some as a putative Democrat or Rockefeller Republican but only because he acted in such a way as it would ingratiate him to the old school power holders in Greater NY. Not because he was really committed to what they stood for. He was all along someone out to hear others tell him he’s great, and make them pay if they go against that.
Once he realized he could get adulation in his own right by going populist-right on the nationwide stage, where the masses were feeling “underserved” by the conventional politician market, and as he got positive feedback from that beyond any expectation, he went all in for that.
Having thought about this a while, and viewed all the other posts, I’m going to agree. It does seem like people become more comfortable with their own views as they age, and a lot of people are conservative from the start. Perhaps an equal number are “liberal.”
And thus, this could explain why I’m even more liberal as I age.
I went the other way. Hawk and Fiscal Conservative but Green to probably mostly Liberal these days.
One reason for the liberal > conservative shift is that, as people age, they acquire more wealth and stake in the status quo, and hence have more incentive to skew conservative than when in their 20s.
But Trump’s own shift is so late in life, and so tied to his individual public roles, that I’m inclined to see his case as the narcissism explained above.
Back then, he was a right-wing authoritarian by New York City standards.
Now he’s that by national standards.