A former supporter of Donald Trump left the fold because he grew tired of being a "dog" the far-right media had trained to bark at the behest of a "sociopath" like the former president, the swing state voter wrote in a new editorial Tuesday.
Tom Keltner, of Ohio, details for the Cincinnati Enquirer his shift from election-denier to never-Trumper, spurred by a desire to escape conservative media's hold and a PBS documentary about the Capitol riots on Jan. 6, 2021.
"After watching it, I felt embarrassed that I have been influenced to ignore outside information from 'my bubble' and felt like a dog that was 'trained to bark' at a narrow set of specific things as 'trained' by the sources I was limiting myself to," Keltner writes.
"I am now seeking out as much information as I can get from outside of my bubble and trying to keep a keen eye on the truths that exist there and the lies that exist within my bubble. It's a challenge that requires a lot of careful work."
Keltner tells readers he twice voted for Trump and firmly believed the narratives presented to him by Fox News, Newsmax and conservative talk radio.
Those beliefs included that the 2020 election was stolen, the Jan. 6 riots were peaceful, Democrats were to blame for leaving the Capitol unguarded and PBS was not to be trusted.
As for Trump, Keltner thought he "just had a weird personality, was a fresh change from the politics as is, and had the right policies for America."
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This changed on Jan. 30 of this year, when Frontline released its "Democracy on Trial" documentary about Trump's criminal charges that stemmed from the historic attack three years earlier, Keltner explains.
Keltner found himself faced with facts he could not refute and actions he could not condone.
"It opened my eyes to critical true information about Jan. 6, Trump, Rudy Giuliani, the myth of the stolen election, Trump's true intent to have then-Vice President Mike Pence overturn the election and his refusal to act to stop the riot as encouraged by his advisors, White House staff and family members, among many other things," he explained.
This realization led Keltner to consider seriously a surprising source: a 19th century Russian neurologist and Nobel Prize winner named Ivan Pavlov.
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"Pavlov discovered that dogs salivated as food approached, but then eventually salivated just at the sight of the white uniforms of the nurses who repeatedly delivered the food," he writes. "Similarly, I believe that 'information' represents the 'food' for many Americans, but people start 'salivating' immediately when they see the deliverers or 'the sources' (Fox News, CNN, et. al.) come on and just blindly believe what they offer."
Keltner feels honor-bound to vote but says he cannot in good conscience cast ballots for a "sociopath" like Trump or President Joe Biden, whom he describes as "corrupt" and "incompetent."
"We need to make our decisions based on common facts, or as close as possible, not the contrived, slanted information that is being fed to us in our bubbles," he concludes.
"Without people showing a willingness to step outside of their bubble, I see no end to the division."
