The chart below tells the whole story of disinformation and how it can infect a population, an election and government policy going forward. The lies the red bars show swung the close election to Trump are demonstrable, and based, feebly, on a larger truth. Yes, most Americans are getting screwed — most expensive health care in the world, highest price on drugs, biggest wealth disparity in history between those who have over 1,000 million dollars and everyone else, stagnant wages for working people, a corrupt corporatist Supreme Court purchased by right wing billionaires, a largely bought and paid for corporate Congress, manifestly incompetent political hacks appointed to important government posts, a two-tiered justice system strictly punishing the poor and letting the wealthy and connected go about their criminal business, child poverty, an epidemic of child murder by gun; killer storms, rising sea levels and climate science dismissed by fossil fuel lobbyists as having nothing to do with burning fossil fuel; every issue blurred and both-sidesed by a spineless, complicit corporate mass media, etc.

If there is no consequence for spreading deliberate disinformation, to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars, incendiary lies told knowingly to achieve a political result, then you get President Donald Trump. 

What does he know about foreign policy that gave him high Republican support on this issue?  That he can make all wars everywhere stop instantly with the force of his genius personality.  Why do only 25% of Republican voters polled care about red states forcing raped women and girls to give birth to their rapists’ babies?  Because Jesus said it’s right, according to their mega-pastors.   Everyone has a legitimate beef about the corporate greed at the heart of our economy, consolidation of goods and services under quasi monopolies that can raise prices at will.  All these corporate conglomerates had to do was keep ruthlessly raising consumer prices to make 80% of Republicans say “fuck Biden and his socialism, look how expensive bacon and eggs are at Publix!”

Immigration is perhaps the biggest lie on the list, and the most pernicious and powerful one.  Immigrants do a tremendous amount of crucial work that Americans won’t do, and they pay a gigantic amount of taxes.  They commit crimes at lower rates than born Americans.  There was a bipartisan bill to finally solve longstanding border issues along lines proposed by the most conservative Republicans.  Biden was ready to sign it, although it was a very good deal for right wing bigots who want to restrict legal immigration from poor countries.  Candidate Trump ordered his party to torpedo the bill, knowing it would be a great campaign issue to continue to lie about immense caravans of raping, murdering, sodomizing, blood poisoning mongrel vermin pouring into the country as Biden dithered, napped and slid into catatonic senility.   How well did that ploy work?  It was the number one reason people voted for the compulsively lying serial fraudster felon. Take that, fact-based assholes!  Who’s the political genius now?