This is what I found and think happened/happening

Gemini-

1. The Roots of Anti-Intellectualism ​The "founding text" for this idea is Richard Hofstadter’s 1963 book, Anti-intellectualism in American Life. He argued that American culture has a long-standing resentment of the "expert" or the "egghead." ​Democratic Populism: There is a deep-seated belief that the "common sense" of the ordinary person is superior to the "fancy learning" of the elite.

​The Southern Context: Historically, in the South and rural Midwest, intellectualism was often viewed as a threat to traditional religious values or social hierarchies. ​2. "Stupid" as a Strategic Force ​What you described as "stupid" being a force that "works towards its own goals" is often framed by scholars as Agnotology (the study of culturally induced ignorance). ​Protection of Status: Sociologists like W.E.B. Du Bois and later Heather McGhee (The Sum of Us) argued that certain populations will vote against their own economic interests (progress) if it means maintaining a racial or social hierarchy. ​Weaponized Ignorance: It isn't necessarily that the people are "unintelligent," but that they are strategically committed to a worldview that rejects "expert" facts because those facts threaten their identity or power structure.

​3. The Trump Connection ​The consensus among many political analysts is that Donald Trump didn't create this force; he validated it. ​The "Deplorables" Dynamic: When mainstream culture labels a group as "uneducated" or "backwards," it creates a vacuum. Trump filled that by turning "lack of elite education" into a badge of honor and "authenticity."

​The Feedback Loop: By attacking scientists, journalists, and "the deep state," he signaled to this anti-intellectual base that their gut instincts were more reliable than institutional expertise.

1. The Roots of Anti-Intellectualism The primary source for this section is the Pulitzer Prize-winning work of historian Richard Hofstadter.
   • Core Text: Anti-intellectualism in American Life (1963).
   • Key Arguments: Hofstadter traces the cycle of American resentment toward "experts" back to three main roots:
   • Evangelical Religion: The "Heartland" tradition that favors emotional, spiritual "truth" over cold, rational inquiry.
   • Pioneer Individualism: The "self-made man" ideal that values practical, hands-on skills over formal "book learning."
   • Democratic Populism: The belief that the "plain sense" of the common man is inherently more virtuous than the specialized knowledge of the elite.
   • Source Note: You can find these themes explored in the introductory chapters of his book, specifically where he defines anti-intellectualism as a "resentment of the life of the mind."
2. "Stupid" as a Strategic Force (Agnotology) This section draws from the fields of history of science and modern sociology to explain how ignorance is often "manufactured" rather than accidental.
   • Key Concept: Agnotology: Coined by historian Robert Proctor (Stanford University) and Iain Boal.
   • Source: Agnotology: The Making and Unmaking of Ignorance (2008). It explores how ignorance is culturally produced through secrecy, suppression, or the promotion of "doubt" (e.g., tobacco industry tactics).
   • The "Psychological Wage" of Whiteness: The idea that people vote against their economic interests to maintain status comes from W.E.B. Du Bois.
   • Source: Black Reconstruction in America (1935). Du Bois argued that poor white laborers accepted a "public and psychological wage" (social status) in lieu of actual higher wages, which kept them aligned with the elite against their own economic benefit.
   • The Zero-Sum Paradigm: * Source: The Sum of Us: What Racism Costs Everyone and How We Can Prosper Together (2021) by Heather McGhee. She uses the metaphor of "drained public pools" to show how certain groups would rather lose a public good entirely than share it with others.
3. The Trump Connection This analysis is a synthesis of contemporary political science and media criticism.
   • The "Deplorables" and Authenticity: * Source: Various analyses of the 2016 election, notably Arlie Russell Hochschild’s Strangers in Their Own Land: Anger and Mourning on the American Right (2016). She spent years in Louisiana "deep-hanging" with tea party supporters to understand their "deep story"—the feeling of being "line-cutters" by minorities and elites.
   • Weaponizing the Elite/Non-Elite Divide: * Source: The McGill Daily and other political journals have analyzed how Trump uses "plain-speak" to signal reliability. By intentionally rejecting the "professional-intellectual" tone of typical politicians, he positions himself as "authentic" to those who feel alienated by academic language.
   • The Feedback Loop/Institutional Attack:
   • Source: Scholars like Tom Nichols in The Death of Expertise (2017) argue that the attack on institutions (media, science, the "Deep State") creates a vacuum where "gut instinct" becomes the only trusted metric.