“Donald Trump whines, brags, besmirches veterans and disrespects women. These aren’t the values I learned growing up on a ranch in South Dakota.”
- Sometimes a story about growing up has a lesson. Author Sam Cordes, writes “Commentary for the Daily Yonder,” published his story first on 10/9/2024. This is Sam’s lesson.
“My father, a lifelong cattle rancher, was born in Dakota Territory in 1887.
“Our ranch was not the end of the earth, but we could see it from there. We had no electricity or indoor plumbing. Grades 1-8 were in a one-room school; high school was 70+ miles away.
“The ranch remains in our extended family. Although I have not lived in South Dakota for nearly 60 years, I return multiple times yearly and remain deeply connected via family, lifelong friends, and alumni activities at South Dakota State University (SDSU). My career as an agricultural economics professor and university administrator spanned four universities. My research focused on the needs and challenges facing rural America, often leading to Congressional testimony.
“I love rural America, due largely to the values instilled in me when I was growing up.
“Donald J. Trump has violated those values en masse, but ironically, he is revered in too many parts of rural America. For example, in 2020 Trump received more than 90% of the votes in two of South Dakota’s most rural counties, Haakon and Harding, each with fewer than 2,000 people. Nationally, Trump received somewhere around two-thirds of the rural vote and won nine out of 10 nonmetropolitan counties.
“Fiscal responsibility. This was a Holy Grail in the conservative rural America where I once lived. Today, I hear nary a whimper from rural Americans about the fact that one-fifth of the $35 trillion national debt, accumulated over 233 years, was created during the four years of Trump’s presidency. It was triggered by his tax cuts, mostly benefitting the wealthy. He argued the cuts would pay for themselves, based on the discredited theory of trickle-down economics. My father characterized this theory as “feeding the chickens by first giving oats to the horses.”
“Humility. My parents instilled in me—to a fault—that I should not call attention to myself, and above all NEVER brag about myself. Trump does nothing but that.
“The “cowboy up” attitude. When things did not go my way, I was told to get up, dust off, and move on. Whining, complaining, and blaming others were viewed as signs of weakness, insecurity, and smallness. Trump is the biggest crybaby in recent memory and always plays the victim card. Back in the day, the refrain from rural America would have been: “For God’s sake, Donald, cowboy up!!”
“Honesty and honoring promises. In 2016, Trump had two signature campaign promises: building a “big, beautiful wall” along the border that Mexico would pay for and repealing Obamacare. Thankfully, neither happened, but they do represent broken promises. Broken promises and Trump’s unprecedented amount of lying and fabrication—even by political standards—would have once been unacceptable in rural America. I remember when keeping one’s word and telling the truth were nonnegotiable parts of the Cowboy Code.
“Respect for veterans. Military veterans are “losers and “suckers,” per Trump, who used his connections to dodge the draft by being categorized as unfit for service. He also criticized John McCain for being a POW. How does that fit with the fact rural America has always been a hotbed of patriotism, providing a greater proportion of its young to military service than do cities?
“Respect for scientific knowledge and common sense. When I was growing up, I had profound respect for scientific breakthroughs, whether it was a new brucellosis vaccine for cattle or other science-based information such as that provided by SDSU Extension. The Polio vaccine became available and was not without side effects, some serious. However, the calculus of the ranch community was a no-brainer. Get the kids vaccinated for the good of everyone! Today, such common sense and respect for science seem in short supply.
“Respect for women. In my rural community, it would have been unthinkable for a man to brag about “grabbing women by the p_ _ _y.” All but one of my grade school teachers were women. My first-grade teacher was outstanding, never married, and I believe she had a cat. Referring to her as a “childless cat lady,” a term popularized by Trump’s running mate, would have put one’s life at risk.
“Traditional family values. There was a time when rural Americans would have been aghast with a presidential candidate who had five children by three different women, numerous affairs, and paid hush money to a porn star.
” of East Coast elites. There is nothing wrong with being wealthy, especially if one started from nothing. I met many wonderful people when I was on the faculty at Penn State. However, I also recall why people in my childhood had some misgivings about those who were born into wealth, had never ridden a horse or been in a small-town bar or to a county fair, or never changed a tire on a gravel road. How well does Trump match up on these considerations?
“This is not a plea to support the Harris-Walz ticket, although Tim Walz has the deepest rural chops since 1996 when Kansas’ Bob Dole was a presidential candidate. Dole was an honorable Republican and authentic conservative, an endangered species in today’s political landscape. As a rural American, if you do not like the Harris-Walz ticket, there are third-party candidates, or you can write in the name of your favorite country-western artist, horse, or dog.
“I am hopeful the values, principles, and ideals that were instilled in me will resurface in rural America and provide a North Star for all Americans, as was once the case. ”
“Sam Cordes lives in Chicago but has never forgotten his deep roots in the cattle ranching industry of Western South Dakota, where he visits frequently. He graduated from high school in Sturgis and attended South Dakota State University, where he was a member of the rodeo team. His career in higher education included appointments at four major land-grant universities, where he developed a national reputation for his work in agriculture and rural policy. Sam says he’d like to hear from readers. You may reach him at smcordes2@yahoo.com. “
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