What will the future bring?

After Donald Trump’s victory over Kamala Harris in this year’s presidential election, many Rochester Beacon readers expressed shock and dismay. More than two-thirds who took part in a post-election survey said they were pessimistic about the nation’s outlook over the next four years.

In the nearly two months since the election, nothing has eased their concerns. In fact, they may be even more worried about the country today.

In the Beacon’s year-end reader survey, 74 percent of respondents said they are somewhat or very pessimistic about the outlook for the country over the next four years, up from 69 percent the day after the election. Views also have become even more polarized. In the post-election survey, 19 percent said they were “neutral”; that number dropped to 6 percent in last week’s survey.

“My pessimistic outlook is based on my lack of trust in anything Trump says and does as they appear to me to be for self-interest and self-preservation from prosecution of his crimes and not for the good of our people and democracy,” wrote Fran Bliek.

In Deb Leary’s view, “Trump and his cronies are grifters who will cause the American people great pain.”

Roughly one in five readers expressed at least some optimism, however. Roy Allen wrote that it is “time to try other ideas and enlist other thinking. I am in favor of giving the new administration their moment in history.”

In Monroe County, Harris—the Democratic Party’s nominee after President Joe Biden withdrew from the race—received 59 percent of the vote, roughly matching Biden’s tally four years ago. In the surrounding counties, Trump won with vote shares ranging from slightly more than half in Ontario County to more than three-quarters in Wyoming County.

Readers’ views on the outlook for the Rochester region over the next four years are decidedly brighter than their expectations for the nation as a whole. Forty-two percent said they are optimistic, compared with 27 percent who are pessimistic, with a plurality responding “somewhat optimistic.” Strikingly, Republicans (48 percent) are more optimistic than Democrats (38 percent) about the region’s prospects.

In the year-end survey conducted in December 2023, readers were asked about the outlook for the region through the end of the decade. At that time, they were more upbeat—67 percent were optimistic, with 50 percent somewhat optimistic.

Last week’s survey also queried readers on which national issues are most important to them. Among all respondents, democracy and rule of law ranked No. 1, followed by health care, ethics in government and climate and the environment. Those issues also were the top four named by Democratic survey participants. For Republican respondents, economy and jobs was the No. 1 issue, followed by taxes and government spending. Third-party and unaffiliated respondents picked health care more than any other issue.

“Long term, there is only one issue that matters: climate change,” responded Nate Adams. “If the place where we live becomes inhospitable, nothing else covered in this survey will matter.”

Geoff Rosenberger wrote: “The debt and deficits represent a ticking time bomb. And there is an absence of will—both in Washington and among the American People as whole—to address them.”

The survey respondents also were asked two questions related to presidential pardons. One concerned Trump’s pledge to pardon some and perhaps many of those convicted of crimes in the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol. Readers overwhelmingly oppose such pardons, with only 11 percent in favor. But in a stark example of political polarization, 95 percent of Democrats said they opposed pardons for those convicted in Jan. 6 cases, while 39 percent of Republicans said they back pardons.

The other question referred to published reports saying that Biden is considering blanket pardons to pre-emptively protect government officials who could face groundless prosecution after Trump takes office. (As recently as earlier this month, Trump said that lawmakers who worked on that House January 6 Committee “should go to jail.”) A plurality of Beacon readers—46 percent—think Biden should issue such pre-emptive pardons. However, only slightly more than half of Democrats (54 percent) and fewer than one-fifth of Republicans (17 percent) think so.

More than 200 readers took part in this year’s Beacon year-end survey, conducted Dec. 18 and 19. Like previous reader surveys, 63 percent of respondents identified themselves as Democrats, versus 11 percent who said they were Republicans and 27 percent who replied unaffiliated or had third-party affiliation.

The following are signed written comments of survey participants. Many additional unsigned responses were submitted. As a matter of policy, the Beacon does not post unsigned comments.

Share your thoughts on why you are optimistic or pessimistic about the outlook for the country over the next four years.

Some of President-elect Trump’s positions are quite alarming. The thought of deporting 11,000,000 illegal foreigners at a cost of 10s of billions of dollars doesn’t make much sense. Our country was built by people that were escaping a variety of problems in their home countries.  How is today’s immigration problem any different. These are people who have given up everything to try and make a life for themselves here. We should be encouraging them instead of trying to make America white again.
—Al Schnucker

Long term, there is only one issue that matters: climate change. If the place where we live becomes inhospitable, nothing else covered in this survey will matter. Here at the edge of the next administration, there is little reason to believe much progress will be made in preserving the earth. How can anyone feel anything other than pessimism?
—Nate Adams

The debt and deficits represent a ticking time bomb. And there is an absence of will—both in Washington and among the American People as whole—to address them.
—Geoff Rosenberger

I’m pessimistic as I think Donald Trump can be easily swayed. It could flattery or some financial enrichment that will move him. To waste taxpayer dollars on retribution when if sincere he should tackle the issues facing average citizens. Going after people he dislikes does not benefit me one bit.
—Richard Byers, lifelong Republican

I am NOT a big believer or advocate of the idea that our democracy is existentially at risk. The only real risk is when people stop working together. The United States has a long history of surviving tough times—wars, pandemics, and social change. I support people and ideas that foster and promote hope and unity rather than identity politics, division, and fear mongering. It is time to try other ideas and enlist other thinking. I am in favor of giving the new administration their moment in history.
—Roy Allen

I was frankly shocked by the amount of people who voted for President-Elect Trump. We are a very divided Nation and I have serious concerns about what could happen to our system of government during the next four years. I believe the President-Elect has no particular interest in either the welfare of our citizens or our national defense. Unfortunately, at the same time Congress appears incapable of standing up against his stated intentions. I hope to God I’m wrong.
—Frederick Iekel

Based on what Donald Trump has said publicly and the nominees he has selected for his administration, we are headed for a radical right-shift in our government and a serious threat to our democracy as we know it.
—Stephen L. Gaudioso

With Republicans in control of all the branches of government including the Supreme Court, there is nothing we can do to slow down or stop the destruction Trump will do to our country. Trump is now trying to silence the free press, our last line of defense. The “leaders” of the Democratic Party also waited too long to force President Biden to get out of the race so we did not even have a chance to beat Trump.
—Clinton Swingle

Trump is a convicted felon, a serial liar, and uses the White House to enrich his personal wealth. He is a traitor to the US (classified docs, attempted Jan. 6 overthrow, etc), and is intending to appoint incompetents to federal positions that will hurt nearly all Americans (less the wealthy) and likely damage our democracy and its personal protections beyond repair.
—Dana Schwartz.

My pessimistic outlook is based on my lack of trust in anything Trump says and does as they appear to me to be for self-interest and self-preservation from prosecution of his crimes and not for the good of our people and democracy.
—Fran Bliek

Pessimistic because of endless wars/poverty—not enough concern for our “neighbors.”
—Mary Smith

I’m just not sure Trump believes in democracy.
—Rod Bailey

I think that Trump and his cronies are grifters who will cause the American people great pain.
—Deb Leary

Last time around, Trump said he’s hiring the “the best people,” most of which turned out to be criminals. This time, there’s no pretending. He’s hiring the worst people. Already he’s backing off his campaign promises of lowering prices because he knows he can’t. This is going to be a long 4 years.
—Remy Fenster

I’m very concerned that the country is now modeling Russia and Hungary by accepting political retaliation, alternative facts, Christian nationalism, Trump admin is above the law, it’s OK to have extremism, women are not in control of their reproductive health, and all democratic institutions decimated such as the role of the EPA, IRS and Dept of Education for the betterment of society. Concerned that PBS/NPR will no longer be funded and free independent press attacked.
—Ginny Contestable

The president-elect is being led by billionaires with their own agendas which will harm citizens in numerous ways. The environment will be assaulted making air and water more polluted.  “Drill, Baby, Drill” will destroy protected lands. The lessening of controls on manufacturing will threaten our health. The elimination of the FDIC will put savings in jeopardy. Playing with tariffs will cost consumers more. The president-elect is nominating clowns and relatives to destroy our democracy. No, I am not optimistic about the next 4 years.
—Linda Parker

The two-party duopoly we live under serves the interests of billionaires and their multinational corporations. Working people and the poor are left scrambling for peanuts in an economic system that is rigged against them. No one in Washington is speaking for them or for those who seek an end to our imperial ambitions overseas or an end to the insane proliferation of nuclear weapons.
—Al Bartolotta

Question #2 has a long list of issues; it is really difficult to select which are the most important because they are so interconnected to one degree or another. Thank you for asking and Merry Christmas!! Peace and courage.
—Mike Bausch

Very important issue not included in the survey list—need for creation of more affordable housing. I am somewhat pessimistic regarding the outlook for the country as there does not appear to be any action by either of the major political parties to gain tolerance of viewpoints without insults or retribution. Current example, the inability of Congress to pass budget and/or extend the continuing resolution to prevent a government shut down.
—Connie Sanderson

We need to work together and take good decisions and be here for every American.
—Jean Yves Bernard Louis

Paul Ericson is Rochester Beacon executive editor. The Beacon welcomes comments and letters from readers who adhere to our comment policy including use of their full, real name. See “Leave a Reply” below to discuss on this post. Comments of a general nature may be submitted to the Letters page by emailing  [email protected]. 

Our Nonprofit Newsroom Needs Your Support

The Rochester Beacon’s journalists are dedicated to bringing you high-quality local news and analysis. As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit news outlet, we rely on donations from the community to stay paywall-free. Make a tax-deductible contribution today to support our hardworking journalists—and NewsMatch will double your donation.