--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Do I feel empathy for Trump voters?…" description: "\"“Do I feel empathy for Trump voters? That’s a question I’ve asked myself a lot. It’s complicated. It’s relatively easy to empathize with hardworking, w..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eb3/hillary-rodham-clinton-890_empathy_do-i-feel-empathy-for-trump-voters-that_1537137.jpg" --- # Do I feel empathy for Trump voters? That’s a question I’ve… ![“Do I feel empathy for Trump voters? That’s a question I’ve asked myself a lot. It’s complicated. It’s relatively easy to empathize with hardworking, warmhearted people who decided they couldn’t in good conscience vote for me after reading that letter from Jim Comey . . . or who don’t think any…” quote by Hillary Rodham Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eb3/hillary-rodham-clinton-890_empathy_do-i-feel-empathy-for-trump-voters-that_1537137.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eb3/hillary-rodham-clinton-890_empathy_do-i-feel-empathy-for-trump-voters-that_1537137.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eb3/hillary-rodham-clinton-890_empathy_do-i-feel-empathy-for-trump-voters-that_1537137.jpg) > ““Do I feel empathy for Trump voters? That’s a question I’ve asked myself a lot. It’s complicated. It’s relatively easy to empathize with hardworking, warmhearted people who decided they couldn’t in good conscience vote for me after reading that letter from Jim Comey . . . or who don’t think any party should control the White House for more than eight years at a time . . . or who have a deeply held belief in limited government, or an overriding moral objection to abortion. I also feel sympathy for people who believed Trump’s promises and are now terrified that he’s trying to take away their health care, not make it better, and cut taxes for the superrich, not invest in infrastructure. I get it. But I have no tolerance for intolerance. None. Bullying disgusts me. I look at the people at Trump’s rallies, cheering for his hateful rants, and I wonder: Where’s their empathy and understanding? Why are they allowed to close their hearts to the striving immigrant father and the grieving black mother, or the LGBT teenager who’s bullied at school and thinking of suicide? Why doesn’t the press write think pieces about Trump voters trying to understand why most Americans rejected their candidate? Why is the burden of opening our hearts only on half the country? And yet I’ve come to believe that for me personally and for our country generally, we have no choice but to try. In the spring of 2017, Pope Francis gave a TED Talk. Yes, a TED Talk. It was amazing. This is the same pope whom Donald Trump attacked on Twitter during the campaign. He called for a “revolution of tenderness.” What a phrase! He said, “We all need each other, none of us is an island, an autonomous and independent ‘I,’ separated from the other, and we can only build the future by standing together, including everyone.” He said that tenderness “means to use our eyes to see the other, our ears to hear the other, to listen to the children, the poor, those who are afraid of the future.”” [Hillary Rodham Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-rodham-clinton/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Empathy toward political opponents is complex; while understanding their concerns, intolerance and bullying must be rejected, urging collective compassion. **In simple terms:** Empathy is needed, but intolerance must be rejected. Key Takeaway Practice compassion for all, reject hate. Themes politics empathy social justice Mood concerned determined Type activist reflective When to use this quote - community dialogues - educational workshops - policy debates - media analysis - civic engagement Key Concepts polarization human rights public discourse Questions to Reflect On - What steps can we take to foster genuine empathy across political divides? - How do we address systemic issues that fuel fear? A Different Perspective It may simplify diverse voter motivations into a single narrative. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Empathize](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/empathize/) [Empathy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/empathy/) [Empathy and understanding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/empathy-and-understanding/) [Empathy Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/empathy-trump-4011862/) [Feel Empathy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feel-empathy-255966/) [Health care](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/health-care/) [Limited government](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/limited-government/) [Pope Francis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pope-francis/) [Standing together](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/standing-together/) [Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trump/) [Trump Voters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trump-voters/) [Ur Eyes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ur-eyes/) [White house](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/white-house/) ## Related quotes > [“I look at the people at Trump’s rallies, cheering for his hateful rants, and I wonder: Where’s their empathy and understanding? Why are they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-rodham-clinton/i-look-at-the-people-at-trump-s-rallies-cheering-for-his-hateful/) [Hillary Rodham Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-rodham-clinton/) > [“When you and I feel empathy toward another being-be it human or one of our fellow creatures-it's tinged with the whiff of their eventual…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-rifkin/when-you-and-i-feel-empathy-toward-another-being-be-it-human-or-one/) [Jeremy Rifkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-rifkin/) > [The person in New York City is showing too little empathy for the Trump voter. The Trump voter is showing too little empathy for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-vance-2/the-person-in-new-york-city-is-showing-too-little-empathy-for-the/) [J. D. Vance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-vance-2/) > [“And empathy? Even Trump’s former mentor, the notorious Roy Cohn, lawyer for gangsters and Joseph McCarthy, said that when it came to his feelings…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bandy-x-lee/and-empathy-even-trump-s-former-mentor-the-notorious-roy-cohn-lawyer/) [Bandy X Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bandy-x-lee/) > [“The idea that human beings cannot logically recognize suffering in a chicken, or draw meaningful conclusions about how a human would react to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-davis/the-idea-that-human-beings-cannot-logically-recognize-suffering-in-a/) [Karen Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-davis/) > [“Mirroring provides social cues through body language and behavior which enable us to develop more empathy and understanding for others.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-c-young/mirroring-provides-social-cues-through-body-language-and-behavior/) [Susan C. Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-c-young/) > [“Humanity is not defined by the languages we speak or the flags we fly, but by the connections we forge through empathy and understanding.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/camellia-yang/humanity-is-not-defined-by-the-languages-we-speak-or-the-flags-we-fly/) [Camellia Yang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/camellia-yang/) > [If we can share our story with someone who responds with empathy and understanding, shame can't survive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bren-brown/if-we-can-share-our-story-with-someone-who-responds-with-empathy-and/) [Brené Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bren-brown/) > [We live in an epidemic of self-hatred. I see it daily with people coming at me, and they do it to everybody, it's not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leann-rimes/we-live-in-an-epidemic-of-self-hatred-i-see-it-daily-with-people/) [LeAnn Rimes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leann-rimes/) > [Friendship is a living thing that lasts only as long as it is nourished with kindness, empathy and understanding.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/friendship-is-a-living-thing-that-lasts-only-as-long-as-it-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [All people share the same desire to be treated equally. We all go through similar emotional journeys from love to hate, rejection to acceptance.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dana-tai-soon-burgess/all-people-share-the-same-desire-to-be-treated-equally-we-all-go/) [Dana Tai Soon Burgess](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dana-tai-soon-burgess/) > [I'm a believer in forgiveness. I have worked with people who have been in gangs and now dedicate their lives to helping inner city…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jess-phillips/i-m-a-believer-in-forgiveness-i-have-worked-with-people-who-have-been/) [Jess Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jess-phillips/) > [“One doesn’t have to operate with great malice to do great harm. The absence of empathy and understanding are sufficient.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-m-blow/one-doesn-t-have-to-operate-with-great-malice-to-do-great-harm-the/) [Charles M. Blow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-m-blow/) > [The age of warrior kings and of warrior presidents has passed. The nuclear age calls for a different kind of leadership… a leadership of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-william-fulbright/the-age-of-warrior-kings-and-of-warrior-presidents-has-passed-the/) [J. William Fulbright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-william-fulbright/) > [You can be aware and educated and informed, but you've got to place emphasis on being compassionate, having empathy and understanding.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacey-dooley/you-can-be-aware-and-educated-and-informed-but-you-ve-got-to-place/) [Stacey Dooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacey-dooley/) ## More by Hillary Rodham Clinton > [“Putin has positioned himself as the leader of an authoritarian, xenophobic international movement that wants to expel immigrants, break up the European Union, weaken…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-rodham-clinton/putin-has-positioned-himself-as-the-leader-of-an-authoritarian/) [Hillary Rodham Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-rodham-clinton/) > [“It’s true, though, that we struggled to stay on message. My advisors had to deal with a candidate—me—who often wanted something new to say,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-rodham-clinton/it-s-true-though-that-we-struggled-to-stay-on-message-my-advisors-had/) [Hillary Rodham Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-rodham-clinton/) > [“He reminded me to focus on the “trendlines,” not just the headlines, and to relish the experiences.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-rodham-clinton/he-reminded-me-to-focus-on-the-trendlines-not-just-the-headlines-and/) [Hillary Rodham Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-rodham-clinton/) > [“Democrats should reevaluate a lot of our assumptions about which policies are politically viable. These trends make universal programs even more appealing than we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-rodham-clinton/democrats-should-reevaluate-a-lot-of-our-assumptions-about-which/) [Hillary Rodham Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-rodham-clinton/) > [“You Can't Keep Wild Animal In Your Back Yard And Expect It To Go only After Your Neighbor.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-rodham-clinton/you-can-t-keep-wild-animal-in-your-back-yard-and-expect-it-to-go-only/) [Hillary Rodham Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-rodham-clinton/) > [“In people’s lives and worldviews, concerns about economics, race, gender, class, and culture all blend together.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-rodham-clinton/in-people-s-lives-and-worldviews-concerns-about-economics-race-gender/) [Hillary Rodham Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-rodham-clinton/) > [“if you want to go quickly, go alone. If you want to go far, go together”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-rodham-clinton/if-you-want-to-go-quickly-go-alone-if-you-want-to-go-far-go-together/) [Hillary Rodham Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-rodham-clinton/) > [“On her very first day, when she politely raised questions about Bernie’s health care plan—she has a master’s degree in public health and a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-rodham-clinton/on-her-very-first-day-when-she-politely-raised-questions-about-bernie/) [Hillary Rodham Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-rodham-clinton/) > [“Too many saw the world in zero-sum terms, believing that gains made by fellow Americans they viewed as “other”—people of color, immigrants, women, LGBT…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-rodham-clinton/too-many-saw-the-world-in-zero-sum-terms-believing-that-gains-made-by/) [Hillary Rodham Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-rodham-clinton/) > [“Usually when I meet people who are frustrated and angry, my instinctive response is to talk about how we can fix things. That’s why…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-rodham-clinton/usually-when-i-meet-people-who-are-frustrated-and-angry-my/) [Hillary Rodham Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-rodham-clinton/) > [“In the words of Secretary Clinton, never doubt that you are valuable and powerful and deserving of every chance in the world to pursue…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-rodham-clinton/in-the-words-of-secretary-clinton-never-doubt-that-you-are-valuable/) [Hillary Rodham Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-rodham-clinton/) > [“To quote Secretary of Labor Frances Perkins, the first woman to serve in the U.S. Cabinet, under FDR, “The accusation that I’m a woman…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-rodham-clinton/to-quote-secretary-of-labor-frances-perkins-the-first-woman-to-serve/) [Hillary Rodham Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-rodham-clinton/) > [“While there are few problems in today’s world that the United States can solve alone, there are even fewer that can be solved without…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-rodham-clinton/while-there-are-few-problems-in-today-s-world-that-the-united-states/) [Hillary Rodham Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-rodham-clinton/) > [“if he knows that the Donald J. Trump Foundation is little more than a personal piggy bank, he’ll turn around and accuse, with no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-rodham-clinton/if-he-knows-that-the-donald-j-trump-foundation-is-little-more-than-a/) [Hillary Rodham Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-rodham-clinton/) > [“One of the most important but least recognized facts in American politics is that Republicans tend to win in places where more people are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-rodham-clinton/one-of-the-most-important-but-least-recognized-facts-in-american/) [Hillary Rodham Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-rodham-clinton/) [Explore all 336 Hillary Rodham Clinton quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-rodham-clinton/) ## More Empathize quotes > [ I can empathize with President \[George Bush\]. I know what it feels like having a young guy waiting around for you to keel over. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johnny-carson/i-can-empathize-with-president-george-bush-i-know-what-it-feels-like/) [Johnny Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johnny-carson/) > [To empathize means to share, to experience the feelings of another person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-greenson/to-empathize-means-to-share-to-experience-the-feelings-of-another/) [Ralph Greenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-greenson/) > [I think when see you a character on the screen who is actually being touched by the world, and the stuff is actually landing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-freeman/i-think-when-see-you-a-character-on-the-screen-who-is-actually-being/) [Martin Freeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-freeman/) > [I empathize with players. In our culture it is all about strategies and interventions to help the individual based on their individual needs. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-hayes/i-empathize-with-players-in-our-culture-it-is-all-about-strategies/) [Emma Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-hayes/) > [I think with any characterization there's a point where you empathize, no matter how much of a deviance his or her actions may be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benedict-cumberbatch/i-think-with-any-characterization-there-s-a-point-where-you-empathize/) [Benedict Cumberbatch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benedict-cumberbatch/) > [ Our best hope for the future \[...\] lies in an appreciation of the fact that, even if we don’t empathize with distant strangers, their… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-bloom/our-best-hope-for-the-future-lies-in-an-appreciation-of-the-fact-that/) [Paul Bloom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-bloom/) > [It's hard to get people to empathize with the poor. You can get some people to sympathize with the poor, but to empathize is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sendhil-mullainathan/it-s-hard-to-get-people-to-empathize-with-the-poor-you-can-get-some/) [Sendhil Mullainathan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sendhil-mullainathan/) > [When you truly empathize with someone, you have to take into account all the things that make that person who they are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tarana-burke/when-you-truly-empathize-with-someone-you-have-to-take-into-account/) [Tarana Burke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tarana-burke/) > [“When I empathize, I feel the frailty and transitory nature of another's existence. To empathize is to root for the other to flourish and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-rifkin/when-i-empathize-i-feel-the-frailty-and-transitory-nature-of-another/) [Jeremy Rifkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-rifkin/) > [Imagination is the power that enables us to empathize with humans whose experiences we have never shared.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-k-rowling-2/imagination-is-the-power-that-enables-us-to-empathize-with-humans/) [J. K. Rowling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-k-rowling-2/) > [I feel like you can't really be truthful as an artist and empathize with the human experience, unless you know your truth and you're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-guerrero/i-feel-like-you-can-t-really-be-truthful-as-an-artist-and-empathize/) [Diane Guerrero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-guerrero/) > [“...those who choose not to empathize enable real monsters.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-k-rowling/those-who-choose-not-to-empathize-enable-real-monsters/) [J.K. Rowling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-k-rowling/) > [The story is a machine for empathy. In contrast to logic or reason, a story is about emotion that gets staged over a sequence…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ira-glass/the-story-is-a-machine-for-empathy-in-contrast-to-logic-or-reason-a/) [Ira Glass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ira-glass/) > [I hope readers will consider, especially in this age of the World Wide Web, that as miraculous as it is, we still need to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/i-hope-readers-will-consider-especially-in-this-age-of-the-world-wide/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [“recent research has shown that when we empathize, the brain activates many of the same networks as when we ourselves experience pain, physical or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-j-davidson/recent-research-has-shown-that-when-we-empathize-the-brain-activates/) [Richard J. Davidson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-j-davidson/) [Browse all 108 Empathize quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/empathize/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Do I feel empathy for Trump voters? That’s a question I’ve asked myself a lot. It’s complicated. It’s relatively easy to empathize with hardworking, warmhearted people who decided they couldn’t in good conscience vote for me after reading that letter from Jim Comey . . . or who don’t think any party should control the White House for more than eight years at a time . . . or who have a deeply held belief in limited government, or an overriding moral objection to abortion. I also feel sympathy for people who believed Trump’s promises and are now terrified that he’s trying to take away their health care, not make it better, and cut taxes for the superrich, not invest in infrastructure. I get it. But I have no tolerance for intolerance. None. Bullying disgusts me. I look at the people at Trump’s rallies, cheering for his hateful rants, and I wonder: Where’s their empathy and understanding? Why are they allowed to close their hearts to the striving immigrant father and the grieving black mother, or the LGBT teenager who’s bullied at school and thinking of suicide? Why doesn’t the press write think pieces about Trump voters trying to understand why most Americans rejected their candidate? Why is the burden of opening our hearts only on half the country? And yet I’ve come to believe that for me personally and for our country generally, we have no choice but to try. In the spring of 2017, Pope Francis gave a TED Talk. Yes, a TED Talk. It was amazing. This is the same pope whom Donald Trump attacked on Twitter during the campaign. He called for a “revolution of tenderness.” What a phrase! He said, “We all need each other, none of us is an island, an autonomous and independent ‘I,’ separated from the other, and we can only build the future by standing together, including everyone.” He said that tenderness “means to use our eyes to see the other, our ears to hear the other, to listen to the children, the poor, those who are afraid of the future.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Hillary Rodham Clinton" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-rodham-clinton/do-i-feel-empathy-for-trump-voters-that-s-a-question-i-ve-asked/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Empathize" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-rodham-clinton/do-i-feel-empathy-for-trump-voters-that-s-a-question-i-ve-asked/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eb3/hillary-rodham-clinton-890_empathy_do-i-feel-empathy-for-trump-voters-that_1537137.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eb3/hillary-rodham-clinton-890_empathy_do-i-feel-empathy-for-trump-voters-that_1537137.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eb3/hillary-rodham-clinton-890_empathy_do-i-feel-empathy-for-trump-voters-that_1537137.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Do I feel empathy for Trump voters? 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