To the editor:

I have a theory that the 9/11 terrorist attacks helped create the Trump voter. Fear and Islamophobia peaked, and Bush failed to address it in a way that kept people from feeling truly safe and secure. And in their eyes, Obama was worse because he was accused of being a Muslim himself. Many also viewed Obama as a weak leader, which was supplemented by a steady stream of negativity from Fox News and the like.

There is a creeping need to feel safe and secure for many that has not been met. After the Iraq mess and two recessions, people were looking for someone — anyone — to just make it all stop. To keep the bad guys out. To “make America great again.”

The problem is that Trump showed up with easy answers to complex questions and he snowed them into thinking that he could “Apprentice” his way into fixing the sources of their insecurity. Build the wall, keep Muslims out, etc. This is how the Trump voter was born and why we are where we are now as a country.

Mark Pickerel,

Lawrence