Did people in the Appalachians vote for Trump knowing he’d eliminate programs that are designed to help them?
I can’t be absolutely certain or other people’s motivations, of course, but Trump is hardly the first person who promised to eliminate programs that help Appalachia, got their overwhelming support, and then once elected proceeded to eliminate those programs as promised. And then will get their overwhelming support in the next election. There’s a lot about Trump that’s unprecedented, but this particular refrain has been playing on repeat for decades.
They aren’t getting what they need economically (they never have), but Trump is absolutely giving them more than they thought they’d ever get ideologically. The problem with this pattern is the ideology, not the economics.