They now have a populist representative.

When the unheard find someone who speaks directly to the things that keep them up at night, and proposes, quite literally, anything to cure those woes, expect the Overton window to shift dramatically in favor of those proposals in the coming years.

Making fun is not the way.

People made the mistake with the populist right. They poked fun, name called, etc. Look how it galvanized the MAGA movement. These insults became a badge of honor.

We need to collectively begin understanding these folks, steelmanning their positions, and offering better solutions in a language they understand.

Else, one of these pendulum swings will be the last for our civilization.