YEP: Salena Zito: Trump didn’t form a populist coalition. He was the result of one.

By 2016, the voters who were to become Trump’s base already knew who they were. Trump was the only one of 17 Republicans and five Democrats who stood out to this group of politically homeless voters. He knew how to tap the aspirations they were looking for from a presidential candidate.

Second, many people who have left their support for Trump visible to others have not left those flags or signs up because they think the election was stolen. It’s not a testament to their undying support for one man; they’ve left them up because it is their only way to show the political class that they are not going away. . . . Cultural curators in the media, corporations, and the so-called social justice warriors just can’t dislodge themselves from their narrow idea that if you voted for Trump or any other Republican, you are part of this thing that needs to become extinct. These voters are telling you through their signs that that is not going to happen.

Related: Why are Democrats so scared of Donald Trump when they just defeated him? “In a nation returning to ‘normalcy,’ does Congress cower behind armed troops and 12-foot fences? Does a party securely in control try to enlist tech firms and media to snuff out voices of opposition? In a normal America, does a defeated presidential incumbent pose such a threat to the party in power that he must be impeached after leaving office, to ensure he doesn’t win back the White House in four years?”

Plus: It’s Time for the Deplorables to Become the Unconquerables. “Mikhail Kutuzov, the Russian general who administered a crushing defeat to Napoleon, did so by realizing that as long as he kept his army intact, he didn’t have to win flashy victories. And he eventually ground Napoleon’s forces down to a nub. Likewise, so long as the ­Deplorables don’t give up in their opposition, they can’t really be ­defeated. By staying motivated, the Deplorables can become the Unconquerables.”