The complaint that politicians are out of touch with ordinary people is a cliché of US politics. It’s the reason presidential candidates embarrass themselves with out-of-the-ordinary trips to the grocery store during campaigns. It’s the reason Donald Trump, in his inaugural address, vowed: “The forgotten men and women of our country will be forgotten no longer.” And it’s the reason people make a big deal out of the cost of a politician’s haircut. We are obsessed with the idea that political elites are separate from the people over whom they rule.
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