BACKLASH

Trump's victory was a backlash against political correctness. The left created Trump's supporters--he literally could not have won without the left. 

Accusations of racism, sexism, and a countless number of -ism and phobia labels created Trump's supporters, and every effort to double down only drove more people to join them. The racist wall, his sexist words--his politically incorrect nature attracted people who have for many years been told that they were racist or sexist for holding thoughts that were deemed to be offensive.

Every new accusation from the left alienated more people--even those who considered themselves liberal and left-leaning--as each new accusation held a heightened offense over a smaller and/or more specific grievance. Trump greeted them with open arms by showing them that you can, in fact, say what you believe--and you don't have to give the time of day to those who would rather label you. That's exactly what Trump did.

Cultural appropriation. Misogyny. Islamophobia. Xenophobia. Racism. Sexism. Bigotry. The list of labels kept growing, and the brush used to apply these labels got wider and wider as the election went on--and it eventually got so wide that the very people who applied the labels could not avoid being labeled themselves. Amy Schumer comes to mind, as she was accused of cultural appropriation when she made a parody of a Beyonce song.

Political discourse is dead when you accuse large segments of the population of being racist. And when your side keeps finding new ways to kill discourse, you're going to lose. You're going to lose debates, you're going to lose people, and you're going to lose elections. Third party voters didn't elect Trump--you did.