(CNN) President Donald Trump wasn't elected because people thought he was a nice guy. He was elected because people thought he would explode the political system -- inflicting real and lasting damage to it. He would stick to the "elites" and stand up for the average Joe.

Which is why this quote -- in a terrific story by Patricia Mazzei about how the government shutdown is impacting a Florida town -- is so telling and terrifying for Trump as he looks to his 2020 reelection race: "I voted for him, and he's the one who's doing this," Crystal Minton, a 38-year-old secretary said of Trump. "I thought he was going to do good things. He's not hurting the people he needs to be hurting."

He's not hurting the people he needs to be hurting.

Wow. There's so much in that quote worth unpacking.

Built into it is the idea -- as I noted above -- that lots and lots of people voted for Trump not because they thought he was some exemplary guy but because they were sick and tired of feeling taken advantage of or condescended to (or both) by the elites in this country. Trump might look like one of those elites -- raised in a wealthy family in New York City, educated at private schools, a billionaire -- but the "in" crowd had never accepted him either. That he looked like one of the elites but fought for the average guy was at the root of Trump's appeal. ( I wrote about this extensively earlier in the week .)

Read More