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Grump said all of these things before getting elected, but he also said their exact opposites as well. That he can say blatant lies while having a "charisma" such that people hear what they want to hear is exactly how a con man operates. Hence, they were conned.

However, the responsibility still arises as half of their fellow citizens were telling them that they were being conned. But rather than listening to the critics they actively remained ignorant while gloating about "liberal tears" and so on.

Saying “he conned us” is easier for people to accept than being introspective, taking responsibility and experiencing ego dissolution.

i thought he was more anti-war

He was never anti-war. There are videos of him ranting about Kharg Island dating back to the 1980s. (I wonder if he had friends/relatives in the hostage crisis.)

Don't know why you're getting downvoted, but I believe the con was the "no wars" line. He was supposed to stop the Ukraine war in 24 hours, remember but he seemed to just lose interest in it.