Bold prediction: You may have thought this was impossible, but the inescapable Thanksgiving dinner political debate this year is going to feature even more conjecture and baseless opinion than in years past. We're all still trying to understand what happened two-and-a-half weeks ago and what it will mean for all of us going forward, and in those situations, rumors thrive. So because we have little else to go on, here's a conjecture-heavy — but fact-based — guide on how to (try to) win politics at Thanksgiving. The strategy: Pick your favorite theory to explain any of the questions below, argue it like hell, and hope you win. Why did Donald Trump win? (AFP PHOTO / MANDEL NGAN) Here are some explanations, all of which are rooted in 2016 exit-polling data: 1. Rural and suburban voters: Trump over-performed among mostly white, working-class voters outside urban areas in a way that the polls didn't predict. (Something for pollsters to ponder for the next four years.) (Philip Bump / The Washington Post) 2. Urban areas: Hillary Clinton underperformed in cities, especially among black and Hispanic voters. There really wasn't a significant difference in turnout among these core Democratic groups from past presidential elections, which is fascinating given how Trump spent large portions of his campaign alienating these voters from Republicans. 3. He was always going to win. And the polls just got it wrong. Why did Hillary Clinton lose? Hillary Clinton. (AP Photo/Cliff Owen) Post-election, everyone's a critic. Here are some theories espoused by top Democrats: 1. James Comey: The FBI director's announcement nine days before the election that agents had found emails pertinent to Clinton's use of a private email server didn't amount to much legally. But politically, it may have reminded voters what they don't like about Clinton: In part because of her email scandal, her honesty and trustworthy ratings were in the tank for most of this election. 2. Clinton didn't run a grass roots campaign. To quote President Obama in a news conference after the election: “I won Iowa not because the demographics dictated that I would win Iowa. It was because I spent 87 days going to every small town and fair and fish fry and VFW Hall.” That definitely seemed like a dis at Clinton and how much (little) time she spent campaigning in states she lost. 3. Democrats lost the working-class vote: The Fix’s Philip Bump points out that Trump got more support from white men without a college degree than Mitt Romney did in 2012. Liberal leaders Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Elizabeth Warren (D-Ma.) think that's because Clinton failed to talk to those people. 4. She played the gender card too heavily: (Warning! Only throw this one out if you want to risk abruptly ending your Thanksgiving dinner.) But it has been suggested. Here's what Sanders said in a speech in Boston this week: “It is not good enough for somebody to say, 'I'm a woman, vote for me.' That is not good enough.” What's Trump going to be like as president? (Don Emmert/AFP/Getty Images) | 