Ever since Bush flubbed an answer about how the economy made him feel (Bill Clinton answered, "I feel your pain" and ended up as president), Republicans have struggled here. It's empathy. It's "cares about people like me."
And the numbers difference here with Romney is very dramatic.
Most likely voters don’t find either of them to be “honest and trustworthy.” But Trump has the edge. Just 36 percent of voters think she’s honest and trustworthy; 44 percent think he is.
Voters by 43-41 think Trump shares their values more than Clinton does.
And they split evenly, 44-44, on which candidate cares about people like them.
That last one is really important.
Barack Obama won the “cares about people like me” sweepstakes over Mitt Romney by 81% - 18% in 2012.
During the election the numbers ran in the 50s for Obama and the 30s for Romney. Trump breaking even with Hillary here is big.
Now, in all fairness, Trump is up against a very different candidate than Romney. Obama is charismatic and excellent at switching into different personas. He's a chameleon who fakes warmth and interest. Hillary tries to do all these things, but she's terrible at them. But results ultimately matter.