I think that defining the opposition as elite cause those who feel that they are losers to wish to get back at those who have beat them out for that better job, bought the better house, married the cuter girl, beat them in some dumb ball game.
So they lash out at those members of the elite who have proven their superiority over them.
This is a competitive society, and even though most of the competition is inherently meaningless, to those with an eight-grade mentality, competition is the only meaning for their pathetic lives. Deriving pleasure from the journey is meaningless to them: the attainment of the goal is everything. Every act takes the form of a quick sexual act.
These are the clowns that buy Hummers and other large, useless pieces of iron, honk at people in front of them at stoplights after they have already started to move, and flap their giant rubber fingers at the other side at sporting events.
There are lots more losers than winners in economic terms in the US. In sports, there is only one winning team, one winning golfer, one winning WWF wrestler. The rest are all losers, seen in this way.
No one enjoys being a loser, and those who are incapable of seeing that this is the nature of existence can feel good by rejecting someone clearly superior to themselves.
This losers and winners schtick is a major feature of advertising stuff like beer, cigarettes, all manner of booze, cars and clothing.