Donald Trump stepped down, somewhat reluctantly, as 45th President of the United States, on 20 January 2021, leaving a heavily militarised Washington DC behind to ensure an undisturbed inauguration ceremony for President-elect Joe Biden. Trump became the fourth American President to actively boycott the inauguration ceremony of his successor, claiming right up to the finish line that he had been cheated out of a “landslide” victory. He may no longer be President, but the early indications are that he intends to continue to influence American politics for many years to come, albeit from the sideline for the time being.
Trump retains much support across the US, from a loyal, and often fanatical, voter base that he has steadily built up ever since he first announced that he was standing for President in 2015. It may well be that many of the 74 million who voted for him in the 2020 Presidential election are not slavish followers of the cult-leader-like status he has carved out for himself. But the “Trumpism” that attracted so many votes in the first place is a force that cannot be safely ignored. After all, who can deny the fervour and blind faith of the many attendees at his showpiece mega-rallies, which until recently packed sports arenas, fairgrounds and leisure centres across the country-to the extent of even becoming “super-spreader” events during the later stages of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Trump’s winning formula in 2016 involved the bringing together of long-standing and diverse American conservative and libertarian opinions, melding them with fringe views of the far-right, and then combining them with his personal agenda of self-interest and self-aggrandisement, which meant holding on to power at all costs with no holds barred. He found a readymade support base among disaffected Americans who felt increasingly alienated from traditional politicians , the legislature on Capitol Hill, and corporate mainstream media.
Trump resurrected the “Make America Great Again” slogan, previously used by other Presidential candidates, for his own 2016 Presidential campaign. The slogan hit a chord with many Americans, who had been economically disadvantaged by deindustrialisation, globalisation, and initiatives towards the provision of “cleaner energy”. His message soon propelled him to the top as an outsider candidate, who could claim to be untainted by the allegiances, biases and alleged corruption of a bipartisan political establishment.
Trumpism may, however, have backfired, and may even have conspired to help make “America Little Again” instead. A combative America-First foreign policy, a new-found economic nationalism manifested in tariffs and trade wars, and American withdrawal from several multinational agencies and trade agreements, have combined to erode America’s position of global leadership and made it increasingly inward-looking. Indeed, many Trump supporters seem to believe that America should withdraw from the global arena altogether and rebuild the nation from within.
A reduced global influence has not, however, deterred Trump’s many domestic followers. His policies have a wide appeal within the United States. Trump’s anti-immigration and anti-Muslim rhetoric are to the liking of many, while his economic policies such as financial deregulation, tax cuts, and reductions in social entitlement programmes have the blessings of the powerful conservative and corporate money-machine that lavishly fund American political activity.
Trumpism cannot be considered as an ideology arrived at through careful reasoning and thoughtful consideration of the many pros and cons. Rather, it is a potpourri of many long-standing American traditions of exceptionalism, nativism, protectionism, isolationism, libertarianism, and a belief in “religious freedom”, coupled with a propensity to readily accept conspiracy theories and a suspicion of all things non-American. This explains the diverse nature of its support base, ranging from white working-class voters, white supremacists, conservatives, evangelical Christians, and even right-wing militias. It is remarkable that, despite Trump’s occasional misogynistic and racist pronouncements, we even have “Women for Trump”, “Blacks for Trump”, and “Latinos for Trump” to add to those who voted for him.
Trump’s legacy will be debated for years to come and become the subject of numerous books, academic or otherwise. But as Trump leaves office, deprived of his social media microphone (57,000 tweets as President on Twitter alone!), accused of fomenting armed insurrection against the American state, and impeached twice, the nation itself is not in good shape. With over 400,000 Americans killed by Covid-19, and a failure to deliver on his promises of economic prosperity and a reinvigorated infrastructure (apart from 47 miles of newly-constructed Mexican border wall), it is testament to his cult-like following, aided and abetted by many, often un-Christian, conspiracy theories that he is still seen as a potential saviour-turned martyr by many. As usual, we will have to await unfolding events to determine how things eventually turn out.
Ashis Banerjee