If someone from another country were to walk up to you and ask you to explain the current state of American politics, what do you think you might say to them?
Would you tell them about our economic system, or our health care, or the state of campaign financing? Would you mention that there’s currently not much room for anyone from political parties outside of the two largest ones? Maybe you would tell them that we still haven’t really even worked out who gets to vote and how.
Those are all important aspects of American current affairs, politically speaking, but they all kind of pale in comparison with a phenomenon going on right now that’s never happened in this country before: Absolute deference to every word of one particular politician by a large group.
That’s where we are with Trump supporters.
President Donald Trump, both during his campaign for the presidency and as he’s governed, has operated in a way that is plainly nothing but overtures to his most ardent supporters and fans. And those fans have repaid him tenfold with their unquestioning loyalty.
Nowhere is that more readily on display in two areas in particular: Popular opinion of the press, including television, print, and online media; and on the President’s seemingly endless rally circuit. Trump has beat a drum of “fake news” that he has used to successfully paint, in the minds of his supporters, a picture of a reporting media that regularly slanders him. It’s transparently false, of course — Trump considers anything, even factual, that isn’t a glowing endorsement of his opinions and policies as “fake,” or at least says it is for the benefit of his sycophants.
But the rallies are the truly worrying aspect of this presidency.
From fan t-shirts to his iconic red “Make America Great Again” hats, from pithy slogans to leading crowds in chanting, the purpose of the rallies is pure propaganda. The President notoriously does not hold press conferences like other leaders have before him — in which he appears at a podium to discuss current events and personally answer questions. What he does instead is hold glorified campaign events that end up being a lot like a church meeting, or possibly a cult meeting. Fans and supporters gather simply to be near him, and to surround themselves with others who feel the same.
And if you remain unconvinced of Trump’s opposite-world charisma, look no further than his most recent rally in Tampa, Florida. Reporter Zac Anderson of the Tampa Herald-Tribune was onsite to interview Trump supporters before and after the event. Reactions to the President’s gathering ran from excited to overwhelmed, but no quote that Anderson collected on Tuesday night could sum up the event better than that of Gene Huber, a 48-year-old car salesman who was once called up on stage with Trump at a previous rally:
“He’s our messenger and we listen to him, that’s all we do. I listen to our president and follow his agenda… If he says he’s going to turn the moon purple I believe him.” https://t.co/xSwk3fDd1x
— Zac Anderson (@zacjanderson) July 31, 2018
Featured image via screen capture
