‘The continued denunciation of the ‘rigged election’ in 2020 has proved to be a masterstroke, a mobilizing myth of Trumpism’

Donald Trump is wrapping up his third presidential campaign, a phenomenon not seen since the Democrat Franklin Roosevelt’s time in office. Beyond his undeniable political longevity, it’s even more striking to note that Trump, who set out on the campaign trail four years ago, has always played it as an outsider, posing as the defender of “forgotten” Americans. But there’s a twofold mystery that more than ever has stymied research: Why is Trump persisting, and what will he do if he wins?

We see two main reasons. First, the state of the Republican Party, whose organizational weakness and doctrinal vacuity have been blatant from the time Trump burst onto the scene in 2016. A veritable media showman, the billionaire, despite a few obstacles, was already using his communication skills to win the Republican nomination. Senior party members stood by helplessly as Trump shaped the party into his own image. Despite his underperformance in the 2018 midterms, his defeat in 2020 and the failure of his candidates in 2022, Republican officials could not unseat him.

The party has lost its ideological compass. On the right, many never-Trumpers – influential former elected officials such as Liz Cheney, or public intellectuals David French and Bill Kristol – have stated that Trump is not a conservative. But they fail to shake the Trumpist mix of left populism (protectionism), and right (immigration, tough on crime and arbitrary nationalism) mixed with Reaganesque rhetoric (“Make America Great Again” was coined during Reagan’s 1980 presidential campaign).

Playing the victim

But Reagan’s promise was one of happy optimism that is absent in Trump’s “carnage” rhetoric, which shamelessly exploits his base electorate by fueling the fears of anti-immigrants, religious fundamentalists, racists and isolationists. United in a wide, populist synthesis, is a coalition that has swept aside the old Republican establishment. As a new generation of Trumpist elected officials emerged during the primaries, Republican elites, paralyzed by the weight of the Trumpist base, have swallowed their pride and kept a low profile, leaving the party open to charismatic dissenters in search of scapegoats.

You have 63.77% of this article left to read. The rest is for subscribers only.