The Orange Man cometh again: The Trump phenomenon
By Achike Chude
The story of the American ‘social, cultural, and political revolution’ will not be complete until the November 5, 2024 general election is concluded. History is about to be created in an unprecedented manner by a man who has wittingly or unwittingly defined American politics like no man or woman has in the past decade, or ever for that matter.
A decade ago, Donald Trump, was the beloved entertainer, business mogul, and billionaire of the mainstream media and Hollywood. He was one of America’s favourite high profile citizens and enjoyed the company of men and women of power and influence. He dined and wined with people of all races, Whites, Blacks, Latinos, and minorities, sometimes leaving in his wake, controversial statements that ruffled feathers that his friends in the mainstream media and Hollywood were all too willing to forgive.
But not anymore! A decade later, Donald Trump has become one of the most divisive politicians ever in America’s 248 years history. How did this happen? How did a man who evoked so much positive passion years ago among many become a man who inspired fear and hatred in so many more others? How could yesterday’s love become today’s hate in such a dramatic manner? How could the man who once hired out his private jet free of charge to Nelson Mandela and his ANC allies as they visited the United States suddenly be described as a racist time and time again – without proof?
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The reason is clear enough. He did the unthinkable. He declared his intention to run for the presidency of the United States. All hell broke loose as an unprecedented series of intrigues, systemic manipulations and law fare all culminated in several attempts to shame and stop him from a second term presidency of the USA. And of course, assassination.
To pro-establishment people and the administrative state, this was not acceptable. Trump was relevant and loved, only for as long as he kept away from politics. He did not, and what’s worse, he won the presidency in 2016 and lost it in 2020. Now the Orange man is back and threatening to become the 47th president of the United States.
Should he achieve this near impossible feat after the full gamut of establishment attacks and assaults were mobilized against him, he would enter the book of the ages as the entertainer cum unusual politician who broke barriers by instigating a revolt by black Americans against the democratic establishment that they had served loyally for over five decades without a commensurate return; more and more blacks are breaking with the democrats in support of Trump and the Republicans. The Latino voters is another democrat-abandoning demography as well as paradoxically, in some circumstances, – Jews and Muslims who have openly endorsed Trump. Then there is the issue of some of America’s labour unions who have been historically hundred percent democrat-supporting. Not anymore. Many have endorsed Donald Trump.
And then there are so many American voters who believe that the new-age socio-cultural values being pushed and imposed on the society must be resisted.
Hitherto afraid of being labeled misogynistic, homophobic or transphobic, Trump’s appearance on the political firmament has revived the debate on the 1st amendment and inspired resistance among the people against those in and out of government who try to limit their freedom of expression. Now they can dare to take cultural positions and insist that there are only two genders, maintain a forever established fact that men can’t get pregnant, speak up against men in women’s sports, oppose transgender affirmations and medical mutilations of children done in the name of surgeries as well as other related nonsensical and perverted notions being pushed in the society by a deranged left leaning democratic government and allies.
At the foreign arena, the Trump presidency and philosophy continues to be a challenge to the near-insatiable appetite for foreign wars of the American and, to some extent, the European industrial defense complex. Trump’s constant refrain of no more foreign wars is an alarm bell and warning to the neo-cons to gird their loins for resistance. But luckily, when it comes to votes it is the majority votes that count.
Is Trump a man of virtue? By no means he is flawed, sometimes deeply, depending on his particular kind of hubris. Who in humanity is without flaws? But suffice to say, according to the latest polls leading up to the elections, more than half of America’s voters are behind him much to the utter consternation and perplexity of the Trump-maligning media described by Trump as fake news, a name that has annoyingly stuck on them and defines them till this day.
Donald J. Trump, the controversial, much beloved and much hated candidate of the Republican Party has the penchant for self-praise when talking about his achievements: “I have never seen anything like this.”
Who knows! On November 5 when the last vote is cast and the last tally is counted, perhaps the rest of the world would say, “We have never seen anything like this.” The phoenix might rise again on November 5, 2024 in the United States of America.
As for me, I really think that the Orange Man Cometh.
