Date of Award

2024

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

MA in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics

Department

Philosophy

First Advisor

Paul Gaffney

Second Advisor

Michael Henry

Abstract

In 2016, Donald Trump achieved a surprising victory in the general election, despite a series of scandals that would have ended any other politician’s career. In the aftermath of the election, Trump’s base has shown steady support and borderline devotion to the president despite scandals, criminal indictments, and a double impeachment. Why? This research seeks to elucidate the sources of Trump’s apparent political infallibility by using the theoretical framework generated by Eric Voegelin. Voegelin’s perspective allows the identification of two main sources of support for Trumpism: blue collar industrial workers who have seen a decline in their economic prospects due to globalization and the Christian nationalist movement which precedes Trumpism by decades and has his origins in the Puritan movement which provided a foundational myth for what the United States is supposed to be. The research shows that Trump’s populist discourse has been successful because he has been able to place blame on credible enemies for the perception of moral and economic decline his electoral has experienced while at the same time placing himself as the savior of the nation.

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