Trump Effect

Karina V. Korostelina provides insights into the "Trump Effect" and explains that support for Trump among the American general public is based on three complementary pillars. First, Trump champions a specific conception of American national identity that empowers his supporters’ nostalgia for an America of a different era. Second, Trump not only emulates the feelings, perceptions, and beliefs prevalent among broad swathes of American voters, but he has also reinforced and broadened their feelings toward other groups and how they perceive certain social issues. Moreover, Trump not only mirrors the emotions of the American public, but also inspires the use of frustration based anger and insults to achieve desired aims. He addresses the public’s intolerance of uncertainty and ambivalence by providing simpler solutions and blurring the boundary between the leading political parties. Further, Trump employs existing political polarization and has established a new kind of morality. Third, Trump is both challenging the existing political balance of power and promoting coercion and dominance within the U.S. and globally.