For the third time in a row, former President Donald Trump is expected to win the Republican nomination. His chances of becoming the 47th president are no worse than 50-50. Not only is President Biden a weak incumbent, but Trump appears to have the momentum and the lead in most of the key swing states.
Never in our nation’s history has a former president been at war with America. But, propelled by political winds, Trump has made himself a warrior-candidate, uniquely accepted by half of voters in a nation at civil war-levels of polarization, coupled with a general distrust of government amidst signs of decline.
On the primary campaign trail, Trump foments rage among his followers. In his Jan. 22 New Hampshire primary victory speech, he shouted his time-tested pronouncement: “This country has gone to hell, this country has gone to hell.”
War is hell, and Trump's fans believe that only he has the blood and guts, energy, strength, and policies to save America.
Trump’s aggressive negativity is a sharp contrast with the traditional norms of campaign communication, a vast deviation from Ronald Reagan’s sunny optimism. His “Morning in America” television commercial amid his 1984 landslide reelection, clashes sharply with another quintessential Trumpian quote: “We're going to bring our country back. With your vote, you're going to put crooked Joe and his protectors on notice that we are coming in November. We're coming to take over the beautiful, beautiful White House, and we're going to run the country the way it's supposed to be run, not the way it's been.”
Not only does “General” Trump promise “to bring our country back” (from hell, one presumes), but he plans to “take over” the White House. No American presidential candidate has ever promised a “takeover” with a Trump-loyal army-in-waiting named Project 2025.
Also present on Trump’s New Hampshire victory stage was Vivek Ramaswamy, basking in the afterglow of his failed campaign. The former primary candidate has quickly morphed into Trump’s considerably more articulate sidekick. Ramaswamy encapsulated the 45th president’s 2024 "at-war" theme. “We are in the middle of a war in this country," he said. "It's not between black and white or even between most Democrats and Republicans. It is between those of us who love this country and a fringe minority who hates the United States of America and what we stand for, between the permanent state and the everyday citizen.”
Here’s an opposing view: “We are in the middle of a war in this country,” that Trump is waging against any person, celebrity, group, political party, branch of government, department, agency, institution, body of law, organization, or established process he deems to be “unfair” or standing between his goal of total domination.
That list includes current and former Republican members of Congress, Trump administration cabinet officials, retired four-star generals, and the media, for consistently generating “fake news," except when the coverage is favorable to him.
Trump’s lies and exaggerations are repeated so often that one-third of American ears have normalized his rantings as truth. Hence, Trump’s war will continue to thrive while his well-oiled multi-platform propaganda and fear machines are operational 24/7, to raise money and churn out promises that double as battle plans.
One controversial battle plan Trump announced during his Veteran’s Day message: to “root out the Communists, Marxists, Fascists, and Radical Left Thugs that live like vermin within the confines of our country, lie, steal, and cheat on elections, and will do anything possible, whether legally or illegally, to destroy America, and the American Dream.”
One of the most effective weapons in Trump’s strategic arsenal is the 38 percent of Americans who believe that Biden’s 2020 election was illegitimate — “stolen,” in Trump's warring words.
Most often, Trump fires artillery about how the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol would have turned out differently, had Vice President Mike Pence “done his job” refusing to certify the votes of the Electoral College. That explains why Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) and Sen. J..D Vance (R-Ohio), perhaps hoping to be named Trump’s running mate, recently stated they would have taken the action that Pence lawfully refused.
Meanwhile, planting political landmines on the campaign trail, Trump vows to rescue the Jan. 6 “hostages” with pardons. (After he finishes being dictator on day one?) Then and always, Trump uses his sympathy weapon, playing the “victim” card with his 91 felony counts, since Biden has weaponized the Justice Department against him.
Last year, the former president officially declared war, unveiling his political manifesto at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC), when he said: “I am your warrior, I am your justice. And for those who have been wronged and betrayed, I am your retribution.” CPAC 2024 is next week, so listen as Trump throws fiery new verbal daggers to motivate the assembly of foot soldiers.
Another battlefront is an email blast I have somehow started to receive with a “Trump War” subject line, highlighted by a red siren mimicking the Drudge Report’s news alerts. “Trump War” points to an all-headline, Trump-friendly clone of Drudge’s famous 1990s-era vintage format — proving that imitation is the greatest form of flattery.
“General” Trump and his army are psyched to fight and torpedo any legislation Trump fears could help Biden. This busy week, the general’s sword hangs over House Speaker Mike Johnson’s (R-La.) refusal to hold a floor vote for Ukraine and Israel military aid. Also, Trump “attacked” NATO and announced plans to conquer the Republican National Committee.
“I am really good at war,” Trump boasted in April 2016. That comes from a man who never wore the uniform but has readily ridiculed those who have. Undeniably, Trump is at war, and if victorious, anyone not in lockstep could become collateral damage.
Myra Adams served on the creative team of two GOP presidential campaigns, in 2004 and 2008.
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