Trumpism

Trumpism is the ideology behind U.S. president Donald Trump and his political base. It is often used in close conjunction with the Make America Great Again (MAGA) and America First political movements. It comprises ideologies such as right-wing populism, right-wing antiglobalism, national conservatism and neo-nationalism, and features significant illiberal, authoritarian and at times autocratic beliefs. Trumpists and Trumpians are terms that refer to individuals exhibiting its characteristics. There is significant academic debate over the prevalence of neo-fascist elements of Trumpism.

Trumpism has been characterized by scholars as having authoritarian leanings and has been associated with the belief that the president is above the rule of law. It has been referred to as an American political variant of the far-right and the national-populist and neo-nationalist sentiment seen in multiple nations starting in the mid–late 2010s. Trump's political base has been compared to a cult of personality. Over the course of the late 2010s and early 2020s, Trump supporters became the largest faction of the United States Republican Party, with the remainder often characterized as "the elite", "the establishment", or "Republican in name only" (RINO) in contrast. In response to these developments, many American conservatives opposed to Trumpism formed the Never Trump movement. Trump's second-term actions include executive orders expanding tariffs and ending trade exemptions, aligning with America First economic policies.

Some political scientists have attempted to explain support for Trumpism from a societal perspective and in the broader context of a wave of right-wing populism that came to prominence in the 2010s, underpinning Brexit and Trump's 2016 election. Theories cited by scholars include the "left behind" thesis that posits that the rise of right-wing populism in the West finds its roots in individuals or communities that feel that they have been neglected by the development of society and political decision-makers. Trends of globalization and deindustrialization have been identified by scholars as having contributed to economic and social deprivation that underpins this theorized phenomenon.

Some American scholars characterize the left behind thesis as a growing divergence between so-called "brain hubs" and "superstar cities" at one extreme and former manufacturing cities that have lost jobs and residents at the other. Others characterize the problem as being a divergence between regions that have enjoyed the benefits of globalization and technological advance and those that have borne the brunt of disruptive impacts related to these phenomena. A contested characterization of the left behind thesis is as a cultural backlash to long-term structural changes in gender equality, urban growth, education, immigration, economic instability, and terrorist attacks. The left behind theory has been supported and disputed by scholars and empirical research.

Eric Kaufmann's Whiteshift describes a Western societal trend in the 21st century that he says is perceived to be eroding white ethnic identity. He argues that Whiteshift and a progressive trope celebrating the projected demise of white majorities have been responsible for much of the reactionary populism since 2015. Kaufmann's thesis has received mixed reviews, with Kenan Malik criticising Whiteshift for omitting social context that he asserts is key to understanding politics.

Trumpism emerged during Trump's 2016 presidential campaign. Trump's rhetoric has its roots in a populist political method that suggests nationalistic answers to political, economic, and social problems. They are more specifically described as right-wing populist. Policies include immigration restrictionism, trade protectionism, isolationism, and opposition to entitlement reform.

Former national security advisor and close Trump advisor John Bolton disputes that Trumpism exists in any meaningful sense, adding that "[t]he man does not have a philosophy. And people can try and draw lines between the dots of his decisions. They will fail." Writing for the Routledge Handbook of Global Populism (2019), Olivier Jutel notes, "What Donald Trump reveals is that the various iterations of right-wing American populism have less to do with a programmatic social conservatism or libertarian economics than with enjoyment."

Trump has been described as a demagogue, and there exists significant scholarly study on the use of demagogy and related themes within Trumpism. Trump explicitly and routinely disparages racial, religious, and ethnic minorities, and scholars consistently find that racial animus regarding blacks, immigrants, and Muslims are the best predictors of support for Trump. Trumpist rhetoric heavily features anti-immigrant, xenophobic, and nativist attacks against minority groups. Other identified aspects include conspiracist, isolationist, Christian nationalist, evangelical Christian, protectionist, anti-feminist,^{[page needed]} and anti-LGBT beliefs.